<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right"><div class="image"><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5200304369bedda93f000011-1200-706/screen%20shot%202013-08-05%20at%207.03.52%20pm.png?maxX=480" border="0" alt="Megalodon lives evidence " width="480" /><p class="source">Discovery Channel/Megalodon Lives</p></div><p></p></div>A "mockumentary" about the ancient giant shark Megalodon, called Megalodon: The Monster Shark That Lives, has created an uproar by their viewers, and by the <keyword id="41551" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="science">science</keyword> and science-loving community.</p>
<p>Science bloggers are very upset that the "science" channel was spreading lies about sharks, and even actor-nerd Will Wheaton suggested the the Discovery Channel owed its viewers an apology. Its viewers are using social media - including <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DiscoveryChannel" target="_blank">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%40sharkweek%20%23megalodon&amp;src=typd&amp;mode=realtime" target="_blank">Twitter</a> - to voice their outrage.</p>
<p>This is very similar to another fake documentary, which claimed that Mermaids existed, that aired on Animal Planet a few months ago. The documentaries hire actors to play scientists and create false footage that they call "found" to tell their story. And it's just that - a made up story about as real as a sharknado.</p>
<p><a href="http://wilwheaton.net/2013/08/discovery-channel-owes-its-viewers-an-apology/" target="_blank">Will Wheaton said</a>:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Last night, Discovery Channel betrayed that trust during its biggest viewing week of the year. Discovery Channel isn't run by stupid people, and this was not some kind of mistake. <strong>Someone made a deliberate choice to present a work of fiction that is more suited for the SyFy channel as a truthful and factual documentary.</strong> That is disgusting, and whoever made that decision should be ashamed.</p>
<p><a href="http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/science-sushi/2013/08/05/shark-week-jumps-the-shark-an-open-letter-to-discovery-communications/" target="_blank">Discover Magazine blogger Christie Wilcox </a>wrote:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Megalodon: The Monster Shark That Lives </em>was not just a disservice to your genuinely curious audience. It was a lie. You used your reputation to deceive your viewers, and you didn't even apologize for it.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">At least the faux <a href="http://www.southernfriedscience.com/?p=14946" target="_blank"><em>Mermaids</em></a> documentaries on Animal Planet flashed a brief disclaimer explaining that they were false. <em>Megalodon: The Monster Shark That Lives </em>had no such warning. Instead, you <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/entertainment/shark-weeks-ready-shred-sharknado-it-returns-26th-year-6C10809668">did the exact opposite</a>.</p>
<p>As many have noted, there's plenty of <a href="http://contemplativemammoth.wordpress.com/2013/08/05/the-megatooth-shark-megalodon/" target="_blank">awesome things to say about the megalodon</a>, without resorting to making up lies. The only mention that the movie was fiction is a short five-second disclaimer at the beginning of the show which even hedges that "sightings of [a supposed megalodon] continue to this day."</p>
<p>Here's some of the evidence they present. An "image from WWII archives, of a giant shark with a 64 foot tail to dorsal fin span":</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container full"><div class="image"><img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/52003044eab8ea6d31000024-1200-706/screen%20shot%202013-08-05%20at%207.04.23%20pm.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon lives evidence " width="800" /><p class="source">Discovery Channel/Megalodon Lives</p></div><p></p></div>This disturbing image of a giant whale missing it's tail, which, they say "couldn't have been done by any known shark"... only by something th sizes of Megalodon:</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container full"><div class="image"><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/520030446bb3f7b923000010-1200-667/screen%20shot%202013-08-05%20at%207.03.36%20pm.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon lives evidence " width="800" /><p class="source">Discovery Channel/Megalodon Lives</p></div><p></p></div>And another image, of a giant shark attacking a whale:</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container full"><div class="image"><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5200304369bedda93f000011-1200-706/screen%20shot%202013-08-05%20at%207.03.52%20pm.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon lives evidence " width="800" /><p class="source">Discovery Channel/Megalodon Lives</p></div><p></p></div>Hopefully they take the chance to explain themselves during the <a href="http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/shark-week" target="_blank">live aftershow tonight</a>.</p>

People Are Boycotting Shark Week Because Of A Fake Documentary About A Giant Shark

