Twitter has quite an active paranormal and ghost hunting community, ranging from those fascinated with unexplained phenomena to real-life ghost hunters to paranormal TV celebrities. So it isn’t surprising to see many on Twitter recommending their favorite paranormal tweeters every friday using the #followfriday or #ff hashtags (A hash tag is simply a way for people to search for tweets that have a common topic).

While there are many that we personally recommend every Friday (and sometimes other days using our favorite #followeveryday tag), there are those that deserve a more detailed mention. Here are just some my absolute must follow #paranormal twitterers (in no particular order):

• @ParanormalRG – This one is by far the most important one to follow! Why? Because it’s ours, of course! LOL
• @EntitiesRUs – Cartoonist Terri Garofalo draws our favorite paranormal comic strip, Entities-R-Us: Paranormal Humor for the Ghost Hunter’s Soul.
• @HauntJaunts – Writer, traveler and ghost enthusiast Courtney Mroch authors an unique blog about paranormal tourism called “Haunt Jaunts”.
• @RCParanormal – Joshua Murphy is the co-founder of City Paranormal in Alabama. He is also the author of one of our favorite paranormal blogs, “Life of a Ghosthunter”.
• @HauntedPlaces – Based out of Central Virgina, Ghost Eyes Paranormal’s Steve Vaughan tells stories of some of the most haunted places in America.
• @ParanormalSwat and @SwatWayde – Steve and Wayde from Northern Virginia’s Swat Investigations are also the hosts of our favorite podcast about ghost hunting, Paranormal Swat Radio.
• @glpars – Todd and Paul from the Great Lakes Paranormal and Research Society are based out of Detroit, Michigan. Their interests not only cover ghosts but also crypto-zoology, ufos, and urban legends.
• @deonnasayed – Deonna Kelli Sayed, is a paranormal investigator with Haunted North Carolina, a family member of the Atlantic Paranormal Society (TAPS). She is also a practicing American-Muslim, public speaker, and writer. Deonna has had articles published in TAPS Paramag and at Ghostvillage.com among others.
• @Donna_Do – Donna Bagwell is a paranormal investigator, dog rescuer, and stay at home mom.
• @sydsouthworth – Paranormal researcher and single mom, Syd Southworth also makes and sells jewelry.
• @N2Morock – Niki Morock is an active member of the National Society of Paranormal Investigation and Research (NSPIR), and its associated Raleigh meet-up group, Carolina Hauntings, Apparitions, and Poltergeists Society (CHAPS). She studies spirituality, energy work, cryptozoology, dreams, UFOs, and many other paranormal subjects, in addition to hauntings. She writes as the Raleigh Paranormal Examiner for examiner.com. Niki is also the author of the book “The Perfect Circle.”

There were just only so many we could squeeze into the article. We hope to add more of our favorites in future posts. In the meantime, please check out our list of follow-worthy tweeple at @ParanormalRG/followeveryday.

It would be irresponsible of us, however, to paint the picture that everyone in this field gets along the same way as we do. We just can’t deny the reality of the current climate within the paranormal community. Every team who is part of the Paranormal Research Groups have encountered many other individuals and teams that have taken advantage of their willingness and kindness to help others in this field. This has obviously not kept us from uniting or working together with others. It has, however, made all of us a lot more careful about when we do so.

What we’ve discovered, unfortunately, is that there are many more groups out there who are in this field for the wrong reasons than there are for the right ones. Many groups sole goal it to get a TV show, make money from investigating, or become paranormal celebrities. There are also many individuals out there doing this for thrill-seeking, rather than approaching this as a legitimate field. Many don’t care who they hurt in the process. That is a very dangerous game to play and is even more dangerous for the unfortunate clients that have approached them for help. I assure you, This is very serious business!

The current paranormal “boom” has certainly changed the entire dynamic of the field. Before the paranormal reality tv phenomenon, there were exponentially far less research teams, and far more cooperation and respect within the community.

These following 4 articles (in no particular order) discuss professionalism, behavior, and actions within the paranormal community as a whole. Many of those new to the field of supernatural investigations will benefit greatly from the advice given, however, even many seasoned veterans will benefit from the viewpoints covered in these articles. It is our sincere belief that in order to move forward on a path of cooperation and trust, we must first put a spotlight on the many obstacles that have been placed in our way. There is much food for thought.

