NationStates Jolt Archive

Has anyone watched this show? If you have, do you continue to watch it? If so, why?

I watched two episodes just to be sure of what I was seeing. This person, has a pre-existing agenda - a set of opinions that he has already formed. He will then visit sites and interview real archeaologists (as far as I can see, he isn't one) then, based on his opinions, discard, accept or tweak facts to suit his opinions. I'm not a scientist, but I was offended by the blatant disregard for facts. I won't watch it again.

Linky? Youtube video? Anything?

This is a US show, yeah? Damn Britain and its wonderful tv programmes. :p

This is the best link I could get. It's not the best, but it gives you a place to start. Yes, it's an American show.

http://boards.historychannel.com/category.jspa?categoryID=700000004

oh, i think i saw an episode of that - he tried to claim that the alphabet was invented by the hebrews during the exodus or some shit. it was so mind-bogglingly wrong it made the usual stupid 'hooray for the bible' bullshit shows seem downright appealing.

Is he naked?

...didn't the egyptians already have an alphabet before judaism even existed?

...didn't the egyptians already have an alphabet before judaism even existed?

yes*

Is he naked?

no


* well, what the egyptians had was not an alphabet per se, but it was well on it's way

I saw some of the series in Britain on the UKTV History Channel. He definitely represents himself as an archaeologist which he is not ( he is a Canadian documentary film maker who seems to like courting controversy). Essentially his theories are pretty crackpot and not backed by evidence - this is what tends to happen when religion and archaeology get mixed up together - think of all the "biblical archaeology" nutters claiming to have found Noah's Ark.

i haven't seen it, but as an archaeologist i think i'm going to hate it. any links i can direct my wrath at?

edit:

This is the best link I could get. It's not the best, but it gives you a place to start. Yes, it's an American show.

http://boards.historychannel.com/category.jspa?categoryID=700000004

ah!

*hates*

i haven't seen it, but as an archaeologist i think i'm going to hate it. any links i can direct my wrath at?

Link (www.google.ie)

Link (www.google.ie)

har har! very funny :p

The show is on American TV however it is based out of Canada. Anyway I watched it on more then one ocassion. The guy does go out there on a limb alot and in my opinion is biased toward his viewpoint without regard to historical facts. Just keep that in mind while watching it and everything will be just fine.

har har! very funny :p

My humour knows no bounds.

i haven't seen it, but as an archaeologist i think i'm going to hate it. any links i can direct my wrath at?

edit:



ah!

*hates*

There is an interview with him here about another of his programmes The Jesus family tomb

http://www.cbc.ca/thehour/video.php?id=1437

This is the best link I could get. It's not the best, but it gives you a place to start. Yes, it's an American show.

http://boards.historychannel.com/category.jspa?categoryID=700000004

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPPsXMtUOcE&mode=related&search=

You Tube link. Looks like the OP is right.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPPsXMtUOcE&mode=related&search=

You Tube link. Looks like the OP is right.

If the rest of the show is like that clip, then it's utter shit.

There is an interview with him here about another of his programmes The Jesus family tomb

http://www.cbc.ca/thehour/video.php?id=1437

ahhh! biblical archaeology annoys me. at least he admitted that he jumped to conclusions, but he still said it as if it was the truth. stupid man doesn't understand that the scientific method applies to archaeology just as much if not more so than other sciences. if there is any doubt then it is not an archaeological truth and you cannot claim it as such. no good archaeologist presents their interpretation of the evidence as the truth and he's criticizing them for not doing that with an interpretation they don't endorse anyway. he's a populist moron.

I've watched like two episodes. He's pretty much full of crap, but he does talk to several people who know what they're talking about and these people will correct him if he says something too stupid. It's pretty entertaining to watch someone knock the wind out of one of his crack pot ideas, and then he'll just make up this absurd theory of why he is still, in the end, probably right and everyone else is wrong.

ahhh! biblical archaeology annoys me. at least he admitted that he jumped to conclusions, but he still said it as if it was the truth. stupid man doesn't understand that the scientific method applies to archaeology just as much if not more so than other sciences. if there is any doubt then it is not an archaeological truth and you cannot claim it as such. no good archaeologist presents their interpretation of the evidence as the truth and he's criticizing them for not doing that with an interpretation they don't endorse anyway. he's a populist moron.

Very true, like the OP I was shouting at the tv when I first saw one of his programmes.