<p><div class="image-container float_right" style="width:480px"><div class="image"><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5200304369bedda93f000011-1200-706/screen%20shot%202013-08-05%20at%207.03.52%20pm.png?maxX=480" border="0" alt="Megalodon lives evidence " width="480" /><p class="source">Discovery Channel/Megalodon Lives</p></div></div>A "mockumentary" about the ancient giant shark Megalodon, called Megalodon: The Monster Shark That Lives, has created an uproar by their viewers, and by the <keyword id="41551" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="science">science</keyword> and science-loving community.</p>
<p>Science bloggers are very upset that the "science" channel was spreading lies about sharks, and even actor-nerd Will Wheaton suggested the the Discovery Channel owed its viewers an apology. Its viewers are using social media — including <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DiscoveryChannel" target="_blank">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%40sharkweek%20%23megalodon&amp;src=typd&amp;mode=realtime" target="_blank">Twitter</a> — to voice their outrage.</p>
<p>This is very similar to another fake documentary, which claimed that Mermaids existed, that aired on Animal Planet a few months ago. The documentaries hire actors to play scientists and create false footage that they call "found" to tell their story. And it's just that — a made up story about as real as a sharknado.</p>
<p><a href="http://wilwheaton.net/2013/08/discovery-channel-owes-its-viewers-an-apology/" target="_blank">Will Wheaton said</a>:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Last night, Discovery Channel betrayed that trust during its biggest viewing week of the year. Discovery Channel isn’t run by stupid people, and this was not some kind of mistake. <strong>Someone made a deliberate choice to present a work of fiction that is more suited for the SyFy channel as a truthful and factual documentary.</strong> That is disgusting, and whoever made that decision should be ashamed.</p>
<p><a href="http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/science-sushi/2013/08/05/shark-week-jumps-the-shark-an-open-letter-to-discovery-communications/" target="_blank">Discover Magazine blogger Christie Wilcox </a>wrote:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Megalodon: The Monster Shark That Lives </em>was not just a disservice to your genuinely curious audience. It was a lie. You used your reputation to deceive your viewers, and you didn’t even apologize for it.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">At least the faux <a href="http://www.southernfriedscience.com/?p=14946" target="_blank"><em>Mermaids</em></a> documentaries on Animal Planet flashed a brief disclaimer explaining that they were false. <em>Megalodon: The Monster Shark That Lives </em>had no such warning. Instead, you <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/entertainment/shark-weeks-ready-shred-sharknado-it-returns-26th-year-6C10809668">did the exact opposite</a>.</p>
<p>As many have noted, there's plenty of <a href="http://contemplativemammoth.wordpress.com/2013/08/05/the-megatooth-shark-megalodon/" target="_blank">awesome things to say about the megalodon</a>, without resorting to making up lies. The only mention that the movie was fiction is a short five-second disclaimer at the beginning of the show which even hedges that "sightings of [a supposed megalodon] continue to this day."</p>
<p>Here's some of the evidence they present. An "image from WWII archives, of a giant shark with a 64 foot tail to dorsal fin span":</p>
<p><div class="image-container full" style="width:800px"><div class="image"><img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/52003044eab8ea6d31000024-1200-706/screen%20shot%202013-08-05%20at%207.04.23%20pm.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon lives evidence " width="800" /><p class="source">Discovery Channel/Megalodon Lives</p></div></div>This disturbing image of a giant whale missing it's tail, which, they say "couldn't have been done by any known shark"... only by something th sizes of Megalodon:</p>
<p><div class="image-container full" style="width:800px"><div class="image"><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/520030446bb3f7b923000010-1200-667/screen%20shot%202013-08-05%20at%207.03.36%20pm.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon lives evidence " width="800" /><p class="source">Discovery Channel/Megalodon Lives</p></div></div>And another image, of a giant shark attacking a whale:</p>
<p><div class="image-container full" style="width:800px"><div class="image"><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5200304369bedda93f000011-1200-706/screen%20shot%202013-08-05%20at%207.03.52%20pm.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon lives evidence " width="800" /><p class="source">Discovery Channel/Megalodon Lives</p></div></div>Hopefully they take the chance to explain themselves during the <a href="http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/shark-week" target="_blank">live aftershow tonight</a>.</p>

<p><div class="image-container float_right" style="width:480px"><div class="image"><img src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/5201b00ceab8eaae4b00000a-1200-924/screen-shot-sharkzilla-6.png?maxX=480" border="0" alt="Screen Shot Sharkzilla" width="480" /><p class="source">Sharkzilla</p></div></div><keyword id="6669397" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Discovery-Channel">Discovery Channel</keyword> is standing by its fake documentary about an ancient giant shark, Megalodon. The two-hour special, called "Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives," aired on Sunday night to kick off <keyword id="1761230" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Shark-Week">Shark Week</keyword>. </p>
<p>Megalodon, a <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/scary-truth-about-megaladon-eating-whales-2013-8">60-foot-long relative of the Great White shark</a>, is real. However, the creature went extinct 2 million years ago. The mockumentary used fake footage and storylines to convince viewers that Megalodon still roams the oceans today.</p>
<p>A disclaimer, confirming that the show was fantasy rather than fact, only ran at the end of the program.</p>
<p>It read: "<span>None of the institutions or agencies that appear in the film are affiliated with it in any way, nor have approved its contents. Though certain events and characters in this film have been dramatized, sightings of 'Submarine' continue to this day. Megalodon was a real shark. Legends of giant <keyword id="6785521" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="sharks">sharks</keyword> persist all over the world. There is still debate about what they might be.</span></p>
<p><span></span><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">Many </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/discovery-channel-fake-megalodon-documentary-2013-8">Discovery Channel viewers felt duped</a><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;"> and </span><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">turned to </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/DiscoveryChannel" target="_blank">Facebook</a><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;"> and </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%40sharkweek%20%23megalodon&amp;src=typd&amp;mode=realtime" target="_blank">Twitter</a><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;"></span><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;"> to express their anger. </span></p>
<p>Michael Sorensen, the executive producer of Shark Week, defends the fake episode. <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2013/08/06/discovery-channel-defends-it-decision-to-air-dramatized-megalodon/" target="_blank">He told FoxNews</a>: “With a whole week of Shark Week programming ahead of us, we wanted to explore the possibilities of Megalodon. It’s one of the most debated shark discussions of all time, can Megalodon exist today? It’s Ultimate Shark Week fantasy. The stories have been out there for years and with 95% of the ocean unexplored, who really knows?”</p>
<p>Just a couple months ago, Animal Planet (also owned by Discovery Communications) <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/charlie-foley-created-animal-planets-mermaids-2013-6">received a similar backlash from viewers</a> after it aired a <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/animal-planets-mermaids-mockumentary-2013-5">fake documentary about mermaids</a>. </p>

