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Source: wnyparanormal.com
This television season, we're seeing a revival of paranormal TV shows and movies -fiction, fact, and factual fiction.
"It seems that everyone wants a piece of the pie. This upcoming season, five additional television series on the paranormal will hit networks to air nationwide including titles like Ghost Whisper, One Step Beyond, and Shadow Hunter among last season's favorites like Ghost Hunters, and Most Haunted" said Sandra Heglund of Western New York Paranormal of Rochester. What does this mean to the paranormal community?
First, the increased interest in the paranormal phenomenon has many amateur investigators grabbing their cameras and recorders seeking to find the unknown. But this has also caused many money motivated people to seek out compensation for their research and cleansing services.
Ghostbusters has seen to move from the big screen into real life. With so many self proclaimed experts in the field - paranormal investigation companies, psychics, astrologers, demonologists - there is the potential for those to prey on the fears of the inexperienced public.
Those people who may or may not be truly experiencing a paranormal event, but don't know how to deal with it. So they grasp at straws and end up hiring someone who claims to be able to help - for a price. Heglund states that "we've been brought up in a society that has taught us that the higher the price is - the better the service is. But are they truly as willing to help the family in dire straits once the families funding runs out?"
There have been reports from around the country of organizations beginning to charge clients. A group in New York charges $75 for a novice to join them on an investigation, another group in Washington DC charges upwards to $65 an hour for an investigation and the list goes on. This leads to many ethical, legal, and liability questions.
Do the true professionals charge or just accept unsolicited donations? "Of course, paranormal investigation costs money out of the investigator's pocket, but the question has to be asked. What is the true motive of the investigator? Is it to financially prosper or to educate and assist" said Heglund.
One of the latest trends is the haunted tours and ghost hunts. Although places like Gettysburg and New Orleans has conducted them for years, their goal is to mix legend and history for eager tourists. But within the past few years the attention has turned to the purchasing of property that has suspected paranormal activity. The public is then charged for tours to finance the purchase.
Across the nation, these "public hunts" can be seen taking place at mansions, prisons, and old asylums. Granted, big bucks can be made from such a venture - but the entrepreneur could be opening a real can of worms.
For with public participation, come all the public dangers. Having inexperienced members of the public stumbling through dark buildings, some trying to scare others, and dissatisfaction- all can lead to potential law suits from customers, loss of reputation, even financial losses from failed ventures.
It's true that the potential is there for some big payouts. The idea isn't attractive when you're facing the day-to-day challenges of just getting by. Stop and think for a moment, what effects the actions of those motivated by money will have on the reputation of the paranormal community as a whole. Heglund express that "there is a difference between those conducting paranormal investigation for strict research and assistance purposes versus those driven by the almighty dollar.
Think twice before you decide to start charging for something for which there is no guarantee of results."
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