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Producers of Skeptologists Welcome New Cast Member

by Ryan Johnson, Oct 06 2010

Things have been busy behind the scenes of the hopeful TV series, “The Skeptologists.”  One of them I would like to briefly share with you today.

What makes The Skeptologists a truly great show concept and a worthy bit of entertainment is firstly, the cast! Our cast is a world-class mix of knowledge, experience and talent from several different areas of expertise. Recently we’ve had to say goodbye to one of them. Dr. Phil Plait leaves the active cast of the Skeptologists to pursue his hosting role on Bad Universe on the Discovery Channel.  We are so proud of his new opportunity, and I trust that everyone will greatly support his efforts with that new venture.  Dr. Plait has and continues to support our work on the show and of course, we’ll always consider him a very important member of the team, whether he appears on camera or not. (continue reading…)

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We Have a Winner…

by Ryan Johnson, Jul 27 2010

I would like to thank all of you that participated in the logo submission.  We received many great entries in a variety of creative directions.  I can’t express enough appreciation of the hard work and time that everyone put towards this project.  This effort truly helps our projects and I am glad that there are those in the community that are able to reach out with their talents and lend a hand.

The votes are tallied, and the ballots are in, after much consideration, deliberation and libation, we have selected the graphic artist whose work will be featured on our newest television project promotional materials. (continue reading…)

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Logo Designers: We need your help!

by Ryan Johnson, Jul 09 2010

The producers, working behind the scenes of the Skeptologists TV series and other related TV projects needs the assistance of a talented graphic designer to help us create a new logo.

We’re working on another top secret project, but we need your help.  If you are handy with a graphics program, please take a few minutes to create a logo for one of our new projects and send it in by Sunday July 11th. We’ll accept all entries that fit our specifications and the creator of the logo that we select for use will receive a copy of both Skeptoid books, signed by author Brian Dunning, and a DVD of Here Be Dragons, bragging rights and of course our perpetual thanks!

All submissions become property of Skeptologists Partners and all creators release all rights to their use.

To enter, please send me an email: Ryan@newrule.com I’ll reply with further details of the project and specifications. Remember we’ll need all submissions by July 12th.

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Oh, Oh, Oh, It’s Magic!

by Ryan Johnson, May 18 2010

On April 5th, I took possession of a device that still in many ways baffles my mind and creates a sense of wonder within all that behold it’s simplistic form and complex abilities.

Throughout the years mankind has engaged the minds of many to create tools and machine that would allow them to work, understand, communicate, be entertained by and create objects that advance our civilizations.

In the past, such persons who had mastery over their ability to create or understand, were often either revered or shunned by their fellow man. (continue reading…)

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Homeopathic ER

by Ryan Johnson, Feb 09 2010

This week, I’m simply going to share with you a video clip from a UK TV show, that I saw and thought that I should share. This clip comes from a show called That Mitchell & Webb Look. I’m not familiar with the show, other than this and a few other clips from YouTube, But their take on what things would be like if homeopathy were allowed to run even more rampant than they are now, is quite hilarious..

Enjoy!

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Mainstream Skepticism Win! Score one for New Media

by Ryan Johnson, Feb 02 2010

I am an avid listener to podcasts. I can attribute my enlightenment that I was a Skeptic from the early days of listening to Penn Jillette’s radio show rebroadcast on my iPod.

Now, as I spend my day making videos, working on pitch materials for The Skeptologists and also making breakaway bottles for SMASHProps, I have a lot of time available to listen to many great podcasts. Most are skeptically themed and feature several of the authors that contribute regularly to this blog.

One podcast that I listen to regularly is the Tech Stuff Podcast, from the folks over at HowStuffWorks.com. Chris Pollette and Jonathan Strickland regularly take on topics related to technology from how fiber optics work to the best Easter eggs found in video games. When I scrolled through my menu of choices for my evening listening, last night, I saw that the latest offering from tech stuff was labeled “Ghost Hunting Technology.” I have to admit that I almost skipped it! My fear was that I’d listen to this podcast and have to stop listening to their future shows because of something that they said and I would have lost all “faith” in their ability to report on topics related to, well, anything!
(continue reading…)

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Production Forensics

by Ryan Johnson, Dec 22 2009

The entertainment and media world is in a very sorry state. I have not been immune to that. While I share those issues with the rest of my peers, I’ve been working insane hours to make sure that the supporting production company for The Skeptologists, Truth Hurts, and other programs remains in good shape. I have had to allow this weekly task to fall away recently while I tended to those other matters. Of course you all have been in the greatest of hands without me.

I’m not the skeptical storehouse of information and vast material that my cohorts of SkepticBlog seem to be. My area of expertise is mainly in the world of production and media, so I honestly had begun finding it very difficult to find subjects that I felt would be entertaining or relevant to our loyal readers. Once I finished up my reflective journey about how we created and shot the Skeptologists pilot, I felt like I had just ran out of material. Rather than vamping on subjects that I know far less about, I decided to take a break and re-evaluate. Kudos to the other bloggers who have continued without fail through the year, they have steadfastly committed their much more precious time to their weekly penning.

Which brings me to where I’m at now: Looking towards the beginning of the new year, and some exciting projects and prospects. (continue reading…)

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Tip of the Hat

by Ryan Johnson, Aug 25 2009

So some of you may have noticed my absence on the blogosphere as of late. I could give you a hundred excuses why but the two main ones are: I’ve been very busy working on productions for my “real” job, and I haven’t had much time to research topics to blog about.

The Skeptologists TV series is still a very active part of our work here but sometimes we go through a phase where there’s not much to report on. That’s the case at the moment. We’re reworking a few show details, and preparing some new pitch materials to adjust to the current TV climate. We’re also looking into self-financing the program to get us into production, so those are pretty exciting developments.

But this blog isn’t about that. I just wanted to offer a thank you to all of my colleagues who continue to provide countless hours of fresh and interesting material for SkepticBlog.org. The team hasn’t let me down, and judging by the comments and the very active group of regulars that we have online here, we’ve got a great community of people who all have some very exciting things to discuss. (continue reading…)

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“One Dose of Skepticism Please.” “Certainly! That’ll be 99 Cents.”

by Ryan Johnson, Jul 21 2009

What is knowledge worth? How can we place a value on education, on reason, on being properly informed? More importantly, if there was no monetary value on education and knowledge, would it have significance in our society?

In our fast-paced lives, surrounded by ever-speedier means to send and receive information, entertainment and knowledge, one question that I, as a content producer must grapple with is how much is this information worth to others?

The internet has no doubt revolutionized the way modern societies access and consume information. Right behind information is entertainment. With this paradigm shift is an important issue that people in the entertainment industry are facing, some gladly, others kicking and screaming. A few still have just buried their head in the sand (I submit that’s a start, they might as well keep digging into that sand) (continue reading…)

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TAM7 B.Y.O.S. (Bring Your Own Show)

by Ryan Johnson, Jul 07 2009

As I work away on all my various production projects and try to get things settled for a few days away the end of this week, one thing is in the back of my mind… The Amazing Meeting is this week! Hooray!

TAM7 as we affectionately call it is the largest yearly meet-up and conference of skeptics in the world. Brought to us by The James Randi Educational Foundation, and headed up by none other than fellow Skeptologist and SkepticBlog contributor Phil Plait. He’ll be the M.C. at the event which will bring together I’m betting easily over a thousand skeptics from all over the US and the world. (continue reading…)

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