THE PARACAST NEWSLETTER
January 10, 2016
www.theparacast.com
Explore the State of UFO Research on The Paracast
The Paracast is heard Sundays from 3:00 AM until 6:00 AM Central Time on the GCN Radio Network and affiliates around the USA, the Boost Radio Network, the IRN Internet Radio Network, and online across the globe via download and on-demand streaming.
A PREMIUM PARACAST EXPERIENCE! We have another radio show, and for a low subscription fee, you will receive access to After The Paracast, plus a higher-quality version of The Paracast without the network ads, and chat rooms when you sign up for The Paracast+. NEW! We’ve added an RSS feed for fast updates of the latest episodes and we give free ebooks for long-term subscriptions. We’ve just launched The Paracast+ Video Channel. Check out our new “Lifetime” membership! For more information about our premium package, please visit: Introducing The Paracast+ | The Paracast — The Gold Standard of Paranormal Radio.
This Week's Episode: When it comes to UFO researchers, Chris Rutkowski is a class act. He returns to The Paracast for a 2015 UFO sighting update, his reaction to Hilary Clinton’s promise to look into UFOs, the “new” Ufology and other hot topics in the field. We also focus on pop culture and sic-fi. Says his bio: “Chris Rutkowski, B.Sc., Med, is a Canadian science writer and educator, with a background in astronomy but with a passion for teaching science concepts to children and adults. Since the mid-1970s, he also has been studying reports of UFOs and writing about his investigations and research.”
Chris O’Brien’s Site: Our Strange Planet
Chris Rutkowski’s Blog: Ufology Research
After The Paracast -- Available exclusively to Paracast+ subscribers on January 10:(Stereo Mix) More skeptical nowadays in his approach to paranormal mysteries, Chris points out how he’s going out with a drone pilot to find an alleged hidden city written about in 1909; all this even though it may all be nonsense. So we are entering the brave new world of consciousness and the bridge to a potential virtual reality. Will it help with space travel? Can we somehow move our consciousness to another place? Or, psychedelics 101, do we already have universal awareness, where we can become one with the holographic universe? So can we thus travel to another place, because we are already there? What about the sic-fi concept of the stargate? Do we physically transport ourselves when we enter the gate, or is it a means of consciousness expansion where we sense our presence in another location? The discussion moves to space travel and the imperative to move humans off planet, along w ith the possibilities of altering our concept of reality and the possible mind-warping implications. There’s also a brief discussion about future guests for The Paracast.
Reminder: Please don't forget to visit our famous Paracast Community Forums for the latest news/views/debates on all things paranormal: The Paracast Community Forums.
It Was 10 Years Ago…
By Gene Steinberg
It’s funny how little conversations can turn into big things — or at least surprisingly different things.
In late 2005, I had just completed a semi-regular segment for my other radio show, The Tech Night Owl Live, which was known as the “David Biedny Zone.” My guest was a noted graphic and special effects artist, musician, and a clever story teller. One time, he told the tale of eavesdropping, with his girlfriend at his side, on the goings on in an adjacent hotel room that was occupied by executives from a major software company. I suppose he learned all sorts of juicy tidbits about that company’s future plans.
Or was it only a story? David, you see, also said he was once a member of the “prank crew” for a local shock jock. That meant he would help perpetrate silly stunts to drive ratings. It was about making things up.
Well, after each segment, we’d spend a few moments talking about one thing or another, and this time we began to share the fact that we were both interested in UFOs. He said he had a large book collection and had studied the subject for years, but didn’t mention anything about actually seeing them. That came later.
I don’t exactly know how it all got started, but one fateful day, the conversation somehow turned to whether we should do a second radio show, on the paranormal.
Getting it all set up wasn’t too difficult. I already had a site and a structure for the tech show, so it was mostly a matter of cloning the settings for a new site and creating a special file, an RSS feed, to submit the show for posting in Apple’s iTunes.
As with the tech show, the recording would first be streamed online, and the backup file would be the source of the podcast that could be downloaded from our site.
The first episode, featuring Brad Steiger and Jim Moseley, was actually recorded a couple of weeks before we even had a theme, or a name for the new show. At first, we had decided on “Paracast World,” but Brad, an old friend, suggested we shorten it to something more direct. Thus we arrived at “The Paracast.”
