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Does the media support or debunk the supernatural?

Do newspapers,TV news and reality programs,check the facts?Do they verify what they print and broadcast?

Public Comments

1. nope.. but they have to air something, right?
2. Either or its both. As long as the CIA is not getting paid from the UFO community since they run the money and operate where the information is released. Then they will keep coming out with those Bogus Magazines with Aliens and Movie stars dating and all this nonsense.
3. by far they support it. I can't blame them, it sells very well these days. Actually come to think of it, its always sold fairly well.
4. It depends on the show in question. Nat Geo and some others has a tendency to debunk the supernatural. Sci-fi tends support the supernatural. Of course now there is a lot of fictional shows that help promote the folklore of the supernatural. I think that it pretty even... you just have to have access to the channels that run the shows...
5. More support than debunk. My local newstation is fond of doing stories on local 'haunted houses'. The big networks seem to trot out the 'free energy' frauds every few years and promote them as real. CNN did a very credulous story on indigo children a few years back - and that was BEFORE they fired their entire science staff. Who knows what crap we'll get from them now. Journalism used to be about investigation and critical thinking. Now it's pop culture and shock value. The people report about science don't have a clue what they're talking about. Can you imagine if they tried to do that with sports too? Why don't wee see the same outrage?
6. I think you should see this web site: http://www.escapetheillusion.com/blog/ read and watch what it has to say. Don't roll your eyes to soon.
7. Depends what sort of media. Most commercial TV channels and popular selling magazines have as their prime objective to lift their ratings, so will use entertainment stories, and supernatural tales are often quite entertaining (even though completely unreal). .
8. THE MEDIA IS A BUNCH OF ROBOT DRONS , THAT IF YOU HAVE NOTICED ,HAVE BEEN CINGED OR OVERLOADED ,MALFUNCTIOND, AND THEY ,THEM SELF ARE PUBLICIZED IDIOTS , WHO ALWAYS, NEVER NOW ANYTHING THAT THEY;RE A speaking of , but still run their constant bab-ylon MOUTH, cause , its kinda like panocio nose, that would not stop[ growing when he lied, their mouth wont shut up , if they continue to lie
9. Most traditional media debunks the supernatural, but one national "network" of shows - Coast_to_Coast_AM (www.coasttocoastam.com) often supports it, on the radio and also in their print magazine. They have 'experts' in all areas of the supernatural and try to offer a balanced view of things.
10. Of course the media outlets are biased toward showing positive reports of "supernatural" or paranormal phenomenon. Nearly every "supernatural" report that I see in the media is nothing but entertainment, sort of like the latest Angelina and Brad saga or some report about what Paris is or is not wearing. The media doesn't help the general public to understand science, and it acutally hurts the real scientists who are either working in the field or who are trying to explain these phenomenon using the physical sciences. For the general public, scientific investigations are obviously much less interesting than outlandish claims that "you too could have a ghost in your house" or "Bigfoot is regularly sighted in Oklahoma". Since media sources make money based on advertising dollars, they are trying to attract the largest audience that they can, and so, they show things that are most likely to appeal to the general public rather than showing some "boring" experiment or debunking exercise. The recent explosion of ghost hunting shows is disturbing to me because it gives many people the impression that all they have to do is set up some electronic equipment and they too will be able to find a ghost in their neighborhood. I'm sure that the sales of electronic monitoring devices are booming, and I wouldn't be surprised to learn the some of the manufactures sponsor these shows. It's capitalism at its finest. These types of shows cause some anxious people to be scared of every sound in their house, some gullible people to believe that every electronic disturbance is a ghost, and it makes a lot of scientists believe that this is what parapsychology and paranormal research is all about. None of that is true. Debunkers get some coverage when it's some celebrity like James Randi or Penn and Teller. Psychics get attention when it's John Edwards or Sylvia Brown. In either case, if the story looks good, most outlets won't bother to do more than mention opposing viewpoints, and they definitely wouldn't waste their time investigating the facts to try to find the truth behind the claims. They attract audiences and make money on superlatives not on credibility. You're not going to find balance in the media. They're going for the big audience. If this question were about balanced coverage of healthy diets, the war, police work, or contestants in a singing contest, you'd probably get just about the sort of answers.
11. It varies with the station/program. One documentary about UFOs was so carefully balanced that it seemed that neither skeptics nor believers COULD be offended-straddling the fence to maintain viewership. Smart for unbiased reporting, but inconclusive as to WHAT to believe.
12. i dont know