Penn & Teller's '********' on Showtime

The Nimble Pianist

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I just learned about Penn & Teller's Showtime series about different matters of skepticism, called ********. I don't subscribe to Showtime and I was wondering what different skeptics opinions about the show are.

I've heard they've gotten into some hot water due to certain comments concerning second hand smoke and recycling. I've also heard some complaints that the show doesn't cite much evidence and has quite a libertarian slant to it.

I'm considering subscribing to Showtime mostly for the benefit of watching this show, however if it's mere entertainment and only pays lip-service to skepticism (while executing the same dogmatic and selective form of citation that religion, pseudoscience, and conspiracy theory entertain) I think I might reconsider.
 
xixxvmcm85:

You could always refer to the show the way Penn Jillette himself did on his radio show. He called it "Bulls Hit". That seemed to get around the CBS profanity rules, at any rate.

I have seen all the episodes, which is quite a trick up here in Canuckistan, since we don't get Showtime. However, I find the show quite entertaining and informative. However, keep in mind that they are trying to cover some pretty big topics in a 30 minute show, so much in the way of research and citations has to be chopped due to time constraints. The show is heavily slanted towards entertainment, but they do give enough information to motivate further research, if a particular topic is of sufficient interest. Personally speaking, I look forward to seeing each episode, and mining the show's content for the nuggets of truth among the entertainment bits. I highly recommend the show. If you want to sample it before getting a subscription to the channel, you can always buy a season or two on DVD, which would probably be cheaper in the long run if you decide you don't like the show after all.
 
Search the forum for "Penn and Teller," "BS," or "Bullsh!t." There many discussions about the show's specific topics.
 
I have just fixed the tags for you.

Save 2 minutes and instead of doing a search in this forum just click on the tag and several threads about the show will appear.

Edit. Looks like there are more threads with the tags you had originally. So I changed them back. But clicking on them will produce heaps of threads.
 
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This was the show that first made me a skeptic, where I first learned about the existence of James Randi and the JREF and what ultimately lead me to this forum.

I owe it all to Penn Jillette.
 
as long as you watch the show with a good, skeptical mind, you can avoid some of the pitfalls of it. it commits plenty of logical fallacies, is prone to a libertarian bias, selective evidence, etc. but.... like previously said, it's for entertainment, it'll go for the cheap shots and occasionally flaunt some breasts. it's not classroom material and doesn't try to be.

a while back someone (i forget who, sorry!) said that they considered it like a cheerleading section for atheism and skepticism. i feel this is the most valid way of thinking about it. the fluffy side of the game.
 
I concur, EeneyMinnieMoe. I had never really thought about psychics and their ilk then when I saw the first episode "Talking to the dead" I was just shocked. I had no idea how manipulative and cunning psychics were all in the name of helping people connect with dead loved ones.

Penn & Teller are my heroes, lol. And they're my Myspace friends too. :D
 
rjh01 said:
I have just fixed the tags for you.

Save 2 minutes and instead of doing a search in this forum just click on the tag and several threads about the show will appear.

Edit. Looks like there are more threads with the tags you had originally. So I changed them back. But clicking on them will produce heaps of threads.
Click to expand...

Thanks, though the searches and tags are too vague. I was looking for information specific to this show, yet the searches yield results from TAM, magic, skeptical podcasts, etc.

Thanks to the others who informed me that the DVDs are out. I'm off to blockbuster now to see if they carry it.
 
The DVDs are your best bet, just bear in mind that the show is entertainment, not science. If you watch it as entertainment you will be entertained, much of it is amusing and some is thought-provoking even if the details are lacking.
 
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