David composed the theme and we were ready to go. The premiere episode, 90 minutes long, was released on February 28, 2006.
We didn’t know what people would think, particularly listeners to my tech show, or David’s colleagues in the tech industry, although it’s clear he had some blowback. From the very beginning, we adopted a no-nonsense approach. We’d give guests a fair hearing, but call out silly claims, obvious or suspected hoaxers, and just plain faulty logic.
Taking a proper journalistic tact immediately set The Paracast apart from most paranormal shows, even the largest that was carried on a major radio network. It was common practice to placate listeners and beliefs, however unfounded, and never ask guests the hard questions. It was usually more about entertainment, or shock value, rather than conveying real information about unknown mysteries.
I soon set up a forum for our listeners to discuss show topics, guests, and anything or nothing in particular. In short order, as listenership grew, the The Paracast Community Forums became one of the most popular online watering holes to discuss the paranormal.
Controversial guests would really spur discussions, and it sometimes got hot and heavy. So the two guest appearances by the so-called American representative of contactee Billy Meier sparked endless debates. Taking the role of benevolent dictator, we allowed the discussions to continue, but finally put a stop to the debate when it descended into insults and personal attacks.
As to David, he was under heavy pressure from a number of personal trials, so one day in early 2010, he sent in his resignation notice: “I can no longer be involved with the Paracast. The damage it's done to my life is too extensive, it's really f—d me up, and there's no way I can continue. I'm very sorry.” He went on to say the experience had almost destroyed his career.
But David, as many of you know, is also a firebrand, so he turned the understandable decision to leave the show into a matter of controversy and debate. It was a “World Wide Wrestling Federation” approach towards handling former friends and colleagues, and I never took any of it seriously.
But the show must go on, so I selected several people to serve as rotating guest co-hosts for the time being. They included Frank Warren, a UFO researcher, Paul Kimball, a filmmaker, Christopher O’Brien, famous for his research into the amazing events in what is known as the Mysterious Valley, Nick Redfern, a prolific author, and Greg Bishop, a writer and talk show host who specializes in out-of-the-box thinking.
By not immediately settling on a permanent co-host, we were able to explore different approaches on The Paracast.
In the summer of 2010, we hit the big time, more or less, when The Paracast and The Tech Night Owl LIVE joined the Genesis Communications Network, which boasts of being the largest independent radio network in the U.S. That meant we’d be heard on real radio stations, not just online, although online distribution would continue.
Chris O’Brien soon agreed to become the permanent co-host, and The Paracast continued to reach a wider and wider audience worldwide. The network affiliation has resulted in a total of 40 stations carrying the two shows, which isn’t a bad number at a time when terrestrial radio listenership and network outlets are contracting.
However, the network deal hasn’t resulted in an embarrassment of riches. The deal is barter, meaning we share ad slots with GCN for the shows, and earn our keep strictly by the ads we can sell to fill those slots.
Of course, not everyone appreciates advertising on radio and television, though it’s what you give up to get free shows. Since podcast apps have fast forward buttons, same as a DVR, you can speed past them if you like.
In late 2014, after months of negotiations with GCN, they agreed to let us offer a special ad-free version of the shows on a subscription basis. With some help from listeners, and plenty of suggestions, I was able to set up The Paracast+ and The Tech Night Owl LIVE+.
So for a monthly, annual, five-year or lifetime subscription rate, we now offer a higher resolution version of the two shows with the 41 minutes of network ads removed. Other features were added over time, such as the exclusive After The Paracast podcast, special RSS feeds so you could receive updates of new episodes, and download them, without having to visit our forums to listen to the premium content.
Recently we’ve begun to post show transcripts for special episodes, and Chris and I just inaugurated The Paracast Video Channel, exclusive to subscribers to The Paracast+.
While The Paracast has traditionally focused heavily on UFOs, we’ve expanded the subjects into a number of areas, including synchronicity, ghost hunting, Bigfoot, and even the troubling subject of cattle mutilations.
And it all started with a conversation.
Chris and I are planning a 10th anniversary show, and we’re already working on where to take The Paracast over the next decade. Thank you all for your support. It’s been a fun ride, and I’m more anxious than ever to see where it takes us as we continue to explore our incredible paranormal universe.
Copyright 1999-2016 The Paracast LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy: Your personal information is safe with us. We will positively never give out your name and/or e-mail address to anybody else, and that's a promise!