Please enjoy these articles. Make sure you come back here to leave a comment here when you’re done!

Paranormal Investigators…I dare you!
by Joshua Murphy from Life of a Ghost Hunter

When Paranormal Investigators harm each other
by Cheri Esperon from Associated Content

GROW the “ef” up already …there’s plenty of ghost to go around.
by Ron T from SciFake

Teamwork within a paranormal group
by Joshua Murphy from Life of a Ghost Hunter

Paranormal SWAT Radio, is a live internet radio broadcast. It is hosted by Steve, Roger, and Wayde from Paranormal SWAT Investigations located in Northern Virginia. The show is geared towards investigators, clients, and lovers of the supernatural alike.

“Being on the show was a great experience and an awesome chance to talk shop with a fantastic group,” Steve said. “I applaud what the guys from Paranormal SWAT are doing with the show. They are helping educate, inform, and unite the ghost hunting community; and doing a it in a fun and entertaining way. I am grateful for the opportunity.”

You can listen to Paranormal SWAT Radio Live on Monday nights from 8-9pm Eastern (or download it after the show) from BlogTalkRadio. You can also subscribe to it as a podcast on iTunes.

Below features excerpts from the January 11th, 2010 episode of Paranormal SWAT Radio. To listen to the full 1 hour episode, please go to BlogTalkRadio.

For the most credible data, affiliated teams…
• exhaust all possible natural causes for supernatural claims first.
• do not allow smoking within the area being investigated or in adjoining areas before or during an investigation.
• do not capture photographic or video evidence outside during adverse weather conditions or cold weather.
• do not use straps on or near any devices that capture photos or videos of any kind.
• do not allow whispering when sensitive audio recording devices are in use.
• do not permit the use of cell phones or other unnecessary electronic devices during or near investigations.
• do not wear any type of cologne, perfume or other fragrances during investigations.

These guidelines are what help set our teams apart from the horde of paranormal hobbyists out there. Yes, this means that we’ll get a lot less evidence this way. The difference is, however, that the evidence we will gather will be more credible and of a higher quality. These guidelines should make sense to people who are in this field to properly prove or disprove unexplained phenomena or legitimately help those in harm’s way. For clarity, though, let me break things down.

“exhaust all possible natural causes for supernatural claims first.”

Everything we encounter is not paranormal. In fact, there are usually a number of logical or scientific explanations for various experiences, sounds, feelings, etc. A good paranormal investigator does not assume the ghostly route first. Every effort should be made to recreate the situation as exactly as possible to duplicate the claim or experience. If evidence can be replicated easily and repeatedly, it should be ruled out automatically. Just because it can be replicated, however, does not prove it’s not supernatural; but it does make it a lot less likely that it is. By process of elimination, that evidence should be excluded.

“do not allow smoking within the area being investigated or in adjoining areas before or during an investigation.”

There are many pictures of mysterious mists that are nothing more than cigarette smoke caught lingering in the air. It may even look like there is nothing in the air, but a camera flash or video light can illuminate smoke that was previously unseen. Smoke can even linger for long periods in a room that has little or bad air circulation. Smoke is also a problem with photos or videos captured outside. By excluding smoke from the equation, we don’t have to rule it out as a cause of a ghostly mist captured as potential evidence. Besides smoking during an investigation or in a client’s home or business is simply unprofessional.

“do not capture photographic or video evidence outside during adverse weather conditions or cold weather.”

Cool or cold weather produces false mists from breath that still pictures or video will capture. Wind, rain, fog, and other adverse weather conditions can create a number of other false anomalies. It is never a good idea to investigate under these conditions, as most evidence gathered would have to be disqualified.

“do not use straps on or near any devices that capture photos or videos of any kind.”

Camera straps are a common accidental cause of ghostly vortexes in photos. The tip of a strap can get photographed and appear like it is floating in the dark, spinning like a vortex, or creating a dark shadow. When in motion, a strap captured in an image often looks like a ghostly streak of light. Camera straps, while convenient, are completely unnecessary on cameras used for collecting evidence of the paranormal.

“do not allow whispering when sensitive audio recording devices are in use.”