Discovery Channel Stands By Its Fake Documentary About A Giant Shark

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54188a7d6da811dd2d8b4567-1200-600/megalodon-lives-evidence-2.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon lives evidence "><p class="source"><span>Discovery Channel/Megalodon Lives</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div>Despite widespread backlash over fake documentaries, supposedly educational networks are turning to them more and more in efforts to net viewers and in the process making people dumber.</p>
<p>Last year's <span style="line-height: 1.5em;">two-hour special on Discovery, called "Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives," <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/majority-of-discovery-channel-viewers-believe-megaldon-exists-2013-8">convinced 70% of viewers</a> that the giant prehistoric shark still exists even as outraged scientists insisted that the show was<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/discovery-channel-fake-megalodon-documentary-2013-8"> ludicrous and almost entirely fictional</a>. It didn't help that Discovery made coy comments about <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/discovery-channel-stands-by-its-fake-documentary-about-a-giant-shark-2013-8">what "might be" true</a>.<br /></span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">This summer, Discovery followed it up with <span>"Megalodon: The New Evidence," which became the highest-rated episode of Shark Week with </span><a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/tv-ratings-shark-week-hits-599707">4.8 million viewers</a><span>.</span></span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">The network also recently aired a fabricated documentary called "Shark of Darkness: Wrath of Submarine" and </span><a href="http://io9.com/shark-week-lied-to-scientists-to-get-them-to-appear-in-1619280737">reportedly lied to scientists</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> to get them to appear in another documentary, "Voodoo Sharks."</span></p>
<p>The similarly bunk "Russian Yeti: The Killer Lives" show aired on the channel in early June. The special follows a filmmaker as he researches footage apparently showing the deaths of nine hikers killed in 1959. <span style="font-size: 15.5555562973022px; line-height: 1.5em;">Perhaps the bigger mystery is how the doomed hikers got access to a high-quality digital camcorder in the late 50s.</span></p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table full"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/540de2cd6bb3f7fe7cfb05e0-1181-591/sharks-6.jpg" border="0" alt="Sharks" style="color: #000000; font-size: 15px;"><p class="source"><span>The Discovery Channel</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">Discovery-owned channel Animal Planet has aired two documentaries in recent years - </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/animal-planets-mermaids-mockumentary-2013-5#the-story-picks-up-nine-years-ago-when-two-boys-stumbled-upon-a-mass-whale-beaching-in-washington-state-mass-whale-die-offs-do-happen-and-have-been-linked-to-navy-sonar-tests-though-the-video-is-staged-1">replete with actors, fabricated events, and faked footage</a><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;"> - which explore the apparently scientific evidence for mermaids.</span></p>
<p>Although Animal Planet admited in a subsequent press release that its "documentary" was <a href="http://www.inquisitr.com/890772/discovery-channel-defends-megalodon-mockumentary/">science-fiction</a>, the show itself presented its material as scientific.</p>
<p>Many viewers seem to take them at their word, with children being especially vulnerable to deception.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
<p>Mermaids are real. Okay. Okay. Just watched the second documentary of mermaids. Yes they are real guys. ???? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/mermaids?src=hash">#mermaids</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/AnimalPlanet">@AnimalPlanet</a></p>
- cheyenne schmedding (@schmeddingc16) <a href="https://twitter.com/schmeddingc16/status/506488329290784768">September 1, 2014</a></blockquote>
<p>Despite mermaids being neither real animals nor existing on the planet, <a href="http://insidetv.ew.com/2013/05/28/mermaids-animal-planet-ratings/">3.6 million viewers watched the latest mermaid special</a>, breaking all records for the channel.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">Not to be outdone in the field of fake <keyword id="41551" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="science">science</keyword>, The History Channel has also joined the trend of undermining its own credibility, airing programs such as "Nostradamus Effect," "Ancient Aliens," and "UFO Hunters" in recent years.</span></p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table full"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/540de193ecad04ac62dbc953-1181-591/history channel bs.jpg" border="0" alt="History Channel BS" style="color: #000000; font-size: 15px;"><p class="source"><span>The History Channel</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div>Each documentary, across all the networks, inevitably contains X-Files-like references to cover-ups and official denials. </p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
<p>We're now claiming that government officials and scientists are lying to the public and that you shouldn't trust them. FFS <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/sharkweek?src=hash">#sharkweek</a></p>
- David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhySharksMatter/status/503617895264288771">August 24, 2014</a></blockquote>
<h3>Faking It</h3>
<p><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">From mermaids to monster sharks, the Discovery Channel's fakes tend to follow a cookie cutter formula.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">Megalodon uses amateur footage, news reports of fatal attacks, and several interviews with shark experts to make its case. </span><span style="line-height: 1.5em; font-size: 15px;">The crew bases their narrative on the research of marine biologist Collin Drake as he travels the world speaking about the shark and gathering evidence.</span></p>
<p>But while the shark itself was real - swimming the oceans two million years ago - the same cannot be said for anything else in the special.</p>
<h3>The documentaries show "found footage" from a fatal attack off the South African coast which apparently left three people dead. It's fake; no such attacks took place.</h3>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table full"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/540f4575ecad04497cdc85e7-1200-600/megalodon-6.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon"><p class="source"><span>The Discovery Channel</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<h3>The documentaries show news reports from "3 News" in South Africa. It's fake; no such channel exists.</h3>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table full"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/540f3de3ecad043158dc85f4-1200-600/megalodon-3.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon"><p class="source"><span>The Discovery Channel</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<h3>The documentaries air photos from the second world war showing the fin and tail of the shark next to a Nazi U-Boat.</h3>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table full"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/540f3e8c6da811a62d973c21-1200-600/megalodon-4.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon"><p class="source"><span>The Discovery Channel</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<h3>This image is an altered still from a historical video, which we tracked down online.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table full"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/540f3ec86da811d52f973c1f-1092-546/megalodon-altered-footage.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon altered footage"><p class="source"><span>www.tarrif.net</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<h3>Searching for the world-renowned marine biologist Collin Drake only finds references to the documentary itself …</h3>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table full"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/540f3f45eab8ea033065a637-1200-600/megalodon-5.png" border="0" alt="Megalodon"><p class="source"><span>The Discovery Channel</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<h3>… but IMDB reveals that he's actually the slightly less qualified actor Darron Meyer, although he did play a doctor in a 2010 sequel to "Free Willy."</h3>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table full"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/540de123ecad04995ddbc95d-1181-591/imdb-3.jpg" border="0" alt="IMDB shots"><p class="source"><span>IMDB</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">The documentaries contain no disclaimers to inform viewers they're watching fiction, though some brief text shown at the start which admits that one or two scenes may have been "dramatized" - quite the </span><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">understatement, unlikely to be intelligible to children, and useless to anyone who starts watching mid-show.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Shark expert David Shiffman</span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> </span><a href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/08/130807-discovery-megalodon-shark-week-great-white-sharks-animals/">told National Geographic</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">, "Discovery is a joke, with the megalodon fiasco only being a confirmation of what has been clear for some time."</span></p>
<p>But despite many viewers (and scientists) <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/discovery-channel-fake-megalodon-documentary-2013-8">voicing their anger</a> at the Discovery Channel, the network stands by its fabrication.</p>
<p>Claiming there was legitimate scientific debate, Shark Week producer Michael Sorensen told Fox News: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/discovery-channel-stands-by-its-fake-documentary-about-a-giant-shark-2013-8#ixzz3Cji7eYrb">"The stories have been out there for years and with 95% of the ocean unexplored, who really knows?"</a></p>
<p>Marine biologists seem to know, and they haven't been quiet about it.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
<p>"Is it possible that a prehistoric shark measuring 70 feet long is still roaming our oceans today?" No. No it is not. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SharkWeek?src=hash">#SharkWeek</a></p>
- David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhySharksMatter/status/503610350512517120">August 24, 2014</a></blockquote>
<p>Schiffman told <a href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/08/130807-discovery-megalodon-shark-week-great-white-sharks-animals/">National Geographic</a>, "Discovery bills itself as the premier science <keyword id="6355445" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Education">education</keyword> television station in the world, and they're perpetuating this utter nonsense."</p>
<p>Indeed, much to the Discovery Channel's disappointment, every expert who has commented on either documentary agrees the Megalodon went extinct roughly 1.5 million years ago.</p>
<p>If there were any actual scientific debate, the Discovery Channel probably wouldn't have needed to doctor footage, fake news reports, and pay actors to play "scientific experts."</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">Business Insider reached out to History and Discovery for comment on these criticisms but did not receive a response.</span></p>

