Close Encounters with Wild Cetaceans: Good Practices and Online Discussions of Critical Episodes

Abstract

This research note reports on whale interactions in northern Norway and asks: How are close encounters not in line with good practices of whale watching represented and discussed in the online sources accessible by tourists and recreationists? Based on an exploratory qualitative investigation of critical episodes of close encounters with cetaceans, this article identifies some main aspects emerging from the online representations and discussions at various levels (local, national, international). The findings suggest some important points of reflections for future developments of whale watching in northern Norway as well as worldwide.