In doing our reading I found it interesting when it referred to Jacque Cousteau and his many adventures. The way that these were staged got me thinking about the movie Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou by Wes Anderson. I love Wes Anderson and thought it was interesting to look back at the movie in thinking about it as a spoof of old time explorers. I found the movie to be really funny, but I realized that part of it had to do with the ridiculousness had to do with what these staged explorations were about. When Zissou is question as to what the scientific purpose of killing the endangered species Jaguar shark that killed his best friend was, he simply replied “revenge.” I may have laughed because this answer is absurd; it brings to light the issue of authenticity or scientific-ness of media. The fact that events had to be staged reflects that media producers felt the need to reflect something that may not be totally honest. And while some events may not have been the full truth, others were blatantly lies. The fact that movies made in the US in movie studios about an exploration did better than the movie filmed at the actual exploration says a lot about the value of authenticity. Yet it also says a lot about the purpose of media in the role it has in our everyday life. It seems sometimes people would rather be lied to and entertained, rather than bored with brutally honest truth. Is media supposed to tell the truth? It all depends on why one uses the media. It can do both. Media can do anything we want it too because we are what control it. We can make it what we wish. And while Steve Zissou makes claims such as, “It’s a documentary! It’s all really happening!” it causes one to question if a true documentary is even possible?