facilities that have them. it s a business? it s a business. yes. reporter: while the issue of captivity is debatable, what isn t, is the popularity like these. zoos and aquariums set new attendance record almost every year. sea world s entertainment parks pull in $1.5 billion a year. and supporters say there s a lot more to it than just entertainment. performs educate and inspire. people are is having less and less daily encounters with animals. so these kind of exhibits are teaching people about the wild. if they don t know animals, they won t care about them. reporter: unfortunately, opponents say audiences are not the only ones held captive by the show. martin savage, cnn, atlanta. and we want to stress that cnn did reach out to sea world and they delined to be