Discovery Is Becoming More And More Ridiculous With Its Fake Documentaries

<img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5e3db05de35bab179767d52a-2400/etsyartupload.jpg" alt="Etsy artist Annie Morcos" /><ul class="summary-list"><li>TikTok has become a powerful new marketing tool for artists looking to drive sales on the e-commerce platform Etsy.</li><li>Creators are using TikTok to highlight their work and attract art commissions from their followers. </li><li>Business Insider spoke to four artists - Annie Morcos, Elizabeth Nigro, Bree Eral, and Alexandria Bishop - to learn how they are leveraging the app to generate thousands of dollars in new sales on Etsy.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/prime">Click here for more BI Prime stories</a>.</li></ul><p>TikTok users love watching artists at work.</p><p>Art-themed videos are blowing up on the app, with the hashtag #art appearing in 38 billion video streams and #artist driving 9.6 billion views to date.</p><p>Business-savvy artists have taken note and are using TikTok's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-hits-15-billion-downloads-outperforming-instagram-2019-11">fast-growing audience</a> to generate art commissions and sales on the e-commerce platform Etsy.</p><p>Graphic artist and animator Annie Morcos said she started taking TikTok seriously last month when <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@anniesartstudio/video/6777842251172220165" target="_blank" rel="noopener">one of her videos</a> attracted 3.2 million likes and 17.9 million views. The Los Angeles-based creator added her Etsy shop name to her TikTok bio so her 318,000 followers would know where they could buy her art. </p><p>"I really didn't sell a lot of my artwork before, and in the past two months, all my art on my Etsy is flying," she said. "Everybody that follows me on TikTok wants a piece of my work."</p><p>Morcos said she charges anywhere from $9.99 for a pair of resin earrings to $2,000 for a custom painting. In the past two months, she's earned close to $4,000 in sales on Etsy. Before joining TikTok, her best month of sales was $500. In some months, she said she would earn nothing from the e-commerce website. </p><p>"They always leave a comment saying 'I found you on TikTok, I love your videos, I love your art,'" she said about her new Etsy customers. "It's really changed my little art world. I focus on TikTok now more than anywhere else."</p><h2>'TikTok is an amazing advertising platform'</h2><p>Elizabeth Nigro, 22, doesn't have a huge following on TikTok compared to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tik-tok-stars-live-rent-free-in-mansion-sway-house-2020-1">the app's top stars.</a> But many of her <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@lizzardbird" target="_blank" rel="noopener">73,700 followers</a> have become customers, reaching out through the app to buy her custom bound books on Etsy. </p><p>"It kind of turned out that TikTok is an amazing advertising platform," she told Business Insider. "During the summer I joined as a joke, and then it became serious. Each time I post a video on TikTok, my activity on Etsy definitely has gone up," she said. </p><p>Nigro said most of her custom book commissions come from TikTok, where she's posted her Etsy store name in her account bio. She charges $60 for a small book, $200 to $300 for a custom medium-size book (6 inches by 9 inches), and $400 for a book that is larger or has a custom embroidered design.</p><p>Nigro makes roughly $1,000 each month from book sales, which supplements her income from working as a library aid.</p><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5e3dc9420ce3d13b1d497cb7-1498/img9888.jpg" alt="Elizabeth Nigro, Etsy Artist" /><p>TikTok has also helped Nigro grow her audience on Instagram, which jumped from 500 to more than <a href="https://www.instagram.com/bythecrow/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">3,000 followers</a> after joining the app. </p><p>"I try and get a video out at least once a week, but it's hard because I have to produce a book as well as record it," she said. "It's a nice balance I have to get down. TikTok blew me up. I'm pretty thankful for it."</p><h2>TikTok artists can use the app's livestream feature to sell their art</h2><p>One of the main ways that TikTok creators earn money on the app is by livestreaming to their followers.</p><p>During a livestream, users can send a creator virtual "gifts" that are transferable into real dollars. But artists on the app have found another way to monetize livestreams: selling their artwork. </p><p>Bree Eral, 26, built an audience on TikTok by filming herself spray painting art. She now has <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@battyj0kes93" target="_blank" rel="noopener">105,000 followers</a> on the app. </p><p>"People watch the videos, find one [painting] that they really like, and they'll ask for that one or it will give them ideas for commissions," she said. </p><p>She charges between $25 to $85 for a painting and makes at least 25 paintings each month. It takes her roughly four hours to make each painting, a process she films for TikTok posts.</p><p>Her first Etsy sale came from a TikTok user who watched her make a painting during a livestream on the app.</p><p>"I did a huge 24 [inch] by 30 [inch] Legend of Zelda canvas on live, put it on Etsy, and someone that watched the live video bought it five minutes later," she said. "It was really cool because it was somebody that actually watched me make it."</p><p>"People like seeing the process of how their canvas is made," she said. "I think they take interest in being able to see how each step goes."</p><p>Eral said she connects with potential customers in TikTok's comments section, and will post a buyer's TikTok username next to a commissioned work on Etsy so other customers know a painting has already been claimed. </p><h2>TikTok videos showing how art is packaged and shipped are also popular on the app</h2><p>TikTok users are interested in every stage of an artist's creative process. There's even an audience for how creators pack up their artwork for shipment.</p><p>"My favorite thing recently has been showing people how I package up my art," said Alexandria Bishop, an artist and TikTok creator with <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@aallybishop" target="_blank" rel="noopener">20,000 followers</a>.