TV Skeptic: 'Ghost Hunters' and things that go bump in the night

In Wednesday night's season premiere of "Ghost Hunters" on Syfy, the Atlantic Paranormal Society (TAPS) travel to Alexandria, La., to investigate three allegedly haunted buildings in the heart of the city. 

The stars of the show, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson, plumbers who put down their plungers and picked up video cameras, were invited by city officials to investigate unexplained occurrences at three Alexandria locations: the Diamond Grill, an upscale restaurant; Finnegan's Wake, a tavern; and the Hotel Bently, a vacant 103-year-old landmark.

In a typical episode, the cast and crew arrive at a location and are greeted by a host -- usually the owner or proprietor -- who describes events he or she has experienced or, more often than not, events he or she has heard about second- or third-hand, to which the host ascribes some kind of supernatural presence. The crew then deploys a variety of audio- and video-recording equipment throughout the site. At night they turn out the lights and explore the location in two-person teams armed with an arsenal of high-tech devices that they hope will illuminate any unnatural phenomena. They then reveal their findings to the host. 

In Alexandria, Hawes and Wilson met with Bill Hess from the mayor's office, and he described the buildings and provided a bit of the history. Hess is the city's liaison with film and television and is charged with encouraging productions to shoot in Alexandria. Clearly, he was successful in this case.

The process of investigation involves wandering around the empty buildings and interpreting nearly every bump in the night as some otherworldly presence. What else could those noises -- thumps and knocks and such -- be? Possibly the buildings settling, as they are all old and have undergone extensive renovation. Sounds could be caused by drafts. Most likely water in the plumbing, heating pipes or sump systems. But the viewer doesn't know because we see no effort to investigate any other possible source. You'd think plumbers would know better. 

To their credit, some of the "Ghost Hunters" try to resolve a few claims with plausible explanations, but their skepticism never goes far enough. 

Whenever some kind of spiritual presence is imagined to be nearby, these seemingly macho paranormal investigators react just like little children listening to spooky stories around a campfire. 

The biggest laugh of the season premiere came when Hawes is startled by a shadow in a kitchen at the Diamond Grill and said, "I just saw what looked like someone, and every hair on the back of my neck is standing up right now."

As he said that, the back of his neck is in full view of the camera and it's as hairless as the rest of his scalp. 

While the investigators try to pick up on the slightest sounds, the audience is bombarded with a soundtrack laden with effects, reverb and creepy music. Perhaps it's meant to create a eerie mood, or simply fill the void, but the result for the viewer is a heavily synthesized cacophony muddying the distinction between evidence and added effects. 

Wednesday' s episode concluded with a "Ghost Hunters" town hall meeting. Wilson and Hawes played audio with hiss and crackle -- what most audio experts refer to as "noise." Here the noise is interpreted as whispers of paranormal origin.

When Jason and Grant played the "whispers" to the crowd, their response was blank stares. But when Jason suggested that one sound was a voice saying "I'm sorry," then played it repeatedly, suddenly audience members could hear an enunciation.  The only power on display here was the power of suggestion. 

Another example of the power of suggestion occurred when team members Steve Gonsalves and Dave Tango were investigating the staircase at the Bently Hotel, where they were told paranormal forces tripped people on the stairs. As Tango climbed the steps, daring any nearby spirit to trip him, he stumbled, but he did it on his own, with no help from the spirit world.

A good subtitle for this series would be "Confirmation Bias in Action." In each case, they set out to prove there is a haunting, look for evidence that supports their claim but often fail to investigate more reasonable explanations. If there truly were a ghost in any of these locations, being confused with loud plumbing or noise on a audiotape would probably be an insult.

Given the absence of critical thinking, thoroughness and intellectual discipline that these investigators demonstrate, I can't imagine any self-respecting ghost would want to be caught dead on this show.

-- Ed Stockly

Photo: Jason Hawes, left, and Grant Wilson. Credit: Sheryl Nields / Syfy 

Comments

[O-town]

You apparently have only watched one episode. Jason and Grant do take into consideration logical explanations for the bumps in the night. As for EVP's (electronic voice phenomena), while not an exact science, non-believers won't believe it, believers will. Sadly, I think you went into writing this article with already a closed mind about it.

[Wanda Stone/CSPI Founder]

I have to say I am VERY appalled at your biased opinion of this show...as you say "the power of suggestion" will suggest to people that this show is not good...BOULDERDASH!!! you really need to be OPEN MINDED when writing articles or you need to at least let people know this is YOUR opinion ....

For those who believe....
NO explanation is necessary...