Besides the standard issue digital voice recorders that everyone uses, we use hyper-sensitive audio devices called digital field recorders. These record in studio quality and pick up even the quietest of sounds. Whispers that are captured by these devices can often be confused for ghostly communications. We have found that it’s way more effective to speak at a normal level while “tagging” oneself. This means that if anyone speaks out of turn, that they identify themselves clearly & distinctly to disqualify that as evidence. The same goes for coughing, sneezing, stomach growling, etc.

“do not permit the use of cell phones or other unnecessary electronic devices during or near investigations.”

Electronic devices, especially cell phones, can generate false EMF & KII-meter readings. They can also cause interference in audio or video recording devices, and disrupt other ghost hunting equipment. For this reason, we do not allow the use of any unnecessary devices during or near investigations. Necessary devices that may cause interference are used with great care and are isolated to a neutral, investigation-free area.

“do not wear any type of cologne, perfume or other fragrances during investigations.”

By avoiding artificial fragrances of any type, such as heavily scented body wash or shampoo, body sprays, or colognes/perfumes, it avoids many false positives for olfactory paranormal phenomena. It has been theorized that these aromas are caused by spirits that are directly manipulating the olfactory receptors in the brain to communicate.

In using these guidelines during investigating, we greatly reduce the amount of contamination to our potential evidence, as well as, ensure that the most credible data possible is collected.

This particular episode titled “Ghost School” followed two 13 year old boys (Colt and Bryson) that struggled to be accepted by their fathers who doubted their abilities. Aided by psychic sensitive, Chris Fleming & CPEAR members: Mike Mafera, Carrie Kerns, and Tyler Matthews, they join an investigation of a century haunted opera house in Mauch Chunk, Pennslyvania. (An investigation that originally took place on June 6th, 2009.)

What a great opportunity it was to be a part of “Psychic Kids,” said CPEAR co-founder Mike Mafera. “Not only was it a great learning experience working with a production company, but most of all, it helps get our group name out there to everyone watching the show. This allows us to possibly reach out to thousands of people that are scared and may need assistance or advice if they are experiencing the paranormal in their homes or businesses.

Connecticut Paranormal Encounters and Research has an excellent reputation and are most concerned with assisting their clients. Their goal with all cases is to give the client answers and peace of mind. The group has taught many lectures and has been featured in a large number of Connecticut newspapers. They were also filmed in March of 2009 by Lions Gate Films for a part in the special features section of the “A Haunting in Connecticut” DVD.

On Friday, October 23rd, 2009, CT Soul Seekers did their final investigation in the infamous Carousel Gardens Restaurant in Seymour, Connecticut before it was sold. They were joined live by a team from DoingItLocal.com, including producer and videographer – Stephen Krauchick, interviewer – Brian Smith (formerly of WPLR Smith & Barber fame), and assistant – Alex Krauchick.

The result was a two-part video featurette, also featuring the famed Lorraine Warren (of the New England Society for Psychic Research) that aired on DoingItLocal.com and also in the online version of the Connecticut Post.

Additionally a bond was formed with the Doing It Local crew, as they had many personal experiences of their own as they jumped in with both feet and joined in on the investigation. Our sincere thanks to Stephen Krauchick for providing us with all of the raw video footage shot that evening. We plan to release that in the near future, along with all of the evidence collected from several Carousel Gardens investigations.

ParanormalResearchGroups.com and the CT Soul Seekers want to thank Stephen, Brian, and Alex again for their professionalism, coverage, and friendship. We were all impressed by how well they adapted when we invited them to investigate along side of us and not just observe. They were great! We also want to thank them sincerely for their commitment to paranormal coverage in general and their open-mindedness to the world of ghost hunting and unexplained phenomena.

We all look forward to future collaborations and investigations with our good friends DoingItLocal.com!

The following article originally appeared on the front page of the Tuesday, September 8th, 2009 edition of The Republican American. It was written by Michael Puffer.

Whether she’s creeping along through dark hallways in search of ghosts or taking pictures of glowing orbs in cemeteries, Nicole Hall, 33, doesn’t scare easily.

That was clear when Hall, of Naugatuck, and her new team of paranormal investigators were confronted by something that went smash in the night at Gunntown Cemetery around 1:30 a.m. Monday. A vandal challenged the five-person team in the dark Naugatuck cemetery, smashed windows of Hall’s 2001 Ford Explorer and took off, she said.

