Skeptical or not?

Question

I was a hardcore skeptic until I started watching TV such as Lisa Williams, John Edwards, haven't seen Sylvia yet, umm...rescue mediums, anything on WE TV & sci-fi. So after watching all of these I became a hardcore believer. Is that bad to change my mind bc of what I see on TV?

Answer 1

As a scientific researcher I believe our opinions should be based on observations. While watching TV are observations, they are hardly controled conditions and therefore not a good base.

Also the only way to know for certain if it is not some eloborate trick or hoax, rather than blindly trusting the media, which I advise against, is to experience for yourself. I believe in intersubjectivity (see one of my previous answers) as valid proof of the paranormal. You can also put your money where your mouth is and set up some experiments of your own to prove or disprove your suspicions.

A lot of good research on the mechanisms of the paranormal was done in the 19th century, even though we have a new age, few have bothered to rekindle the greater knowledge of just a century ago. Read!

Answer 2

I don't think it's that bad, however I'd do some research of your own before believing everything on there. There are some really cool books about paranormal activity that you could check out at your local library and it's fun to try to figure it all out!

Answer 3

All those that claim psychic abilities are lying or are mislead themselves. If any person can prove that they really have ANY abilities, there is a $1,000,000 prize waiting for them. No one can do it. The famous "psychics" (John Edwards, Sylvia Browne, etc.) all claim that they don't need the money so they won't prove it (Sylvia Browne actually agreed to prove it while on Larry King Live, but has never actually shown any proof). But if they really had powers, why would they not just prove it, take the money and give it to charity.

www.randi.org has the info on the cash.

Answer 4

You are falling for the old Cold-Reading tricks. Look up cold reading on the internet and how it is done. You will then start to see how people like John Edwards do thier trick.

Obviously you are not alone in believing in these people, but keep this in mind, Lisa Williams, John Edwards and Sylvia Browne could not do what they do if they beleived it was real. They themselves are conmen, doing a magic trick.

Like I said, when you understand what cold reading is, you will be able to see right through thier magic tricks. you can start here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_readin...

Answer 5

If a few TV shows and exposed frauds can change your mind.You were never very skeptical.That stuff is about as real as the WWE.I like TV too,but remember.Believe none of what you hear and half of what you see when you watch it.

Answer 6

Well... uh... yes.  I mean, TV can be deceiving.  Real life doesn't have special effects and scriptwriters.  Do you really think that there is an island where everything you want can come true, like happens on Fantasy Island?  Heck, for that matter do you really think that the people on Survivor are really *surviving*, as if they wouldn't be pulled out by helicopter the moment something bad happened (which, in fact, actually did happen in the Australia season)?

I don't know about Lisa Williams, but it is a well-established fact that John Edward's show, which is just a rehash of cold-reading, is heavily edited so that it looks like all his guesses are right.  But ask yourself this - if the guy could really speak with the dead, why on earth would he even need to guess?  Instead of saying stuff like "I'm getting a G name, yes, and he died of something in the chest area" why wouldn't he say "Yes, your older brother Gary, who died of lung cancer, he wants you to know that he's still pissed off at your younger sister for the time when she hit him over the head with the whiffle-ball bat."  You never see anything like that.

And that's because John Edward, and Sylvia Browne, and all the others are preying on your hopes and fears.  They're giving you hope that there is something after this life.  And they're preying on your fears that the dead are watching.

John Edward was identified as the "Biggest Douche In The Whole Universe" by South Park, but it's not just him.  It's him and everybody like him.

Answer 7

its not bad...but i wouldnt believe everything you see on tv.....ive experienced that makes me believe in it...then when i think about it, if paranormal didnt exist at all...there wouldnt be so much interest in it...such as the growing numbers in paranormal investigators....paranormal tv shows....paranormal sites....it just keeps on growing....i couldnt see so many people interested in something that did not exist....can you ?

Answer 8

No, Jon, no!  Tell me it isn't true!  I hope you are kidding with this question.

If you have been convinced by the likes of Lisa Williams and John Edward then you really need to work on your critical thinking skills.  (No offense.)  Those two, along with Sylvia Browne, are cold readers.  There are a multitude of sites out there that can explain to you exactly what cold reading is.  There are also plenty of sites and testimonials from people in the audience who will tell you that what you see on TV is a finely polished version of what takes place live.

Obtaining information from TV can be tricky.  Obviously, you need to consider the source when evaluating the validity of the claims.  Oprah, Montel, et al are interested far less in the credibility, veracity and integrity of their guests than they are in increasing the number of viewers watching their shows.

Check out the sites I've posted below.  They have a wealth of information on what frauds these people are.

Answer 9

As a seasoned, hardcore scientific investigator of the paranormal, I would question anything I saw on TV. Most of it is scripted, over-produced, unrealistic and some of it is even fradulent.