The history and politics of shark ”attacks” with Dr Chris Pepin-Neff

The impact of the Hollywood blockbuster Jaws on shark conservation, public perception and even policy-making has been studied since its release in 1975, but today we’re looking even further back in time to understand where that idea of sharks as man-eating monsters first came from, and how it gained traction to get to where we are today. It’s a fascinating story involving Victorian game hunters, shark “rabies”, the U.S. Navy, film soundtracks designed to make your heart race, and an Australian surgeon who decided to try his hand at marine biology. To walk us through all of this, we have an amazing guest who has pieced all of these puzzle pieces together – Dr Chris Pepin-Neff, senior lecturer in public policy at the University of Sydney, Save our Seas Foundation project leader and expert in shark bite politics. You can follow Chris on twitter (@pepin_neff) or read more about them here https://saveourseas.com/project-leader/christopher-neff/ and find some of their research here https://sydney.academia.edu/ChrisPepinNeff.  You can find the shownotes for this episode here: www.saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/podcast Follow us on social media! We are @saveourseasfoundation on instagram and tiktok, and @SaveOurSeas on twitter