A digital audio recorder intended to detect faint noises of spooks caught the altercation. A man using an authoritative voice demands to know if they have permission to be in the cemetery. Hall replies that she does.

“OK, I didn’t know,” the man responds. “Sorry, I didn’t know.”

Four tremendous bangs quickly follow — the sound of three windows and a rearview mirror being smashed on the driver’s side.

A stream of angry and colorful language flows from Hall’s mouth. The recorder also catches the sound of her feet running toward the assailant. “What was that?” asks a member of her team.

“I don’t know but we need to go and (expletive) find them,” an angry Hall says.

Hall said the vandal fled in a pickup. Later, she admitted she’d have had no idea what to do even if she had caught him.

Instead, the team waited for about half a dozen police cruisers. They were interviewed for 15 minutes before the police left, she said.

Attempts to reach a Naugatuck police spokesman Monday were unsuccessful. A dispatcher confirmed there had been a vandalism complaint at the cemetery early Monday.

Ghosts: Cemetery has History of Haunting

Gunntown Cemetery has a reputation for haunting. A quick internet search turns up dozens of testimonials. The laughter of children and old ragtime music is commonly reported. The small cemetery is surrounded by a stone wall along a narrow and hilly road. It contains only a few dozen graves, mostly dating back to the mid-1800s or earlier.

Robert Sutherland, president of the Grove Cemetery Association, said that in recent years vandalism has been infrequent at Gunntown and the association’s three other cemeteries, but it does happen.

Sutherland claims relations to about 20 percent of those buried at Gunntown through his mother’s side of the family. He doesn’t put any stock in tales they’re resting uneasily.

“I certainly hope not,” Sutherland joked.

Hall and her team – CT Soul Seekers – have visited the cemetery six times to take audio and video recordings. Hall’s fiancee, Angel Ortiz, 36, carries photo and video cameras, digital field recorders, electromagnetic frequency detectors, night-vision goggles and more to conduct investigations.

Hall, a preschool teacher in Waterbury, has always been a fan of the paranormal. Ortiz started as a skeptic. they launched CT Soul Seekers with four friends in April. So far, they’ve conducted 25 investigations, including Gunntown, the Carousel Gardens Restaurant in Seymour and the Rolling Hills Paranormal Research Center in New York.

They’ve got a photo album. There’s a picture of a big spectral shadow in the graveyard, and strange mists. “It’s amazing, the things we’ve caught on tape,” Hall said.

Hall is surprised at the wave of interest from others, including co-workers. Ortiz, who installs windows for a living, hasn’t had it so easy.

“Shhhh! Did you hear that!” or “who you gonna call?” were phrases frequently heard on work sites.

Ortiz said he just laughed along with his co-workers and, eventually some started asking him serious questions about his hobby. He remembers one crank call to the hotline.

“They asked ‘You guys got an old ambulance?’” Ortiz said, recalled the mocking reference to the “Ghost Busters” movie with a flowing laugh. “I said ‘no, but we’re going to get one.’”

Early Monday evening, Ortiz and Hall returned to Gunntown Cemetery to sweep up the broken glass, not wanting anybody to get injured or to leave litter on the grounds.

Ortiz said, a few of their investigations have turned up natural causes for things like banging walls or slamming doors – old pipes and drafts. And that’s fine. It’s nice to reassure a homeowner they’re in no peril, he said.

When they do find a nuisance ghost, there are a few simple rites the group can perform tat seem to calm things, Hall said. It’s much harder harder to contend with corporeal people like Monday’s vandal.

“Like I say, it’s not the dead you have to worry about, it’s the living,” Hall said.

The following article appeared in the Thursday, August 20th, 2009 edition of The Middletown Press. It was written by Weekend correspondent, Diana Carr. The original article can be found here.

There are people in the world who are not afraid of things that go bump in the night. In fact, they welcome them. And for them, Mike Mafera and his fiancee, Carrie Kerns, founded Connecticut Paranormal Encounters and Research (CPEAR) in January 2008.

Comprised of 13 members, it is described as “a Southington, Connecticut-based not-for-profit paranormal research group looking to help those in need of answers, help, and guidance in dealing with paranormal activity as we further our own knowledge and collect concrete proof of hauntings.”