For those who DO NOT believe ...
no explanation is POSSIBLE...
Wanda Stone

[madsircool]

EVP's arent a science at all.

Then there is the Randi challenge offering 1 million dollars, held in a trust account, to anyone who can prove paranormal activity in a laboratory setting.

[kindlady1]

I love all of those paranormal shows, call me naive, but being a "Scorpio" and leaning toward the dark side at times, my favorite shows are: GHOST ADVENTURES, GHOST HUNTERS, BIOGRAPHY's "Celebrity Ghost Stories" (most cool, particularly their re-inactments); My Ghost Story, Paranormal Adventures. I used to laugh at Zack from GHOST ADVENTURES, but now find his show better than GHOST HUNTERS. Nonetheless, I love them all. I do believe in the paranormal and some episodes are better than others, but I can't get enough of them, the more the better. Keep on Ghosting!!!

[Sharon Hill]

Very nice. I wonder if this show might do better retooled as a comedy.

I think it's truly admirable that Jason and Grant have inspired other amateur paranormalists to investigate questions that they are curious about. Sadly, they are so off base when it comes to how to do science. They end up being just sciencey enough to fool the public who, unfortunately, has no real understanding of how a scientific process works. Their sham inquiry perpetuates the problem.

This is a TV show and we should allow them their drama. However, too many people think it's all real. That's what's scary about Ghost Hunters.

An open mind does not mean defaulting to a paranormal explanation when something odd happens and throwing out all of what we already know about the world. An open mind is saying "I don't know but let's find out" and pursuing logical explanations.

[Joey]

Thank you very much for this skeptical examination of the show. There is so little of this in the mainstream media, it was a real pleasure to read.

I have not made it through an entire GH episode because as soon as someone mistakes correlation for causation, or any of the other logical fallacies on display, I have to turn it off.

GH is a frequent topic of discussion (and often derision) in the skeptical community. I think it's because there was some hope that the show might actually display good paranormal investigation techniques. But it's a show about drama and suspense, not science, unfortunately. It has the potential to be more, but I suppose it's not sexy enough for TV to show skeptics debunking "hauntings" rather than getting all freaked out for the camera and offering laughable results (such as the "I'm sorry" thing you mentioned).

I look forward to reading more skeptical discussions of all kinds in the Los Angeles Times.

[kim sawyer]

I would just like to say that it would be nice to see or hear something from their hunts,. You are right the music is too loud so you can't hear anything and not only that but the camera is never where they see these so called aparitions. The camera is either on Grant or Jason and not on anything paranormal. Cut the music and put the camera' on the findings, instead of the ghost hunters heads or faces. It also seems that the camera's they put out are never in the right place ... What's up with that... Thanks KS

[James]

All right already!

I must first say that I am a skeptic who want's to believe.

That being said, I've been trying to talk my self out of watching this show for three years. I don't believe them, I don't buy a thing they claim to find and I don't for a minute believe their background sound effects add to the show.

Yet I still watch this crap every week. They may be fakes, but they do entertain.

I just wish for once someone could prove to me that there is evidence of the paranormal.

[Candace Marie Sumner]

its all fake.
this show has been on for years and since the ratings are way down and the show is near its end the boys have decided to start getting real to save what little integrity they have left.
talk to the ppl who have left the show they will tell you the horrible stories about faking evid. and being thrown under the bus when they didnt want to do it anymore.
.5 ratings will not keep them around for much longer.

[greengeekgirl]

I'm a skeptic and a total non-believer. That having been said . . . I love Ghost Hunters.

I don't watch it for the "truth" of it, because I know that most reality TV is not steeped in truth but in entertainment. I love the heck out of it, anyway.

As someone said below, for the believer, no explanation is possible . . . . those of us who are already skeptics, we're on the same page. For those who aren't, it is very hard to convince someone who isn't naturally skeptical to see the world skeptically. I think most really just don't have it in them.

[ThorGoLucky]

Thanks for exposing the mountebanks of pseudoscience and bunk.

[jimpa]

I think the TAPs team are just a bunch of overly-sensitized, possibly exploitive paranormal wannabes scaring each other into fits of "did you hear that," or "I just felt something rub over me." When you're in a creepy place, it doesn't take much to raise your hackles. When I climb into bed each night, I can ask myself what I would do if a cold hand reached out from under the bed and grabbed my ankle, and I can assure you that a chill would run up my spine. It's just pure silliness.

There are no such things as ghosts. There are no such things as spirits from beyond the grave. When you are dead, you are dead. Live your life the way you want to live it in a moral way, make every day a better day for someone in your life, and make sure that your descendants are well taken care of. If there is a heaven, you will be rewarded.