When people think of sharks in the media, they typically envision a woman swimming in the open ocean, blissfully unaware of the giant set of teeth ready to tear her apart, only a foot away. This particular scene is found in Jaws (1975), The Meg (2018), and Deep Blue Sea (1999). Another might think of a bunch of sharks flailing in the air, ready to wreak havoc, in front of a Ferris wheel. If you are wondering why there is a Ferris wheel in the background, that would be an excellent question. It is because the sharks are swept up into a tornado, which sets the stage for the cult classic Sharknado. (2013) Despite these movies’ differences, they all have one thing in common- sharks are the enemy. You are meant to fear them.

Lately, I have noticed a phenomenon in the media. Sharks, which were so feared before, have turned into “sea puppies.” People have come to their defense, to the point that dolphins, once a revered creature looked upon with wonder, are now demonized, while sharks have been infantilized. Kids even sing about it- Baby Shark is the most-watched video on YouTube, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Picture this: you are swimming in a vast ocean, when suddenly you come across a great white shark. Do you

1. A) Panic and swim away as swiftly as possible
2. B) Try to pet it and sympathize with the plight of a curious creature
3. C) Take it by the snout and rotate it as @mermaid.kayleigh on TikTok taught us. @Mermaid.Kayleigh is a TikToker who swims with sharks and has educated the general public on them. She shows how she manages to spin a shark or move it in another direction when it becomes too aggressive. She frequently dives with them. She has opened the eyes of many viewers who feared sharks, as have other content creators. Every time I am online, and someone speaks about their fear of sharks, I know I am going to open up the replies in their defense. There is a post on NBC News on TikTok about the rising shark attacks in Australia, and there are comments such as “People gotta understand that’s their territory!”

“It’s their home. What do you expect?”

“Sharks don’t even eat humans! They just mistake them for prey.” I actually hear this particular argument a lot. I do not believe sharks should be villainized all of the time, but this sentiment blames the victims and everybody who has ever entered the ocean. While the sea does belong to sharks, and humans have hurt their food sources- a different conversation for a different day – empathy for the victims is always overridden by the empathy for the sharks.

On the other hand, and in the same breath, dolphins are being villainized. Many people say they would rather dive with sharks than with dolphins because disturbing information about dolphins has come to light. People took this information and ran with it. When I go on TikTok and look up dolphins, the first search is “dolphins evil facts.” When I go on YouTube, the first video that shows up when I type dolphins that shows up is The Truly Disturbing Reality of Dolphins, posted by Casual Geographic. On TikTok, when I search for sharks, the first two recommended searches are “sharks in the ocean” and “sharks being cute.” There is also a trend on TikTok of shark fun facts. For example, sharks cannot watch Twilight, because they don’t have a TV. 

Statistically, sharks are genuinely not as dangerous as the horror movies of the past made them out to be, and many people have come to that realization. According to the Florida Museum, in 2024, there were forty-seven fatal shark attacks worldwide. This is a fairly low number in the grand scheme of things.

Dolphins had one reported fatal attack in 2024, and eighteen were injured. It was believed to be out of sexual frustration. The BBC spoke out about this in their article: “Lonely Dolphin Looking for Mate Blamed for Attacks.” This is one of the key factors that dolphins have been demonized for – sexually assaulting humans. This is a large fear that has taken precedent in the general population. If that were not shocking enough, they are also disliked because it has been discovered they play with their prey, using them as volleyballs, and use pufferfish to get high. They take the lives of other animals with no regard for how it will affect them. It may even just be for the love of the game. 

While sharks do cause more human fatalities, it can be argued that their intentions are purer. They just want to eat. There is no room for sympathizing with your prey in the animal kingdom. It is eat or be eaten. I do not believe sharks are evil, and I cannot help but feel that dolphins have become overhated only because of what we see on social media. I never would have imagined that there would be propaganda toward the creatures of the sea.