</p><p>Bishop, 26, experiments with different techniques like <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@aallybishop/video/6785785765294066950" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sculpting</a> and <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@aallybishop/video/6780199944822344966" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wood-burning</a> on her TikTok account, but it's still a part-time gig. She makes most of her income working as a manager at an adult foster care home and from part-time contracts as a special effects makeup artist. She said she earns roughly $400 for a commissioned painting with a custom frame, and in a good month will make $1,000 from her art.</p><p>"I've been trying to make videos that show my process," she said. "I don't think they realize the work that artists and small businesses put into every piece of work."</p><p>"My packing videos are me packing up, step-by-step, with butcher paper wrapped around my book and using pretty thread and wax seals to pack up my books in this kind of old-world way," Nigro said. "It really kind of reminds of those ASMR videos where people do these slow things. I think showcasing how I gift my products to the person who bought it is a good way of advertising as well."</p><p><strong>For more on how TikTok creators are using the app to make money, check out these other Business Insider Prime posts:</strong></p><ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-photographer-gains-3-million-followers-3-months-quits-job-2020-1">A TikTok photographer explains how he gained 3 million followers in 3 months and was able to quit his job as an insurance actuary</a>: Alexander Stemplewski quit his job to focus on social media and photography. Here are the three ways he plans to earn a living as an influencer.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/older-tiktok-video-producers-making-money-sponsored-posts-cpm-rate-2020-1">How a pair of 30-year-old video producers turned TikTok from a side gig to their main job</a>: TikTok's biggest stars tend to be in Generation Z. But as the app gains popularity in the US, other generations are cashing in on sponsored content.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-tiktok-talent-agency-manager-for-influencers-talentx-2020-1">How TalentX plans to rule TikTok, starting with 32 influencers and a Los Angeles mansion</a>: TalentX Entertainment is eyeing brand partnerships, merchandising, live events, and television and film development for its roster of TikTok stars.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-influencer-marketers-use-tiktoks-creator-marketplace-features-2020-1">Marketers share what it's like to use TikTok's invite-only tool for finding the right influencers to hire for brand deals</a>: Business Insider spoke with marketers who are beta testing TikTok's new matchmaking tool for influencers and brands, Creator Marketplace.</li></ul><p class="tagline"><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/stories-slide-deck?IR=T&amp;itm_source=businessinsider&amp;itm_medium=ctgr_bii&amp;itm_term=ctgr_leadgen&amp;itm_content=tiktok&amp;itm_campaign=stories-slide-deck"><img src="https://static.businessinsider.com/image/5bd375adcd6f3842155a1a29" alt="Exclusive FREE Report: The Stories Slide Deck by Business Insider Intelligence" style="width: 100% !important" /></a></p><blockquote class="tiktok-embed" cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@battyj0kes93/video/6738468556838653190" data-video-id="6738468556838653190" style="max-width: 605px;min-width: 325px;"> <section><a target="_blank" title="@battyj0kes93" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@battyj0kes93">@battyj0kes93</a> <p>Bakugou commission, this ones different-ish pt5😄<a title="fanart" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/fanart">#fanart</a><a title="bnha" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/bnha">#bnha</a><a title="mha" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/mha">#mha</a><a title="spraypaint" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/spraypaint">#spraypaint</a><a title="art" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/art">#art</a><a title="myart" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/myart">#myart</a><a title="etsy" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/etsy">#etsy</a><a title="fyp" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/fyp">#fyp</a></p> <a target="_blank" title="♬ Boom - Megalodon" href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/Boom-252997903730737153">♬ Boom - Megalodon</a> </section></blockquote> <blockquote class="tiktok-embed" cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@lizzardbird/video/6765580567535701254" data-video-id="6765580567535701254" style="max-width: 605px;min-width: 325px;"> <section><a target="_blank" title="@lizzardbird" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@lizzardbird">@lizzardbird</a> <p>Woke up with not one, but THREE orders! Thank you so much!! <a title="bookbinding" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/bookbinding">#bookbinding</a> <a title="book" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/book">#book</a> <a title="fyp" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/fyp">#fyp</a> <a title="aesthetic" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/aesthetic">#aesthetic</a> <a title="youpage" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/youpage">#youpage</a> <a title="art" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/art">#art</a> <a title="journal" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/journal">#journal</a> <a title="oldcraft" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/oldcraft">#oldcraft</a> <a title="medieval" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/medieval">#medieval</a> <a title="etsy" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/etsy">#etsy</a><a title="pretty" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/pretty">#pretty</a></p> <a target="_blank" title="♬ original sound - k.usch" href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-6712970421739817734">♬ original sound - k.usch</a> </section></blockquote> 

