Sue Darroch and Matthew Didier's Paranormal Blog

Awright folks, this may sound "self-serving" to a degree because Sue and I have never hidden our want to be on the radio doing a paranormal show... and LORD knows we have the material... but it isn't.

Nope...

This rant is about Sue and I as "consumers" of media... people that watch TV and, more importantly for this post, listen to the radio...

Quite frankly, in Toronto right now, PARANORMAL RADIO PROGRAMMING SUCKS!

This is not only our opinion... but in straw polls at gatherings, we ask... and many share our view.

Sure, we get the big American national show... and have a "Toronto-Home-Grown" show... but the American national show's format is all over the place... and the "big three", Ghosts, UFOs, and Crypto get really short changed as most guests are either shady new-agers or conspiracy theorists.

Is it TOO difficult to... oh, I don't know... GO TO THE BOOKSTORE and see who's written what... and perhaps understand your subject... after all, you're supposed to be BUILDING a show here... it'd be nice if you KNEW and UNDERSTOOD your topic.

What so odd is listening to these shows, the bulk of their call-in guests are wanting to relay their ghost stories or UFO sightings... and yet, they still almost exclusively book "military experts" (who's military records are questionable), shaky-new-age people who seem more interested in "selling" things that are bordering on fraudulent if not outright frauds, and in those rare occasions they have a show on "the big three", they seem to find the most... um... well, let's just say, with very few exceptions, their guests suck.

They have cemetery-stomping ghost-hunters... tinfoil-hat Ufologists... and whacky naturists-cum-big-game-hunter crypto people.

What's sad is the plethora of good people that are out there... who either WON'T get asked to be on a show or WOULDN'T do a show because of it's past... or the hosts personal issues.

...but here in the big smoke of Toronto... it's "Big American All-Night" show... or Toronto-Show with guests that are personal friends AND YES, even relations of the host.

To be honest, it sucks... and a vast, untapped market awaits for the station manager that visits his or her proctologist to have their head removed from their butts to see this.

Much as I was not a fan of being on shows with a psychic doing readings and whatnot, I knew the crowds loved 'em... but again, did a host bring on a GOOD psychic regularly...? No... they went with a "store-font" one more often than not.

It's ALL so maddening... because I want to be enlightened... I want to be educated... I want to be entertained...

I've HAD IT with little choice and those choices insulting me and their audience.

I don't care if we're ever "on" the show... there's HUNDREDS of good guests... good topics... good radio...

...but as long as you continue to ignore your audience... and they have little choice but to listen to you, music, or endless "Leafs" programming in Toronto... why should you worry, right?

Just keep troughing out the crap... sadly, too many have little choice but to eat it up and pretend to be happy... Better than nothing I 'spose.