# While Coast to Coast is anathema to this board, sometimes it is pretty darn good. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 12, 2011, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428 "2011-08-12T05:17:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/1 "2011-08-12T05:17:04Z")
Not everything on the show is bunk. And when they get a good guest, it is the best long form interview on the air. Certainly worth tuning into from time to time. ---
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/2 "2011-08-12T05:18:04Z")
And of course I realize this should be in CS, mods! ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/3 "2011-08-12T05:22:53Z")
> [@Stan\_Shmenge](#): > > And of course I realize this should be in CS, mods! Moved. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/4 "2011-08-12T05:29:12Z")
can’t stand George Noory ---
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/5 "2011-08-12T06:15:33Z")
> [@PSXer](#): > > can’t stand George Noory Yeah, I didn’t like him at first, but he has gotten better, IMHO. Ian Punnet is awesome though. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/6 "2011-08-12T06:18:13Z")
I used to listen to George Noory but now I can’t bear to listen to his shows anymore (nor Ian Punnet, although I used to like him). I listen to the Art Bell re-runs on Saturday sometimes ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/7 "2011-08-12T06:21:22Z")
Bring back Art Bell. Unless he’s dead, that is. In that case, bring back Art Bell! 😉 Quas’ ---
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/8 "2011-08-12T06:30:36Z")
> [@Quasimodem](#): > > Bring back Art Bell. Unless he’s dead, that is. > > In that case, bring back Art Bell! 😉 > > Quas’ We all miss Art. Just something about the guy was magic. But he shows no sign of coming back outside of special appearances a few times a year, so we really can’t mope over that. Noory has improved and does a workmanlike job. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/9 "2011-08-12T11:53:01Z")
> [@Stan\_Shmenge](#): > > We all miss Art. Just something about the guy was magic. But he shows no sign of coming back outside of special appearances a few times a year, so we really can’t mope over that. Noory has improved and does a workmanlike job. Not even special appearances anymore. From what I gather, he has totally cut ties with C2CAM & is focusing on his wife & child. There was a lot of speculation about another show or a terminal illness but neither seem to be the case. Every night I’m off, I try to check out the first hour at least, even if I don’t always stay tuned in. I’m always a sucker for a good UFO yarn. ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/10 "2011-08-12T11:57:56Z")
I wonder if he and Whitney Strieber are still friends and collaborating on another book? Q ---
**Author:** ![Eugene\_of\_Sandwich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c37758/32.png) [@Eugene\_of\_Sandwich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eugene_of_Sandwich)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/11 "2011-08-12T17:23:55Z")
I like George, he’s virtually unflappable. The biggest kooks call in (and there’s always boatloads) and he plays right along and lets them get whatever they’re going on about off their chest. Seems like a nice guy to me but yeah, he ain’t no Art Bell! ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/12 "2011-08-12T18:05:06Z")
Is this available on iTunes as a podcast? I’d check, but I’m not at home… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/13 "2011-08-12T18:08:54Z")
On the way home from the airport a few weeks ago, we caught a wonderful interview with some scientist, where he discussed NASA, the space station and the role of government research versus private research. Really interesting, and made me re-assess some of my prior thoughts on NASA funding. No aliens, no anal probes and no conspiracy. But the rest of the time I change it, because it totally creeps me out. ---
**Author:** ![Terraplane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@Terraplane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terraplane)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/14 "2011-08-12T18:08:58Z")
> [@Eugene\_of\_Sandwich](#): > > I like George, he’s virtually unflappable. The biggest kooks call in (and there’s always boatloads) and he plays right along and lets them get whatever they’re going on about off their chest. Seems like a nice guy to me but yeah, he ain’t no Art Bell! I like Art Bell better, but this is my favorite thing about Noory, how eager he is to believe (or pretend to believe) _anything_. Art Bell would kind of listen and not judge, but Noory actively encourages. Caller: I’ve been tired lately, things don’t stay where I put them, and I hear strange noises at night. I think it’s demons. George (without missing a beat): Oh yeah, absolutely, demons’ll do that. Listening to it late at night you feel like you’re been transported to the world of The X-Files or something, it’s great. I do feel bad sometimes for some of the callers, some of them obviously have issues that run pretty deep, but what can I say, crazy is fascinating. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/15 "2011-08-12T18:29:08Z")
I gave up on Coast to Coast long ago. Even though I loved Art Bell and don’t mind George or the other guest hosts, the ratio of actual program to promos, commercials, and extended bumper music is just ridiculous. ---
**Author:** ![johnspartan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a183cd/32.png) [@johnspartan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnspartan)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/16 "2011-08-12T19:05:35Z")
+1 for the “missing Art Bell” column. I’ll actually go the other way, I wish every so often they’d bring in the guests with some of the more loonytoon ideas AND also a professional skeptic / debunker as a counter-balance. I remember hearing once someone on saying we should have known Challenger was going to blow up because if you play ship’s recordings backwards, you hear messages. The messages, were, of course, 3 minutes of nonsense and then a word that kind of sounded like “down”, and then 20 seconds later what’s clearly an alternate spelling of the Cahtolic patron saint of mechanics and laborers, which can only be taken to mean that they subconsciously knew a wreck was coming. And if ONLY the guest could find more funding for their research… ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/17 "2011-08-13T13:50:41Z")
Coast to Coast is only anathema to this board to the extent it _uncritically_ repeats junk. That is the main problem with CtC and Forteanism at least: They don’t think anything through, they just gather ideas endlessly and don’t care that a lot of what they gather is nonsense (stuff that isn’t lucid enough to be considered), bullshit (stuff told with no regard for the facts), and lies (deliberate distortions of the facts). That isn’t being open-minded. Being open-minded means you don’t reject things without thought. CtC and Forteansim espouse something akin to closed-mindedness, except in place of unthinking rejection they have unthinking acceptance. It’s the ‘unthinking’ part that annoys me. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/18 "2011-08-13T14:50:56Z")
> [@Stan\_Shmenge](#): > > Not everything on the show is bunk. The problem is, since so much that is on the show is bunk, unless I already have my own knowledge of what the guest is talking about I have no way of knowing what isn’t bunk versus just being less insane sounding than usual garbage. Have not listened very much since Bell left as I never took to Noory, plus I’m just not out on the road in the middle of the night as often as I used to be, which is where I usually listened. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-coast-to-coast-is-anathema-to-this-board-sometimes-it-is-pretty-darn-good/592428/19 "2011-08-13T15:39:58Z")
I tune in briefly a few times a week to get an idea of what the latest connect-the-dots crazy is. Maybe 0.05% of what you hear is both factual and interesting; the rest is spoutings from various hacks with a book to sell and/or website to promote, plus the usual assortment of callers who need to get back on their meds.