[TV] Ghost Shows on TV what do you think ?

[Tigrens]

Bad science + drugs = paranormal investigation. It's all pretty formulaic.

Unfortunately ghosts aren't something that you would want to apply proper science to. (i.e. attempting to recreate the phenomenon in a laboratory, that might get messy after the first couple of victims)

But all of the amateur ghost hunters I've known failed to pass my usual qualifying question when dealing with issues of the paranormal. "Do you have any family history of mental illness, or have you within the last 6 months used any illicit drugs, or prescription drugs beyond the recommended dosage?" Absolutely none of the amateur ghost hunters I've known in real life have been able to answer no to that question. Go figure.

Plus they rely heavily on the "orbs" phenomenon, which I have managed to reproduce at will.

Yeah, orbs are bull. Just curious but how would you go about the ones that do pass your questions?

[Garnik]

I think they're fucking stupid.

[Fuzzzie]

Going to move this to the CMBT forum.

[nsupra27]

Just like anything else, reality TV shows always exaggerate everything, and most of the time are fake.

I used to be a paranormal investigator, and I've seen/experienced many things that cannot be explained. I always investigated from a scientific point of view and always went in with a skeptical mentality, and I can tell you, probably 90% of the time most of the claims of paranormal activity are simple things such as the house settling, high EMF causing hallucinations, pareidolia in objects such as windows or mirrors, etc...

Now, like I said, most claims are just misconception, but there are the ones that cannot be explained. I've personally seen objects move, shadowy apparitions, felt someone/something touching me and while a lot of the times I can debunk it, there are the ones that are so vivid and obvious that cannot be explained.

The one problem I have with these TV shows is that they make true paranormal investigators look naive and stupid, such as when they catch certain phenomenons on camera and "claim" it's a ghost. For example, orbs, anyone that believe orbs are ghosts is an idiot. 99.9% of the time any orb you see is just dust or moisture in the air reflected from a light source(e.g. camera flash, IR light, etc...) and shows up on camera as a out of focus spherical object. The issue here is not necessarily the people in the show are idiots, it's that they are paid to exaggerate everything they hear or see and claim it's paranormal, such as a door closing because of a draft of wind or the creaking sound from a house settling.


The bottom line is, don't base your understanding of anything off a reality TV show, because those are there for one purpose, and that purpose is for entertainment, so most of the time they will fake it to seem more entertaining. I've experienced true paranormal activity, and while a lot of you probably won't believe in it, it is definitely something that is strange and I would love to know exactly what causes it one of these days.

[zorkuus]

I've experienced true paranormal activity, and while a lot of you probably won't believe in it, it is definitely something that is strange and I would love to know exactly what causes it one of these days.

While you are dismissing these TV shows for indulging in argument from ignorance, you are doing it yourself aswell. Let's say you find an explanation for one of these phenomenon and it happens to be a natural explanation once again (like the ones you described) your whole "true paranormal activity" argument is just a whimper in the wind. If it's unexplained then it's unexplained, that's it, end of argument. How can you be so sure that a natural explanation cannot be found for these things when at the same time you acknowledge you have found one for previous encounters you thought to have been of paranormal/supernatural origin?

[nsupra27]

While you are dismissing these TV shows for indulging in argument from ignorance, you are doing it yourself aswell. Let's say you find an explanation for one of these phenomenon and it happens to be a natural explanation once again (like the ones you described) your whole "true paranormal activity" argument is just a whimper in the wind. If it's unexplained then it's unexplained, that's it, end of argument. How can you be so sure that a natural explanation cannot be found for these things when at the same time you acknowledge you have found one for previous encounters you thought to have been of paranormal/supernatural origin?

I would love to be able to explain everything I've experienced, but there are things that can easily be explained and there are things that just cannot be due to their extreme nature. That's why I was(still am kind of) a paranormal investigator, I want to try and find the answers to the unexplained.

My post in regard to the reality TV show aspect of paranormal investigating was to try and separate the difference between entertainment and reality. To many people watch these TV shows and either believe everything they hear or see is a ghost or they look at it and assume anyone that believes in the paranormal is an idiot.

When I say "true paranormal activity", I'm referring to phenomenons that are thoroughly investigated and still cannot be explained, a lot of times people don't take the time to figure out the source of something they experience and instantly assume it's paranormal. On TV, when they hear a noise, or see a 'shadow' figure, they instantly assume it's a ghost with very little investigating. When I hear a noise or see something unusual, I look for every possible reason it occurred, and once I reach the point where I cannot explain it, then it becomes possible paranormal activity.

True paranormal activity to me is something that no one has been able to truly explain yet, so when I use that phase, I'm using it in a comparable sense to those that think everything they hear/see is paranormal.

[Zaerick]

I think it is fake but for some reason these types of shows are the only thing that freaks me out. Its really amazing what the mind can do to you.

