I'm curious as to what others think about some of these popular paranormal type shows that air on T.V. Some would be Ghost Hunters, Long Island Medium, Ghost Adventures, The Haunting Of…, etc. Personally, I enjoy these shows whether or not they're legitimate, mostly because of the very human aspects included. For example, the cast of Ghost Adventures are entertaining simply because of their personalities. But the questions I have are, how much is real, and does it even matter?

I don't think you can objectively attest to the reality of the shows' ghost-related material. That question has more to do with whether or not you believe in ghosts. I find the existence of ghosts to be highly unlikely from a scientific lens, especially if you consider the frequency with which paranormal shows track down and interact with ghosts compared to the number of confirmed and legitimate cases (zero?). But that's neither here nor there. Perhaps you can explore how paranormal shows employ ghosts and our cultural relationship with the ghost trope to gather and keep audiences. Why as human beings are we so interested in watching paranormal medium shows? The concept of ghosts has been around as long as storytelling. What is it about ghosts that captivates humans and makes for such a good narrative device? Fascinating question that could reveal quite a bit about our culture and humanity as a whole. – aetemadi 10 years ago
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As someone pretty obsessed with "paranormal medium shows," I can attest to the idea that exploring the reasoning behind this would be pretty interesting, to say the least. As for how much is real, I think most people will probably write that question off, because nothing of substance ever really happens in them. However, the second question, "does it even matter?" is a lot more interesting and could get a lot of opposing ideas and really get a discussion going. Great question! – jghiorse 10 years ago
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The Legitimacy/Illegitimacy of Paranormal/Medium Shows