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Ghosts & Hauntings

Media's influence on paranormal perception

By T.K. Randall
November 1, 2012 · Comment icon

25 comments

Image Credit: sxc.hu

The media tends to play a significant role in people's paranormal perceptions and beliefs.

With stories about paranormal investigations dominating the papers and shows such as 'Ghost Hunters' proving a ratings hit, it could be argued that interest in the unexplained is going from strength to strength. But how much does the media's presentation of these topics influence how people believe in them ? Professor Paul Brewer conducted his own investigation to find out.

Brewer found that what most encouraged people to believe in a story or TV show was the way in which the scientific aspects were presented. A story that describes how paranormal investigators used EMF meters and scientific methods to investigate a haunted location for example is a lot more likely to be believed.

The paranormal is a popular and enduring theme in the media, stretching from Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula to the newest installment of Paranormal Activity, which opened last week.

Source: Red Orbit | Comments (25)

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Recent comments on this story

#16 Posted by sergeantflynn 13 years ago

There are some mighty strange things . But nowt as strange as folk !

#17 Posted by scowl 13 years ago

Can you say Road trip! I can say "Free trip to England!" I don't think that's a road trip. Sometime Fact or Faked has to choose the best videos they have whether they know it's faked from the start. This why the season is so short and long gaps bewteen seasons. They also have to pick the ones that they have a good chance of figuring out or duplicating and making good television from. They do have an "out" for things that are easily explained yet they still wanted to investigate. At the end, one of the investigators "notices" something that they didn't notice before and this blows the lid off t... [More]

#18 Posted by MisstreeDove 13 years ago

The media has a surprisingly influence on minds. I can definitely see it influencing opinions on certain matters, including the paranormal.

#19 Posted by pallidin 13 years ago

While people have the ability to form their own opinions by doign research, they don't. The general public is naive and wants to believe anything they see and read in the papers/i-net/TV because it's easier. I this weren't true, car salesmen and conmen would be out of business. Uh... where else do we get our news?

#20 Posted by Sakari 13 years ago

Just look at the maturity level, grades, drop out rate, attitude, respect, etc,etc,etc.....How they changed since TV started, and cable came out. ( the ladder more then anything ) TV and Movies has been teaching our youth for a while, and do now. Look how we are de-evolutionising..... DEVO was right. Serious though, to many people using TV as a learning tool....We need a plague.

#21 Posted by pallidin 13 years ago

So, where do we get viable news? Anywhere? Or is just left to social networking that twist minds more-so than media.

#22 Posted by Sakari 13 years ago

So, where do we get viable news? Anywhere? Or is just left to social networking that twist minds more-so than media. There are things on TV and the internet that are good....But, the majority comes down to money, and entertainment.People have forgotten how to distinguish the reality from the entertainment.

#23 Posted by coldethyl 13 years ago

So, where do we get viable news? Anywhere? Or is just left to social networking that twist minds more-so than media. Well without as many tv channels and just your local paper (not the papers like Enquirer, Daily Mail, etc) you had more news that was not based on sensationalism. Now every magazine has sensational headlines, and there are reality tv shows on every channel. And there are a lot of channels. Before the internet, if you wanted to know something, you had to go to the library, or ask someone. Weird concept, but all knowledge and instant gratification was not at your fingertips. Pager... [More]

#24 Posted by Sakari 13 years ago

Well without as many tv channels and just your local paper (not the papers like Enquirer, Daily Mail, etc) you had more news that was not based on sensationalism. Now every magazine has sensational headlines, and there are reality tv shows on every channel. And there are a lot of channels. Before the internet, if you wanted to know something, you had to go to the library, or ask someone. Weird concept, but all knowledge and instant gratification was not at your fingertips. Pagers were all the rage before cell phones (there were car phones but not many people had them and they didn't work every... [More]

#25 Posted by scowl 13 years ago

Just look at the maturity level, grades, drop out rate, attitude, respect, etc,etc,etc.....How they changed since TV started, and cable came out. ( the ladder more then anything ) I blame the schools for not teaching critical thinking. Kids are being taught that every viewpoint is valid and should be equally respected no matter how stupid it is. I say baloney and bad ideas should be identified and criticized. I should know because I've come up with plenty of bad ideas over the years and I regularly thank my co-workers for saving my career with their honesty. I've learned more history from cabl... [More]

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