[Scrabblet]

On that same note, shows like Finding Bigfoot on animal planet and Destination Truth irritate me. While I dont DISbelieve in Bigfoot or the Loch Ness, thier shows stretch things to make them fit into their findings, making it hard for skeptics, and even believers like myself to believe what they have found as real.

Even worse is at the end they all go "Is this conclusive proof that X exists? We may never know". If you may never know then WHY DID YOU MAKE ME SIT THROUGH AN HOUR OF THAT???

[blackangel209]

Even worse is at the end they all go "Is this conclusive proof that X exists? We may never know". If you may never know then WHY DID YOU MAKE ME SIT THROUGH AN HOUR OF THAT???

Millions of people watched 6 or 7 seasons of Lost. It turned out pretty much exactly the same way: no one knows what the fuck actually happened.

[Bloogonis]

Just like anything else, reality TV shows always exaggerate everything, and most of the time are fake.

I used to be a paranormal investigator, and I've seen/experienced many things that cannot be explained. I always investigated from a scientific point of view and always went in with a skeptical mentality, and I can tell you, probably 90% of the time most of the claims of paranormal activity are simple things such as the house settling, high EMF causing hallucinations, pareidolia in objects such as windows or mirrors, etc...

Now, like I said, most claims are just misconception, but there are the ones that cannot be explained. I've personally seen objects move, shadowy apparitions, felt someone/something touching me and while a lot of the times I can debunk it, there are the ones that are so vivid and obvious that cannot be explained.

The one problem I have with these TV shows is that they make true paranormal investigators look naive and stupid, such as when they catch certain phenomenons on camera and "claim" it's a ghost. For example, orbs, anyone that believe orbs are ghosts is an idiot. 99.9% of the time any orb you see is just dust or moisture in the air reflected from a light source(e.g. camera flash, IR light, etc...) and shows up on camera as a out of focus spherical object. The issue here is not necessarily the people in the show are idiots, it's that they are paid to exaggerate everything they hear or see and claim it's paranormal, such as a door closing because of a draft of wind or the creaking sound from a house settling.


The bottom line is, don't base your understanding of anything off a reality TV show, because those are there for one purpose, and that purpose is for entertainment, so most of the time they will fake it to seem more entertaining. I've experienced true paranormal activity, and while a lot of you probably won't believe in it, it is definitely something that is strange and I would love to know exactly what causes it one of these days.

Nice response, I am a bit of a skeptic with Ghosts and the Paranormal, but I find the stuff fascinating and as a budding scientist, I look at it logically and am well aware of the things that can cause one to think they are experiencing paranormal activity. The whole subject is fascinating to me and I have looked into it in a fair amount of detail.

Another thing to note is that TAPS does not go in trying to prove (or provide good evidence for) hauntings in various locations, they are actually trying to disprove it and it seems like half the time, they do, and the methodical way they handle the investigations is pretty professional.

I have never personally had an experience, but I have friends who claimed (Note the word claimed; I don't really believe or not believe in their stories) to have had an experience or two.

[Deleted]

Never watched one the whole way through, they annoy the hell out of me. I watched a documentry about a house with a poltergiest once though, it was back in the late 80's and I lived about a road away from the house it was supposed to be on, creepy show!

[Maruka]

hey guys we are gonna use emp to find ghosts, now im going to hold this sensor up to an electrical outlet, OH WE HAVE A GHOST HERE.


they are a crock of shit

[blackshinra]

I like some, but the sheer amount of them lately is getting out of hand

[Nephthes]

Even worse is at the end they all go "Is this conclusive proof that X exists? We may never know". If you may never know then WHY DID YOU MAKE ME SIT THROUGH AN HOUR OF THAT???

Makes me wanna chunk the remote at the TV when they say that..

[Orcbert]

So im watching these shows on TV and there all going omg you hear that, im like no wtf are you onabout, is it all just acting or is this shit actually true ?

What they are doing is not fake, but they are just people scaring the hell out of themselves in a dark house. They are so inclined to try and say it was a ghost they ignore all other possibilities.

I saw an episode on some show (ghost hunters maybe?) where among other things they said the ghost threw dishes in the kitchen. At night the drying rack was full to capacity on a wobbly counter and the cat jumped up and on camera knocked some dishes off. Instead of saying this is what happened before, they concluded that this wasn't a ghost this time, it was a one time occurrence with the cat and they should keep looking.

So in conclusion, not fake just stupid.

[ravenshaelo]

I'm fairly certain they're all heavily dramatized... If something "weird" happens, it's IMMEDIATELY a ghost not the wind, or a squeaky hinge, or anything. If I watch them, it's with many grains of salt. That said, I always scoff when they blame a disgruntled roommate/aunt/friend for the phenomena because they must be a witch if they burn candles/incense. /eyeroll