I used Google Trends to look at 20-year and 5-year trends in paranormal TV search interest, and I think we’ll get some new shows in the next year. But it may not be on the streaming network you expect. Get the scoop after the jump.

The Current Trends In Ghost Hunting TV Shows

Note: You can click the graphs to enlarge them.

Back in 2022, Discovery Communications, THE streamer for paranormal TV, went on a cancellation spree. Ghost Brothers, Portals To Hell, Destination Fear, The Holzer Files, and (likely) Kindred Spirits all got the pink slip. It seems that only Ghost Adventures held on (unless your show is produced by Josh Gates), but more on that later.

During the pandemic, paranormal programming got a big boost. Ghost Hunters, led by Jason Hawes, relaunched on Discovery after a copycat version on A+E got cancelled.

I remember marathoning on all the new ghost hunting and haunting recreations shows (and a few cryptid ones), and absolutely loved Discovery+. It was my go-to-source for spooky stuff.

And then the party ended … f***ing HBO Max and all their quality concerns.

Paranormal TV’s Interest Over Past 5 Years

It’s interesting to see the genre had a rock solid interest rate during the pandemic period (2020-2022). But boy did it change fast. I’m not sure what led to the drastic decline. At first, I thought about oversaturation (too many shows, too little time for viewers to watch it all).

The other big thing was consolidation: Discovery+ and Warner Bros. merged. Whenever that happens, people, budgets and shows get cut to make the stock price look better. And Warner Bros. was in rough shape.

Still, a lot of ghost hunting shows had steady cable and streaming numbers. Could it be ghost hunting itself lost steam?

Ghost Hunting Interest Over 20 Years

Ok, so ghost hunting did take a downturn from its peak during the glory days of Ghost Hunters/Ghost Adventures (2008-2011). The decline between 2011-2020 looks gradual, but I wouldn’t call it a slow death. The interest line is super steady during the pandemic.

Oh, that big spike in the middle deals with the Constantino murder-suicide.

Let’s see what happened in a shorter time frame.

Five Year Ghost Hunting Trend

This is interesting. Ghost Hunting interest (broad topic with gear, shows, and paranormal investigation rolled up) has decreased overall (outside those seasonal October spikes).

So, I live in a ghost hunting bubble, which means I live and breathe paranormal investigations. That really doesn’t seem to be the case with the public in general. Could there be ghost hunting fatigue? Why are more casual participants losing interest?

I’m going to compare a few things and segment their trends.

One sec …

Keyword Trends for Ghost Hunting, Ghost Shows, and Paranormal TV

Switching to specific keywords, things look more promising. Ghost Hunting and Ghost Shows interest is actually increasing from 5 years ago. Both also move together. I’m not sure if Ghost Hunting leads interest in the shows or vice versa.

At the same time, interest in Paranormal TV (aliens, ghosts and cryptids) looks pretty stable to me.

There must be something that’s driving the downward trend outside general search keywords. Could it be specific shows?

Ghost Hunting TV Show Trends (20 Year View)

Alright, the trend lines suggest that some our most beloved shows have seen better search volume. Ghost Hunters took that big dive after 2011, and it remained low during its cancelled phase (2016-2019). Its spikes correspond with Halloween and season premiere dates.

Ghost Adventures has remained well above the others since 2010, but now it’s declining. The seasonal bumps correspond to premiere dates. With 27 seasons or so, there’s a lot of premieres, eh?

As for Kindred Spirits and Paranormal State (cancelled in 2011), I can’t say that they would move the overall ghost show trend. It really seems to be Ghost Hunters and Ghost Adventures.

Have Searchers And Viewers Shifted To New Paranormal Topics?

WOW! I didn’t expect this: Bigfoot mops the floor with other paranormal topics. Most of the UFOs spikes dealt with news about aliens, UAP, flying saucers, etc. Ghost Hunting doesn’t stand a chance against the Daddy of Cryptids. However, I don’t really see the ghost hunting fans jumping to these other subjects.

Side Note: With so much interest in Bigfoot and Sasquatch, I’m surprised we don’t have more Bigfoot shows on TV. It must have to deal with the costs and restrictions for filming in the field. If you’re into cryptids, that’s a subject for my other site, GhostsAndMonsters.com.

YouTube Is A Different Paranormal Space Altogether

Next, I went to see what the paranormal world on YouTube is like. If you didn’t know, a lot of the TV show folks moved to YouTube after their shows were cancelled. Destination Fear (now Project Fear) is the most famous of those. They debuted in September 2023 after a very successful Kickstarter campaign.

Overall, YouTube is big on aliens and UFOs, but you can see on the far right that Bigfoot and Ghost Hunting interest starts to climb.

Those upward trends started around September 2022. That’s when the show cancellations started to make the rounds. This makes me think the former TV audience moved over to YouTube to get their fix.

I can corroborate that: I started surfing YouTube to get my fix for paranormal TV then.

It’s Sam & Colby’s Ghost Hunting World And We Just Live In It

Just looking at the past 5 years, it’s obvious the switch to YouTube for ghost hunting content began in 2023. Sam and Colby, the biggest ghost hunters on YouTube, exploded in search volume in September 2023. It’s really interesting to note, they were already huge stars before this time. Their first ghost hunting videos came out in April/May 2019.

Kallmekris is more of a comedy/lifestyle channel. Over the past couple of years, she has produced more (fun) ghost hunting videos with CelinaSpookyBoo.

Project Fear is the YouTube version of Destination Fear. Dakota Laden launched a Kickstarter as soon as his show got cancelled, and it was an amazing success. I think they got something like 5 or 6 seasons funded from it. Good for you, Project Fear!

As for Ghost Hunters, YouTube hasn’t really been a focus before. Jason Hawes made his intent clear that he would release new ghost hunting videos on his personal channel in late March or early April 2024. Jason also confirmed he wouldn’t work with Discovery+ for the next season of Ghost Hunters. He’s now putting more effort into developing his YouTube channel.

Conclusion

To me, it’s obvious cable and streaming network paranormal TV fans are jumping over to YouTube to get their fix. But it’s a much different world.

Let’s just say, there’s a whole lot more demons, jump scares, and staged content. Personally, I hate that shit. Could I just get a real ghost hunt/paranormal investigation, please and thank you?

Are paranormal shows dead on the streamers like Discovery+? No, not really. We’ve seen a few (and I mean, few) renewed or shows acquired from the UK. Expedition X just finished a new season. We also got Help! My House Is Haunted (UK) and Haunted Ireland, the sequel to Haunted Scotland. But that’s about it. I think Netflix is bringing back 28 Days Haunted at some point in 2024.

I’m also going to check out the Bigfoot and cryptozoology channels. I love a monster.

Also, here’s a list of YouTube channels I recommend if you like a more thoughtful ghost hunt:

1. The Ouija Brothers
2. Amy’s Crypt
3. Ghost Club Paranormal
4. Project Fear
5. Katrina Weidman (Travel The Dead series)

Amy Bruni also has a private community coming called, Paranormal Circle. For a fee, you can watch evidence capture, monitor haunted places in real-time, chat with Amy and her friends, and talk to other ghost-hunting fans. Sounds like a spectral discord to me, eh? This community site will launch in April 2024.

Data source: All data used in this post came from Google Trends, Web Search and YouTube Search, using all interest categories, filtered for 2004-present and past 5 years, United States.

Last Updated on March 24, 2024 by Jacob Rice