TikTok has become a powerful marketing tool for some Etsy sellers, who say they're using it to make thousands of dollars in art sales

<p>As 2013 draws to a close, <em>RealClearScience</em> will be counting down the top 10 science stories of 2013 - the stories that awed you, affected you, and made you rethink what was possible.</p>
<p>But let us not forget the stories that did just the opposite - the stories that irked you, disgusted you, and made you want to cry, "BS!"</p>
<p>Brace yourself. This could get ugly.</p>
<h3>10. A scientist claimed vaccines make you gay</h3>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container full"><div class="image on-image"><img src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/52ab65786bb3f783300aafbd-1200-600/vaccine-medicine.jpg?maxX=800" border="0" alt="vaccine medicine" width="800" /><p class="source"><span>Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images</span></p></div><p></p></div>In March of this year, Gian Paolo Vanoli, a 70-year-old Italian scientist, ludicrously claimed that vaccines are causing homosexuality. Here's his "impeccable" reasoning, as told to <a href="http://www.vice.com/it/read/intervista-movimento-5-stelle-gian-paolo-vanoli" target="_self"><em>Vice</em></a> and translated by the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/01/vaccines-produce-homosexuality-gay-gian-paolo-vanoli_n_2992953.html" target="_self"><em>Huffington Post</em></a>:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">The vaccine is introduced into the child, the child then grows and tries to find its own personality, and if this is inhibited by mercury or other substances present in the vaccine which enter the brain, the child becomes gay.</p>
<p>Vanoli's logic lies in stark opposition to the facts. <a href="http://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/vaccines-are-gay/" target="_self">Vaccines have no bearing on sexual orientation</a>, whatsoever. According to the <a href="http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/sexual-orientation.aspx" target="_self">American Psychological Association</a>, there is no concrete consensus about what determines someone's orientation. "Many think that nature and nurture both play complex roles; most people experience little or no sense of choice about their sexual orientation.</p>
<p>While vaccines have never made anybody gay, they have, however, <a href="http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/11/27/the-vaccination-effect-100-million-cases-of-contagious-disease-prevented/?_r=0" target="_self">prevented 100 million cases of contagious</a> disease in American children since 1924.</p>
<h3>9. A TIME Magazine cover "cured cancer"</h3>
<p><em>Time Magazine</em>'s cover on April 1st blared the hopeful headline like a lighthouse's shimmering beacon: "HOW TO CURE CANCER." And their method was simple: treat the disease like it's a Hollywood big-budget blockbuster. The cover story itself, written by Bill Saporito, was full of charming anecdotes and blunt statistics, but little science.</p>
<p>"He mentions one study in which researchers doubled the two-year survival rate of pancreatic cancer - to 9 percent. How did Saporito distill this into the cover language saying that dream teams know how to cure cancer?" Paul Raeburn <a href="http://ksj.mit.edu/tracker/2013/03/time-magazine-wins-war-cancer" target="_self">critiqued</a>.</p>
<p>Over at <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/medical_examiner/2013/03/how_to_cure_cancer_time_magazine_s_april_1_cover_is_wrong_and_cruel.html" target="_self"><em>Slate</em></a>, Seth Mnookin was even more scathing of the story and headline.</p>
<p>"[It's] completely, utterly, inarguably false. The roughly 580,000 Americans who will die this year from cancer know the reality all too well."</p>
<h3>8. PETA claimed chicken wings can shrink a baby's penis</h3>
<p>In August, <a href="http://www.peta.org/media/news-releases/keep-pregnant-women-sake-sons-sex-organs-peta-tells-buffalo-wing-festival/" target="_self">People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals</a> (PETA) issued an ominous warning to all expecting mothers.</p>
<p>"The latest scientific evidence shows that the sons of pregnant women who consume chicken are more likely to have smaller penises because of a chemical found in the birds' flesh."</p>
<p>That's pretty scary stuff, so the editors at <a href="http://blog.womenshealthmag.com/scoop/peta-chicken-pregnant-penis-size/?cm_mmc=Facebook-_-womenshealth-_-content-scoop-_-ChickenPenisSize" target="_self"><em>Women's Health Magazine</em></a> diligently took it upon themselves to dig into PETA's claim. What they discovered was decidedly not as frightening to poultry consumers.</p>
<p>The "evidence" that PETA cited didn't even look at chicken consumption, but at compounds called phthalates. Researchers from the prestigious Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai found that maternal exposure to these compounds can decrease the amount of testosterone a boy is exposed to in the womb. <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/biomonitoring/Phthalates_FactSheet.html" target="_self">Low levels of phthalates</a> are used in vinyl flooring, adhesives, detergents, lubricating oils, automotive plastics, plastic clothes (raincoats), and personal-care products. By comparison, chicken contains very, very little.</p>
<p>"I think any link between eating buffalo wings - even by pregnant women - and the size of their son's genitals is <em>very tenuous," </em>lead researcher<em> </em>Shanna H. Swan told <em>Women's Health</em>.</p>
<h3>7. A chiropractor broke a baby's neck</h3>
