Frozen Planet scandal: Sir David Attenborough defends fake polar bear footage

Daily Mirror (UK) ^ | 12/13/2011 | Simon Boyle

[Old Teufel Hunden]

"SIR David Attenborough yesterday defended Frozen Planet’s fake polar bear footage – by comparing BBC nature documentaries to movies"

Then we should treat them as movies. In other words, fiction....

[Notwithstanding]

Environmentalists got caught in a lie?
Shocked. Just shocked and saddened.

(it worked for Al gore)

[Fractal Trader]

Pesky polar bear ping

[marty60]

Yes Mr Attenboro we know all Environmental wacko stuff is fantasy.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

It’s OK when Lefties lie, because the ends justifies the means.

[beaversmom]

This isn't really that big of a deal to me. I've known for a while now that animal programs use different tricks to enhance the experience. Not sure if it's done in every show, but I heard a long time ago that the sounds of the wild are put in later. As long as they are recreating things that actually happen in nature, I don't have a problem with it.

The things that bother me are when they crop a photo (or edit a film), like the famous polar bears on ice, to make it look like they are stuck at sea. Misleading for an agenda is wrong. If that was what Sir David was doing, then I can't be for that.

[steelyourfaith]

 

Beam me to Planet Gore !

[Jack Hydrazine]

Fake but accurate. The UK’s Dan Rather!

[steelyourfaith]

Thanx for the ping Fractal Trader. I was distracted in the midst of being possibly the first respondent on this thread,

[kitkat]

“The things that bother me are when they crop a photo (or edit a film), like the famous polar bears on ice, to make it look like they are stuck at sea.”

Yes, and then there was the woman who said SHE took the picture and it was spring when the ice always melts, and the polar bear and cub were within swimming distance of the ice floe.

[Proud2BeRight]

algore has requested the next polar bear filming in Florida with palm trees, white sand, and beach chairs.

[JerseyHighlander]

Episode Seven has Attenborough on camera destroying his reputation and destroying his legacy. He does so fully conscious of his chosen actions and fully aware that he is repeating extremist sensationalist propaganda that has no scientific basis.

The underwater episode footage is just absolutely amazing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/climatechange/8923287/Lord-Lawson-accuses-Sir-David-Attenborough-of-sensationalism.html

[Lady Lucky]

“Soon it’s heart stops beating, it ceases to breathe, and it’s body starts to freeze – first it’s gut, then it’s blood.”

Then it’s apostrophes reach critical mass and million’s of them burst forth from it’s brains.

[EnigmaticAnomaly]

Lol...nice retort, Lady...:)

[hsalaw]

Dittos. It must be painful to be so stupid as to not know the difference between “its” (possessive) and “it’s” (contraction of “it is”).

[CodeToad]

David Attenborough seems to be taking Dan Rather’s lying stance: “Fake, but accurate.”

[Army Air Corps]

Isn't that Michael Moore’s defense when he is confronted with the mounds of falsehoods in his “documentaries?” He has said something to the effect of “Hey, I am just an entertainer!”

[facedown]

We watched the documentary "Beavers" and it was great. The accompanying "How this was made" part though was sort of disappointing. The beavers were totally conditioned to the film crew so they weren't exactly natural. On the other hand, they wouldn't have been able to get many of the shots they did if the beavers weren't used to them being around. So I guess in the end there's a trade off between filming wildlife completely unaware vs. getting more intimate footage that you couldn't otherwise.

Unnaturally staged or contrived footage is, of course, another story.

[Hacklehead]

Fake? The next thing you know we will find out the Bear Grylls really doesn’t sleep out in the woods when filming Man vs Wild. :-)