Rob Glidden, of Cromwell, a member since January, said he’s impressed by the professionalism of CPEAR. “They treat the people they’re dealing with respect[fully]. They have a little bit of skepticism in their approach, which I appreciate. They’re not afraid to debunk things.”

“I always thought ghosts were cool,” Glidden said. “When I was in college, I saw on the Internet a collection of videos and photos of ghosts, and an explanation of it all. It was my first clue that there’s science involved in investigations of ghosts. That part usually doesn’t make it into the movies. I thought it was awesome.”

CPEAR prefers to do investigations at night, Glidden said, as that’s when ghosts seem to be most active.

And there’s plenty of equipment: digital cameras that have a computer terminal attached, giving them a view of each room; K2 meters, which detect electromagnetic energy, both of appliances and ghosts; infrared guns, which detect areas that have a drop in temperature, thus indicating the presence of something not of this world; and digital recorders that pick up disembodied voices, which are too low to hear normally.

“I’m not into the ‘God vs. demons’ thing,” Glidden said. “Exorcism always appears to be successful, but it would only work if the ghost believed in everything the priest says. An atheist ghost would just roll his eyes. Why are the ghosts always Catholic? Aren’t there any Jewish ghosts?”

“If you inject too much of your religion into this, you can alienate people who would otherwise be interested. It should be about science, and things that can be proven. CPEAR does that.”

Glidden’s favorite investigation was at Rolling Hills, in Bethany, N.Y. The building, with its reputation of being haunted, is a research center now, and has served as a homeless shelter, a hospital and an asylum. “It has seen many deaths,” he said. “It was a scary place, and I felt a sense of dread. I got freaked out.”

Throughout the night, he said, there was a lot of banging on the walls and the doors. One of the investigators heard his name called out, only to find that nobody was there. They heard voices on the digital recorder.

But none of this is enough to scare him off. “I don’t feel that the ghosts will hurt me,” Glidden said. “And now I can watch a movie and say, ‘I get to do this.’ I have no regrets that I didn’t explore something that I think is so much fun.”

Mafera said that the majority of the time, the spirits they find are not bad.

“We try to comfort the homeowners, telling them that there’s nothing that will harm them. If they still feel uncomfortable, we recommend asking a priest to bless the house.”

He’s asked spirits to leave, he said, and if they decide to stay, he asks them to leave the family alone. “We ask the homeowners, too, to say aloud that this is their house and they want to be left alone. There’s no guarantee, but this works a lot.”

Mafera said has had his share of hair-raising experiences — like at the investigation of a house in Glastonbury. The family heard footsteps, and things would go missing, only to re-appear somewhere else. A resident of the house reported seeing an apparition of a man, whom they call Jack, walking out of the basement, through the dining room and upstairs. And the family took a picture of the spirit of a dog looking out through the front door window. None of this scares them, however; they simply wanted proof that something was there.

The group did two investigations, with the family being involved in the second one. While in the basement, they captured several voices on the digital recorder; someone said, “Get out,” another voice said, “Hi,” and there was a baby laughing or crying. When people in the basement heard footsteps on the first floor, they used their walkie talkies to ask if anyone was moving around up there. The answer was, “No, it’s only Jack.” And then they heard on the recorder, “I’m here,” with an accent.

A surveillance camera caught a flashlight, which had been on a table in an upright position, falling over on its own. A K2 meter was put on a table, and the investigators asked the spirit to walk in front of it; lights then flashed, which meant that some energy moved in front of the meter right at that moment.

“The family was thrilled with the evidence,” Mafera said.

And for those families not so enamored with their guests?

“If I can help someone who’s scared to live in their house, it means a lot,” Mafera said. “A lot of times things can be explained, and they are not paranormal. We provide evidence for that, too. We try to give people peace of mind.”

While each of our Paranormal Research Groups continue to have our own investigations and maintain our separate websites, we regularly collaborate on investigations together, proving that more can be accomplished as a community. It also allows us to share our knowledge with others in the ghost hunting field and learn from each other. Ultimately, isn’t that what doing this is all about? Furthering our understanding of unknown phenomena and helping others by sharing that knowledge?

It is our intention to regularly post evidence that our teams have collected, as well as news about what our members are up to. We will also be sharing our knowledge and expertise in the field of Paranormal Investigation to all that are interested.