Hardy Jones
Encyclopedia
Hardy Jones is a wildlife and conservation filmmaker. He began his career in radio at WNOE
in New Orleans and has worked for United Press International
, The Peruvian Times, and CBS News
. He has been a television documentary
producer since 1978 and has produced over 75 films for PBS
, Discovery
, TBS
, and National Geographic. His first film, entitled DOLPHIN, depicts a school of spotted dolphins residing 40 miles north of Grand Bahama
island. Since 1978 Jones has returned countless times to the Bahamas to visit these dolphins and film them. Some of the dolphins have become internationally famous. Chopper, a 27 year old male, was filmed by Jones for the first time in 1979 and appeared in the 2005 PBS film The Dolphin Defender.
In 2000, Jones joined film actor and ocean activist Ted Danson
and founded BlueVoice.org
(a website dedicated to the protection of dolphins and whales and particularly stopping the hunting of dolphins in Japanese fishing villages). The organization uses television and the internet to publicize ocean issues. One of the group's main concerns is the alarming level of contamination
in the oceans - bio-accumulating in the foodweb from plankton
to fish, marine mammals, then humans.
Jones’ book, The Voice of the Dolphins, is scheduled for publication in early 2011. It recounts more than thirty years of work with dolphins in the wild as well as the efforts of BlueVoice.org to end the killing of dolphins in Japan
and the increasing menace of chemical contaminants in the marine food chain.
In 2003 Jones was diagnosed with multiple myeloma
, a form of blood cancer often linked to exposure to toxic chemicals such as dioxins. His recent work has been researching the relationship between persistent organic pollutants to cancer and other health problems in humans and marine mammals.
Jones has fought for nearly thirty years to stop the killing and capture of dolphins in Japan.
He is an alumnus at New Canaan Country School and recently received the prestigious alumni award. He is a graduate of Choate
and Tulane University
.
WNOE-FM
WNOE-FM is a country music station based in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Clear Channel Communications outlet broadcasts at 101.1 MHz with an ERP of 100 kW. Its current slogan is "Today's Hot Country and Your All-Time Favorites"...
in New Orleans and has worked for United Press International
United Press International
United Press International is a once-major international news agency, whose newswires, photo, news film and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines and radio and television stations for most of the twentieth century...
, The Peruvian Times, and CBS News
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
. He has been a television documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
producer since 1978 and has produced over 75 films for PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
, Discovery
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
, TBS
Turner Broadcasting System
Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. is the Time Warner subsidiary managing the collection of cable networks and properties started and acquired by Robert Edward "Ted" Turner starting in the mid-1970s. The company has its headquarters in the CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia. TBS, Inc...
, and National Geographic. His first film, entitled DOLPHIN, depicts a school of spotted dolphins residing 40 miles north of Grand Bahama
Grand Bahama
Grand Bahama is one of the northernmost of the islands of the Bahamas, and the closest major island to the United States, lying off the state of Florida. Grand Bahama is the fifth largest island in the Bahamas island chain of approximately 700 islands and 2,400 cays...
island. Since 1978 Jones has returned countless times to the Bahamas to visit these dolphins and film them. Some of the dolphins have become internationally famous. Chopper, a 27 year old male, was filmed by Jones for the first time in 1979 and appeared in the 2005 PBS film The Dolphin Defender.
In 2000, Jones joined film actor and ocean activist Ted Danson
Ted Danson
Edward Bridge “Ted” Danson III is an American actor best known for his role as central character Sam Malone in the sitcom Cheers, and his role as Dr. John Becker on the series Becker. He also plays a recurring role on Larry David's HBO sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm and starred alongside Glenn Close...
and founded BlueVoice.org
BlueVoice.org
BlueVoice.org is an ocean conservation organization founded in 2000 by Hardy Jones and Ted Danson. Its mission is to protect dolphins, whales and other marine mammals and to raise popular awareness about the plight of the oceans....
(a website dedicated to the protection of dolphins and whales and particularly stopping the hunting of dolphins in Japanese fishing villages). The organization uses television and the internet to publicize ocean issues. One of the group's main concerns is the alarming level of contamination
Contamination
Contamination is the presence of a minor and unwanted constituent in material, physical body, natural environment, at a workplace, etc.-Specifics:"Contamination" also has more specific meanings in science:...
in the oceans - bio-accumulating in the foodweb from plankton
Plankton
Plankton are any drifting organisms that inhabit the pelagic zone of oceans, seas, or bodies of fresh water. That is, plankton are defined by their ecological niche rather than phylogenetic or taxonomic classification...
to fish, marine mammals, then humans.
Jones’ book, The Voice of the Dolphins, is scheduled for publication in early 2011. It recounts more than thirty years of work with dolphins in the wild as well as the efforts of BlueVoice.org to end the killing of dolphins in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and the increasing menace of chemical contaminants in the marine food chain.
In 2003 Jones was diagnosed with multiple myeloma
Multiple myeloma
Multiple myeloma , also known as plasma cell myeloma or Kahler's disease , is a cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell normally responsible for the production of antibodies...
, a form of blood cancer often linked to exposure to toxic chemicals such as dioxins. His recent work has been researching the relationship between persistent organic pollutants to cancer and other health problems in humans and marine mammals.
Jones has fought for nearly thirty years to stop the killing and capture of dolphins in Japan.
He is an alumnus at New Canaan Country School and recently received the prestigious alumni award. He is a graduate of Choate
Choate Rosemary Hall
Choate Rosemary Hall is a private, college-preparatory, coeducational boarding school located in Wallingford, Connecticut...
and Tulane University
Tulane University
Tulane University is a private, nonsectarian research university located in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States...
.