January 10, 2016
www.theparacast.com
Explore the State of UFO Research on The Paracast
The Paracast is heard Sundays from 3:00 AM until 6:00 AM Central Time on the GCN Radio Network and affiliates around the USA, the Boost Radio Network, the IRN Internet Radio Network, and online across the globe via download and on-demand streaming.
A PREMIUM PARACAST EXPERIENCE! We have another radio show, and for a low subscription fee, you will receive access to After The Paracast, plus a higher-quality version of The Paracast without the network ads, and chat rooms when you sign up for The Paracast+. NEW! We’ve added an RSS feed for fast updates of the latest episodes and we give free ebooks for long-term subscriptions. We’ve just launched The Paracast+ Video Channel. Check out our new “Lifetime” membership! For more information about our premium package, please visit: Introducing The Paracast+ | The Paracast — The Gold Standard of Paranormal Radio.
This Week's Episode: When it comes to UFO researchers, Chris Rutkowski is a class act. He returns to The Paracast for a 2015 UFO sighting update, his reaction to Hilary Clinton’s promise to look into UFOs, the “new” Ufology and other hot topics in the field. We also focus on pop culture and sic-fi. Says his bio: “Chris Rutkowski, B.Sc., Med, is a Canadian science writer and educator, with a background in astronomy but with a passion for teaching science concepts to children and adults. Since the mid-1970s, he also has been studying reports of UFOs and writing about his investigations and research.”
Chris O’Brien’s Site: Our Strange Planet
Chris Rutkowski’s Blog: Ufology Research
After The Paracast -- Available exclusively to Paracast+ subscribers on January 10:(Stereo Mix) More skeptical nowadays in his approach to paranormal mysteries, Chris points out how he’s going out with a drone pilot to find an alleged hidden city written about in 1909; all this even though it may all be nonsense. So we are entering the brave new world of consciousness and the bridge to a potential virtual reality. Will it help with space travel? Can we somehow move our consciousness to another place? Or, psychedelics 101, do we already have universal awareness, where we can become one with the holographic universe? So can we thus travel to another place, because we are already there? What about the sic-fi concept of the stargate? Do we physically transport ourselves when we enter the gate, or is it a means of consciousness expansion where we sense our presence in another location? The discussion moves to space travel and the imperative to move humans off planet, along w ith the possibilities of altering our concept of reality and the possible mind-warping implications. There’s also a brief discussion about future guests for The Paracast.
Reminder: Please don't forget to visit our famous Paracast Community Forums for the latest news/views/debates on all things paranormal: The Paracast Community Forums.
It Was 10 Years Ago…
By Gene Steinberg
It’s funny how little conversations can turn into big things — or at least surprisingly different things.
In late 2005, I had just completed a semi-regular segment for my other radio show, The Tech Night Owl Live, which was known as the “David Biedny Zone.” My guest was a noted graphic and special effects artist, musician, and a clever story teller. One time, he told the tale of eavesdropping, with his girlfriend at his side, on the goings on in an adjacent hotel room that was occupied by executives from a major software company. I suppose he learned all sorts of juicy tidbits about that company’s future plans.
Or was it only a story? David, you see, also said he was once a member of the “prank crew” for a local shock jock. That meant he would help perpetrate silly stunts to drive ratings. It was about making things up.
Well, after each segment, we’d spend a few moments talking about one thing or another, and this time we began to share the fact that we were both interested in UFOs. He said he had a large book collection and had studied the subject for years, but didn’t mention anything about actually seeing them. That came later.
I don’t exactly know how it all got started, but one fateful day, the conversation somehow turned to whether we should do a second radio show, on the paranormal.
Getting it all set up wasn’t too difficult. I already had a site and a structure for the tech show, so it was mostly a matter of cloning the settings for a new site and creating a special file, an RSS feed, to submit the show for posting in Apple’s iTunes.
As with the tech show, the recording would first be streamed online, and the backup file would be the source of the podcast that could be downloaded from our site.
The first episode, featuring Brad Steiger and Jim Moseley, was actually recorded a couple of weeks before we even had a theme, or a name for the new show. At first, we had decided on “Paracast World,” but Brad, an old friend, suggested we shorten it to something more direct. Thus we arrived at “The Paracast.”
David composed the theme and we were ready to go. The premiere episode, 90 minutes long, was released on February 28, 2006.
