No need to get defensive.

It’s true that Coast to Coast has had a variety of guests, not all of whom are cranks. It’s also true that among the general public, the show has a definite “loony” association. Remember Art Bell’s role in the Heaven’s Gate suicides? How he helped promote the idea that a space ship was trailing Hale-Bopp?

I was not criticizing you or the show specifically, just asking what I think is a legitimate question: Will having Bigfoot lumped in with UFOs, psychics, moon hoax conspiracy theorists, etc., help or hurt the cause of bringing legitimacy to the search for Bigfoot?

You obviously think it will help, and that’s fine. I’m just offering another point of view, asking if that’s really the case.

See the list of guests here.

There is a diverse list of folks, from astronaut Buzz Aldrin to presidential candidate Ralph Nader who have used the program as a friendly platform to talk to an audience that listens in to C2C. Several people, like James Oberg (NASA consultant and UFO skeptic), Michael Shermer (founder of the Skeptic Magazine), and Seth Shostak (Senior Astronomer at the SETI Institute) have appeared to give a balanced view of subjects.

I have brought skepticism, Forteanism, and openmindedness to my cryptozoology appearances, and I really wonder what you would have us do, Ben? Turn over the show to only the fringe people and have no one heard the middle road in looking into cryptozoology?

Frankly, Ben, it seems you are projecting shortsightness if you think that being on C2C is “unscientific.” The goal is actually more one of making people aware that someone has something to say, share, and disseminate who happens to be sane and knows his data.

After all, Bigfoot is lumped in with psychics, alien abductions, crazy conspiracy theories, people who hear voices and see fairies, and so on. You don’t have to listen for more than a few minutes to hear some of the nuts who call in to the “Art Bell Comedy Hour.” I understand that it’s good publicity for the Art Bell crowd, but is this really the image we want to project to the rest of the world?