Sunday, September 16, 2012

Governor Jesse "the body" Ventura is back on TruTV with more Conspiracy Theory

Jesse Ventura plays the roles of Governor, pro-wrestler and paranoia addled "truth seeker" in this amped up reality tv show. As the video below shows, the Jesse Ventura's Conspiracy Theories is pasted together with rock music, bad acting, fear and FEAR.




The show returns for a third season on TruTV (formerly Court TV) this November. In it's past two seasons, the show has touched on all the major conspiracy theories (from JFK to Area 51), and almost always lends credence to even the most far fetched ones, including the FEMA death camps and HAARP conspiracies. Possibly one of the lowest points of the series came in season one, in which Ventura and his "investigators" propagated the "global warming hoax" theory. I have a feeling that all there is left for this show to tackle are ancient aliens and morgellons.

However, this sort of outrageous programming is nothing new to TruTV, as it has been demonstrated that TruTV executives (along with higher ups from it's parent company, Turner Broadcasting) do not care that many of the network's "reality" programs are indeed faked. As TruTV's motto says, "Not reality. Actuality." Most viewers with a discerning mind may already realize that "reality" TV is not an accurate depiction of the real world. However, shows, including Jesse Ventura's Conspiracy Theories, that are framed as "reality" shows do set up the expectation that the people, events and characters are real and that there is something factual to Ventura's approach to truth seeking. And of course, those who already buy into the idea that some antennas in Alaska cause earthquakes, likely will not be fazed in the least by the cheesy, over-the-topness of the show and fusion with the "reality" genre.

Friday, September 7, 2012

UK's Most Haunted to do "Psychic Science" tour

The idea is to "educate the public on the realities of the paranormal."




The US's Ghost Hunters don't have shit on the Most Haunted crew. They can get a ghost to whistle on command! But that's not all,  they also sound "sciencey." Show stars, Derek Acorah and Richard Felix, are holding a "psychic and science" tour on September 15 that includes a psychic fair, audience participation in "experiments" with the duo and conjuring a ghost out of concrete in old York Prison.

It's doubtful that science will have anything to do with this tour, as the MH team are known fraudsters.  Acorah is also known for his frankly embarrassing performance, in which he claimed to have communicated with Michael Jackson's ghost during a live seance broadcast on Sky TV.

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Why Conspiracy Theorists believe in more than one conspiracy


Conspiracy theories tend to run in packs, suggests research published in January by University of Kent psychologists. Perhaps most surprising is the finding that conspiracy theorists often hold beliefs in conspiracies that are mutually incompatible. The study looked at conspiracy theories relating to the deaths of Princess Diana and Osama bin Laden. For example, people who believed that Osama bin Laden was dead, even while videos of him surfaced, were as likely to believe that Osama bin Laden was still alive after his execution under the Obama administration.

Michael Shermer explains:

Conspiracies are a perennial favorite for television producers because there is always a receptive audience. A recent Canadian Broadcasting Corporation documentary that I participated in called Conspiracy Rising, for example, featured theories behind the deaths of JFK and Princess Diana, UFOs, Area 51 and 9/11, as if there were a common thread running throughout. According to radio host and conspiracy monger Alex Jones, also appearing in the film, “The military-industrial complex killed John F. Kennedy” and “I can prove that there’s a private banking cartel setting up a world government because they admit they are” and “No matter how you look at 9/11 there was no Islamic terrorist connection—the hijackers were clearly U.S. government assets who were set up as patsies like Lee Harvey Oswald.”

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Kentucky: the new center of Creationist tourism

Plans are in the works for a theme park and Creation science Hall of Fame, the latest additions to a growing tourism industry.

It's exactly what it looks like.

The Creationist Museum of Kentucky, established in 2007, is in the process of turning a stretch of interstate into multi-stop brainwashing/unlearning tour of Biblical proportions.
The Guardian:

Online-only institution the Creation Science Hall of Fame hopes to establish a real-life creationism center located between the Creation Museum and planned creationism theme park Ark Encounter.
The hall of fame website was launched in February and honors "those who honored God's word as literally written in Genesis." Any scientist who the institution believes furthers the scientifically inaccurate idea that God created the world 6,000 years ago can be included.
"We honor these people, not because we believe everything they say, but because they made critical contributions to creation science and to the explanation of the Genesis story," secretary/treasurer of the hall of fame Terry Hurlbut told the Cincinnati Enquirer.
There are several creationism institutions in the US, including another creation museum in Texas and a mobile museum that takes fossil exhibits to churches and schools. The hall of fame would solidify northern Kentucky as the center for creation-tourism.
The Creation Museum opened in May 2007 and was built by Answers in Genesis, the Australian ministry that is also behind Ark Encounter.
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