We didn’t know what people would think, particularly listeners to my tech show, or David’s colleagues in the tech industry, although it’s clear he had some blowback. From the very beginning, we adopted a no-nonsense approach. We’d give guests a fair hearing, but call out silly claims, obvious or suspected hoaxers, and just plain faulty logic.
Taking a proper journalistic tact immediately set The Paracast apart from most paranormal shows, even the largest that was carried on a major radio network. It was common practice to placate listeners and beliefs, however unfounded, and never ask guests the hard questions. It was usually more about entertainment, or shock value, rather than conveying real information about unknown mysteries.
I soon set up a forum for our listeners to discuss show topics, guests, and anything or nothing in particular. In short order, as listenership grew, the The Paracast Community Forums became one of the most popular online watering holes to discuss the paranormal.
Controversial guests would really spur discussions, and it sometimes got hot and heavy. So the two guest appearances by the so-called American representative of contactee Billy Meier sparked endless debates. Taking the role of benevolent dictator, we allowed the discussions to continue, but finally put a stop to the debate when it descended into insults and personal attacks.
As to David, he was under heavy pressure from a number of personal trials, so one day in early 2010, he sent in his resignation notice: “I can no longer be involved with the Paracast. The damage it's done to my life is too extensive, it's really f—d me up, and there's no way I can continue. I'm very sorry.” He went on to say the experience had almost destroyed his career.
But David, as many of you know, is also a firebrand, so he turned the understandable decision to leave the show into a matter of controversy and debate. It was a “World Wide Wrestling Federation” approach towards handling former friends and colleagues, and I never took any of it seriously.
But the show must go on, so I selected several people to serve as rotating guest co-hosts for the time being. They included Frank Warren, a UFO researcher, Paul Kimball, a filmmaker, Christopher O’Brien, famous for his research into the amazing events in what is known as the Mysterious Valley, Nick Redfern, a prolific author, and Greg Bishop, a writer and talk show host who specializes in out-of-the-box thinking.
By not immediately settling on a permanent co-host, we were able to explore different approaches on The Paracast.
In the summer of 2010, we hit the big time, more or less, when The Paracast and The Tech Night Owl LIVE joined the Genesis Communications Network, which boasts of being the largest independent radio network in the U.S. That meant we’d be heard on real radio stations, not just online, although online distribution would continue.
Chris O’Brien soon agreed to become the permanent co-host, and The Paracast continued to reach a wider and wider audience worldwide. The network affiliation has resulted in a total of 40 stations carrying the two shows, which isn’t a bad number at a time when terrestrial radio listenership and network outlets are contracting.
However, the network deal hasn’t resulted in an embarrassment of riches. The deal is barter, meaning we share ad slots with GCN for the shows, and earn our keep strictly by the ads we can sell to fill those slots.
Of course, not everyone appreciates advertising on radio and television, though it’s what you give up to get free shows. Since podcast apps have fast forward buttons, same as a DVR, you can speed past them if you like.
In late 2014, after months of negotiations with GCN, they agreed to let us offer a special ad-free version of the shows on a subscription basis. With some help from listeners, and plenty of suggestions, I was able to set up The Paracast+ and The Tech Night Owl LIVE+.
So for a monthly, annual, five-year or lifetime subscription rate, we now offer a higher resolution version of the two shows with the 41 minutes of network ads removed. Other features were added over time, such as the exclusive After The Paracast podcast, special RSS feeds so you could receive updates of new episodes, and download them, without having to visit our forums to listen to the premium content.
Recently we’ve begun to post show transcripts for special episodes, and Chris and I just inaugurated The Paracast Video Channel, exclusive to subscribers to The Paracast+.
While The Paracast has traditionally focused heavily on UFOs, we’ve expanded the subjects into a number of areas, including synchronicity, ghost hunting, Bigfoot, and even the troubling subject of cattle mutilations.
And it all started with a conversation.
Chris and I are planning a 10th anniversary show, and we’re already working on where to take The Paracast over the next decade. Thank you all for your support. It’s been a fun ride, and I’m more anxious than ever to see where it takes us as we continue to explore our incredible paranormal universe.
Copyright 1999-2016 The Paracast LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy: Your personal information is safe with us. We will positively never give out your name and/or e-mail address to anybody else, and that's a promise!
