This week, salmon fishermen from Bristol Bay voiced their concerns about the way their fishing industry has been depicted in the newest of the seemingly never-ending stream of "reality" TV shows.
In a letter written to producers of "Alaska: Battle on the Bay," the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association took a stance that probably doesn't hold a candle to the language fishermen have used while watching the show. Their complaints are numerous and predictable. The show, they say, has painted an inaccurate picture of the fishery as being more haphazard and dangerous and less the finely honed craft it is.
Of course, haphazard and dangerous makes for much better television, never mind that the show misstated some key facts, like when it claimed there were "half a billion" fish harvested in 2014. The actual figures for last year's salmon run were 43 million.
Another even more egregious misstatement was when the show claimed that the fish had to be harvested or they would "wreak havoc on Alaska's waterways."
People Outside might have a perception of fish-clogged rivers creating an unnatural and dangerous environment and the fishermen as the knights in shining armor saving the environment. Sounds great, except for the whole issue of it not being true.
And then there's that teensy issue of a great deal of the show being about fishermen ramming each other's boats, which is illegal and dangerous. But it sure is exciting, isn't it? And producers made it all even more suspenseful by claiming that many deaths in the fishing industry occur from collision-induced drownings. Not so, says the association, which points to statistics to the contrary.
None of this will really come as any surprise to Alaskans, who have long been aware of the sensationalism of the reality television world. The Lower 48 and even beyond is fascinated with Alaska.
Perhaps it is comforting when living in the land of strip malls and convenience food that there is a place left that is wild, lawless and free. While many might appreciate learning about the fisherman who painstakingly bleeds and ices every fish, dedicated to providing the world with the best product, that's not what is being sold to the masses.
Instead, we are being marketed as a bunch of greedy egomaniacs with a death wish. And while we may shake our head, a trip Outside will tell you that what appears on television is what people really think Alaska is like.
That's all funny until it actually starts to hit home. This state is not an island, despite what some might wish. What are the chances this surreal version of reality will impact investors, businesses considering laying down roots, and people thinking about moving here who could enhance the state? What about tourism? What kind of impact do all these shows showing us at our worst have when people are trying to decide how to spend their tourist dollars?
Perhaps Alaska needs to hire a public relations expert, someone who can turn things around for us. At the very least, we should think twice about embracing everyone with a television camera with open arms.
The silly thing about all this fake reality is that there are so many amazing stories in this state, people doing unbelievable things that demonstrate the tenacity of the human spirit. Those are the stories worth telling, the stories that show what an amazing state this really is.
This isn't reality. It's the junk food of television. Alaska's fishermen, pioneers, explorers and adventurers deserve to be represented as they really are. As Sue Aspelund, executive director of the development association wrote in her letter to producers from Animal Planet and its affiliates, as proud stewards of fishing in Bristol Bay, "it is hard to see our fishery so sensationalized and misrepresented."
Perhaps reality television can strive to be more real. If it doesn't, one can hope it will find it increasingly difficult to find fishermen willing to be on television portraying their industry in such an unfavorable and unrealistic light.
And maybe the next "reality" show that comes knocking will find Alaska less willing to embrace its version of what this state is about.
Carey Restino is the editor of The Arctic Sounder, where this commentary first appeared. It is republished here with permission.
The views expressed here are the writer's own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com.