I've watched like two episodes. He's pretty much full of crap, but he does talk to several people who know what they're talking about and these people will correct him if he says something too stupid. It's pretty entertaining to watch someone pretty knock the wind out of one of his crack pot ideas, and then he'll just make up this absurd theory of why he is still, in the end, probably right and everyone else is wrong.

the problem is, most people watching will favour his absurd theories over the reasoned analysis and tentative interpretations of the actual scientists.

the problem is, most people watching will favour his absurd theories over the reasoned analysis and tentative interpretations of the actual scientists.

Well, yeah. I think it would better if his show didn't exist at all. But since it does exist, I get some joy watching him make a total full out of himself.

Unfortunantly he's probably making a decent living dishing out his bullshit.

And I can't really tell who his target audience is. Orthodox Jews?

Anyone who uses that collage of clips to illustrate the voice over should not be taken seriously for anything.

Never heard of him.

Anyone who uses that collage of clips to illustrate the voice over should not be taken seriously for anything.

yeh, my first thought was that was a parody. apparently not though.

...didn't the egyptians already have an alphabet before judaism even existed?um, kind of. Egyptians used hieroglyphs and hieratic/demotic signs to write, and they used hieroglyphs as early as around 3000 BCE, hieratic/demotic evolved somewhat later. Now, Judaism as such is something that appeared pretty late, at some time between the "Babylonian Captivity" and the assembly of the first bible at the beginning of the Hellenistic era. Alphabets have been developed since the 15th century BCE or so (cf. proto-sinaitic (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Bronze_Age_alphabets)).

no


False Advertisement. :mad:

As another real live archaeologist, shows like this make me tear my hair out. Great, more sensationalist bunk that I have to encourage my students to un-learn before they can learn the real ins and outs of anthropological archaeology.

I've been saying for years that the History Channel (and more and more it would appear, Discovery and TLC as well) is such an amazing opportunity lost. IT doesn't inform the public about archaeology (or history either, but given that I'm not an historian, I'll stick to what I know), it projects what it regards as the most sensationalist misinformation for the purpose of making money and "fascinating" the average viewer. What is particularly frustrating is that academic archaeology, the kind being done by professors, graduate, and undergraduate students all throughout our nation's universities, is even more fascinating than the junk these idiots put on the t.v. in order to satisfy the ad executives.

It's gotten to the point where if people ask me what I do, I try to be as vague as I possibly can, because as soon as I utter the word "archaeology", 80% of the time, the next thing out of their mouths is some crap about the tomb of Christ, or some "great" show on the History Channel about aliens and Atlantis, or Edgar Casey or something. I am however, encouraged by the number of people here who seem just as fed up with this trash as I am!

I am however, encouraged by the number of people here who seem just as fed up with this trash as I am!

It's not so much that as this guy is so obviously a crackpot.

I remember back in the 90s when that one Egyptian guy was busting into new rooms in one of the Egyptian pyramids every few years and making it sound like he was Mr T kicking down doors and FOX would have like an 8 hour show talking about what he is found showing the same animations over and over because the geeks sitting around at laptops was boring.

What's even worse, is that the guy you refer to is Zahi Hawass, the director of Egyptian Antiquities!!!!

He is a strange mix of tv personality, diplomat, tourism director, and archaeologist. Archaeology in Egypt is obviously a huge tourist industry and Hawass does a masterful job of "selling" Egypt's past to the world. That's why Egypt appointed him as the director. Unfortunately, he has stooped to some amazingly low levels for a qualified archaeologist in order to drum up tourism for his country. In fact, I recorded the Fox show that you speak of and showed it to one of my classes. It was great to hear their criticisms after a semester of intro to archaeology.

What's even worse, is that the guy you refer to is Zahi Hawass, the director of Egyptian Antiquities!!!!

He is a strange mix of tv personality, diplomat, tourism director, and archaeologist. Archaeology in Egypt is obviously a huge tourist industry and Hawass does a masterful job of "selling" Egypt's past to the world. That's why Egypt appointed him as the director. Unfortunately, he has stooped to some amazingly low levels for a qualified archaeologist in order to drum up tourism for his country. In fact, I recorded the Fox show that you speak of and showed it to one of my classes. It was great to hear their criticisms after a semester of intro to archaeology.

I must admit I always wondered about him - I saw him doing some live dig on Channel 4 and he seemed more like a treasure hunter than an archaeologist, he grabbed a pick axe and started hacking away in a tomb saying something about taking too long otherwise for the broadcast slot.