Recently there have been many reality shows, documentaries and specials dealing with ghosts and things that go bump in the night. These shows, while entertaining, don't show the reality of ghost hunting and paranormal activity. This hurts what groups like ours are trying to do, and that is educating the public about what actually happens with hauntings and ghosts.

      Reality shows that put kids or families in haunted places are not concerned with the facts or what causes the hauntings; they want you, the viewer to be on the edge of your seat watching the entire show. Most of the time, nothing truly paranormal happens, so the crew must "help" the spirits by producing sounds or giving a few items a push. This is of course not seen by you at home, so you are left wondering if the players saw that chair move, or heard those footsteps. One of these shows twisted the facts of an investigative group, as well as the member's statements. This is, in my opinion, just bad journalism. These shows claim to bring you the truth, but instead bring you what they know you'd like to see.

      Ghost specials on a certain network are more of a joke them any kind of report on paranormal happenings. The use of computer generated effects and the retelling of obvious hoaxes just makes the entire show look silly. These shows also have fun in the editing booth with comments and interviews. They cut out what they don't think is good, many times causing the viewer to miss the whole point of the entire interview.

      Now not all shows are bad. Those that I have seen on networks such as Discovery, TLC, The History Channel and even the Travel Channel have been put together to give you the facts. The little reenactments are entertaining, but do not take away the credibility of the story. They present the history, the haunting phenomena and possible explanations. This is what I want to hear. They interview the people who do the investigating and have had the experiences, not those who "heard about" or " I hear that the place is haunted by…" Facts. Gives us the facts and the research, not the fluff or the make-believe.

      Ok, I know I haven't mentioned anything about skeptics. Well, they should be on the shows too. But they should at least have a clue. Many of the ones that are seen (over and over again) are cemented in their belief that ghosts, UFOs, and any other paranormal phenomena just does not exists. No matter what is brought to them, they will find a way to disclaim it. "We can do that in a lab" is what I hear a lot. Well, that's nice. People had to spend millions to build a lab to produce the same effect that is witnessed OUTSIDE the lab. Leave your equipment at the lab and let me see you produce an apparition in a cemetery.

      Alas, this is not a slam on skeptics; just a plea to networks airing these kinds of shows. Hire a skeptic with some common sense, who can consider the facts and talk about the causes, rather then trying to make people like us look like idiots. I assure you, we are not.

      Bottom line hear people is this, DO NOT BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU SEE ON TV. Television is mostly entertainment. If you want to know more about ghosts and real research, visit the many sites from ghost hunters all over the world. Boo.

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