TheDodo and Discovery Channel – Unlikely Frenemies

You probably haven’t heard that the Discovery Channel – and Discovery Media – have agreed to fund and share content with theDodo.com, a website that attacks aquariums and marine parks with little evidence, interspersed with click bait images of cute animals.

As animals lovers, we think this is an amazing feat – to secure funding with a partner that you attack for portraying animals in a bad light.

Nice job if you have no scruples.

But here’s the interesting part: theDodo.com doesn’t necessarily agree with the Discovery Channel and much of their programming.

There were two articles shared on the site during Shark Week 2014 criticizing the network for their sensationalist “mockumentaries.”

Here’s an excerpt from one of those articles:

After an utter failure of a #sharkchat with Shark Week on Twitter (where the main topic was ice cream), already fed up scientists absolutely exploded when it came out that the supposed shark of Lake Ontario (who already had a twitter account) was all an elaborate hoax by the very program that once worked to promote a positive shark image. 

As Discovery Channel continues to rake in viewers who are attracted to mockumentaries and dramatized shark attacks, it loses the audience that will actually make a difference: conservation – minded citizens.

Shark Week, many viewers are absolutely disgusted with you right now.

Discovery’s funding of the attacks site is like Weight Watchers buying up stock in McDonalds. It feels good in the moment but really doesn’t make any darn sense.

We shouldn’t be surprised that theDodo.com would take money from anyone. They’ve proven to not have journalistic standards when publishing baseless accusations without confirmation.

We don’t expect any moral compass when grabbing the cash.

However, it is a wonder that Discovery Media would fund a website that attacks it’s programming and who display no ethical standards when attacking organizations from which Discovery partners with.

We wonder if all the various aquariums and marine animals experts who Discovery films will be so willing to work with Discovery in the future? Especially after learning that they fund PETA’s mouthpiece?