<p>Last year, two Australian parents took their four-month-old infant to a chiropractor to treat the baby's torticollis, a condition characterized by an abnormal head or neck position. Instead of a remedy, the baby received a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hangman%27s_fracture" target="_self">hangman's fracture</a> to the upper spine.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.realclearscience.com/blog/2013/10/pediatrician-claims-babys-neck-broken-by-chiropractor.html" target="_self">The story</a> came to light this fall in the <em>Sydney Morning Herald</em>. Also covered was the follow-up investigation undertaken by the Chiropractic Board of Australia, who, unsurprisingly, found no evidence of wrongdoing and "punished" the chiropractor with additional training in the field of pediatric chiropractic. Showing a distinct lack of caring for the infant, <a href="http://theconversation.com/the-chiropractic-war-with-reality-rages-on-19357" target="_self">chiropractors of Australia simply obfuscated and denied</a>.</p>
<p>However, what chiropractors can't in good conscience deny is that pediatric chiropractic is <a href="http://www.chiromt.com/content/16/1/11" target="_self">supported by almost no evidence</a> and very likely is totally ineffectual.</p>
<h3>6. A scientist used math to "prove" gay marriage is wrong</h3>
<p><a href="http://io9.com/nigerian-grad-student-uses-magnets-to-prove-gay-marri-1326215449" target="_self">This year, Chibuihem Amalaha used magnets to "prove" that gay marriage is wrong</a>. His logic goes a little something like this: north and south poles of magnets are attracted to each other, but the same poles repel. Therefore, this obviously "means that man cannot attract another man because they are the same, and a woman should not attract a woman because they are the same."</p>
<p>For extra credit, Amalaha applied his "exemplary" math skills to the issue, and came up with the same conclusion!</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">"If we use A as a man and use B as a woman we are going to have B + A that is woman and man showing that there is a reaction. A + B reacted, they interchanged and gave us B + A showing that commutativity obeys that a man should not marry a man and a woman should not marry a woman... But in the case of idempotency A + A will give you A showing that it goes unreacted. You started with A and you meet A, the final result is A. Showing that a man meeting a man A + A will produce a man there is no reaction, it goes unreacted and in chemical engineering you have to send the material back to the reactor for the action to be carried out again showing that it goes unreacted. That is how mathematics has shown that gay marriage is wrong because commutativity proves that gay marriage is wrong."</p>
<p>Amalaha may still be a grad student, but he's already bullish on his chances of winning a Nobel Prize some day. If his current work is any indication, he doesn't have a snowball's chance in hell.</p>
<h3>5. Portland rejected water fluoridation</h3>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container full"><div class="image on-image"><img src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/52ab650469bedd376c0aafc0-1200-600/portlandia-2.png" border="0" alt="portlandia" width="800" /><p class="source"><span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ohk-Ey01c9k">YouTube/IFC</a></span></p></div><p></p></div>The <a href="http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2013/05/portland_fluoride_for_the_four.html#incart_maj-story-1" target="_self">waning hours </a>of Tuesday, May 21st saw many blue-clad Portlanders gleefully clapping and smiling. Why? Because they had just successfully voted to reject <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/fluoridation/" target="_self">one of the ten greatest public health achievements</a> of the 20th century: water fluoridation.</p>
<p>It was the fourth time the Pacific Northwest metropolis had rejected the measure, making it still the sole city <a href="http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2013/05/portland_fluoride_for_the_four.html#incart_maj-story-1" target="_self">among the nation's 30 most populous</a> to not approve fluoridation.</p>
<p>Critics of the measure smeared it as nothing more than an insidious attempt to place a toxic pollutant in the water supply, arguing that it would lead to lowered IQs, thyroid dysfunction, and mottled teeth, among other frightening outcomes. But they couldn't have gotten the science more wrong.</p>
<p>Water fluoridation adds <a href="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/but-not-simpler/2013/05/22/why-portland-is-wrong-about-water-fluoridation/" target="_self">no more than 1 part per million to the drinking supply</a>, a minute amount that has produced few if any adverse effects in people or to the environment for over six decades. But still, the addition of this tiny mineral <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_fluoridation" target="_self">can reduce rates of childhood cavities</a> anywhere from twenty to fifty percent!</p>
<p>Apparently, Portlanders favor that more natural, toothless smile.</p>
<h3>4. Anti-Vaxxer Jenny McCarthy joined The View</h3>
<p>In July, ABC announced that Jenny McCarthy, an actress and television personality noted for her anti-vaccination views, would be joining the daytime program <em>The View</em>. So began a righteous uproar from writers and organizations concerned with public health.</p>
<p>For years, McCarthy has trumpeted the discredited idea that vaccines cause autism and has actively campaigned against them.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/elements/2013/07/jenny-mccarthys-dangerous-views.html" target="_self">Writing at <em>The New Yorker</em></a>, Michael Specter had this to say about McCarthy's hiring: "Jenny McCarthy, who will join 'The View' in September, will be the show's first co-host whose dangerous views on childhood vaccination may - if only indirectly - have contributed to the sickness and death of people throughout the Western world."</p>
<p>Since joining <em>The View</em> in October, McCarthy has wisely remained silent on vaccination. Hopefully, this will continue.</p>
<h3>3. Bigfoot DNA sequenced</h3>
<p>In the past, all Bigfoot believers had were blurry videos and long-distance photos. But that all changed this past February when forensic scientists in Texas claimed that they had sequenced Sasquatch's DNA!</p>
<p>"The data conclusively proves that the Sasquatch exist as an extant hominin and are a direct maternal descendant of modern humans," the team wrote in a paper published to <a href="http://io9.com/5984205/researchers-publish-bigfoot-genome-in-brand+new-journal-they-themselves-founded" target="_self">a brand new journal they founded themselves</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/2013/07/an-honest-attempt-to-understand-the-bigfoot-genome-and-the-woman-who-created-it/" target="_self">Careful analysis spearheaded by John Timmer at <em>Ars Technica</em></a> would later wholly refute their assertion. The samples the team worked on were seriously contaminated. They were not from a mythical ape creature but more likely from various animal sources.</p>
<h3>2. The return of Cold Fusion</h3>
<p>There are few scientific ventures more exciting than fusion energy. Fusing together two elements releases a large amount of clean energy - energy that could power the Earth for tens of thousands of years and also be used to propel us to nearby stars.</p>
<p>Such a bright outlook breeds hucksters, however - people who seek to lure you in with hope while parting you from your money. Where fusion is concerned, the most commonly known hoax is the E-Cat, a device that supposedly fuses nickel and hydrogen at room temperature. (Fusion is supposed to require massive temperatures and pressures.)</p>
<h3>1. Terrible nature "documentaries"</h3>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container full"><div class="image on-image"><img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/52ab662569bedd196e0aafcb-1000-500/mermaid-1.jpg" border="0" alt="mermaid" width="800" /><p class="source"><span>Shutterstock</span></p></div><p></p></div>This year, the #1 junk science story of 2013 is a shared honor, and it belongs to Animal Planet and Discovery Channel for producing perhaps the worst - and definitely the most misleading - nature "documentaries" in recent memory.</p>
<p>The fishy fabrications started in May. <a href="http://digitaljournal.com/article/351217" target="_self">Animal Planet aired "Mermaids: The New Evidence,"</a> weaving together shaky video evidence and genuine scientific theories to entertain and mislead viewers. The only clue to the documentary's fictitious nature was provided at the tail end of the program in the form of an ephemeral disclaimer.</p>
<p><a href="http://deepseanews.com/2013/10/fishful-thinking-five-reasons-why-mermaids-cant-physically-exist/" target="_self">Mermaids, of course, don't exist.</a> No physical evidence has ever been uncovered supporting their existence. Besides, how would they defecate?</p>
<p>Noticing the record ratings that Animal Planet reeled in, Discovery Channel followed up with a fictitious documentary showing that Megalodon, the 60-foot-long extinct mega shark, still exists today. Except they didn't even provide a disclaimer that it was fake!</p>
<p>Boatloads of complaints flowed in, none perhaps more perfectly stated than <a href="http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/science-sushi/2013/08/05/shark-week-jumps-the-shark-an-open-letter-to-discovery-communications/#.Uqdjmo1Rbfs" target="_self">that of marine biologist Christie Wilcox, who wrote an open letter to Animal Planet</a>:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">The real science of these animals should have been more than enough to inspire Discovery Channel viewers. But it's as if you don't care anymore about presenting the truth or reality... And the sad part is, you are so well trusted by your audience that you actually convinced them: according to your poll, upwards of 70% of your viewing public fell for the ruse and now believes that Megalodon isn't extinct.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Megalodon: The Monster Shark That Lives </em> was not just a disservice to your genuinely curious audience. It was a lie. You used your reputation to deceive your viewers, and you didn't even apologize for it.</p>
<p>That's why a great many people were surprised this spring when an <a href="http://arxiv.org/abs/1305.3913v2" target="_self">independent test</a> seemed to show that the E-Cat works!</p>
<p>But the cautious excitement was short-lived. <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/startswithabang/2013/05/21/the-e-cat-is-back-and-people-are-still-falling-for-it/" target="_self">Physicists Ethan Siegel and Peter Thieberger thoroughly trounced the paper (which had not been peer-reviewed)</a>. Wrote Siegel:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">If this were an undergraduate science experiment, I'd give the kids an F, and have them see me. There's <strong>no valid information</strong> contained here, just the assumption of success, the reliance on supplied data, and ballpark estimates that appear to be supplied "from the manufacturer."</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><strong>This is not a valid way to do science <em>at</em><em> all</em></strong>. And this is certainly not even close to meeting the criteria required for <em>extraordinary evidence</em> to back up such an extraordinary claim.</p>
<h3>More From RealClearScience:</h3>
<ul>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.realclearscience.com/blog/2013/12/should_we_stop_treating_adhd.html">The False ADHD Controversy</a></strong></li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.realclearscience.com/blog/2013/12/x_ways_a_poor_nights_sleep_messes_with_your_day.html">6 Ways A Poor Night's Sleep Messes With You</a></strong></li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.realclearscience.com/blog/2013/12/heat_death_the_ultimate_fate_of_our_universe.html">Heat Death Is The Ultimate Fate Of Our Universe</a></strong></li>
</ul>

You Searched For "Megalodon" and got 6 results

People Are Boycotting Shark Week Because Of A Fake Documentary About A Giant Shark

Jennifer Welsh

People Are Boycotting Shark Week Because Of A Fake Documentary About A Giant Shark

Jennifer Welsh

Discovery Channel Stands By Its Fake Documentary About A Giant Shark

Dina Spector

Discovery Is Becoming More And More Ridiculous With Its Fake Documentaries

Ben Winsor

TikTok has become a powerful marketing tool for some Etsy sellers, who say they're using it to make thousands of dollars in art sales

Dan Whateley

10 Dumb Things 'Science' Said In 2013

RealClearScience