burnt said:
No one listens to scientists they prefer people who are sensationalists.
Exactly. Like it or not, that's reality and that's why we'll never have a really good president in the USA. We vote for sales people, sensationalists, etc. People follow preachers, not scientists. A good speaker is somehow who can please a crowd and get their point across effectively. They don't need hard facts, they need to sound good.
I need hard facts, but I know not to expect that from anyone who's going to be out there talking about DMT, LSD, or anything like that who's going to be a popular spokesperson. The two just don't go hand in hand. I'm mean look at McKenna. He gave lots of lectures, and had lots of bazaar ideas. I saw him speak in person in San Francisco. It was fascinating, but a lot of his ideas were hard to swallow, but he was interesting to listen too. That's what counts in today's world. If you get up there and speak 100% pure science to everyone, people will leave the lecture out of boredom. I wouldn't, but most people would. People like McKenna, Leary, etc., knew that. They were good at keeping a crowd interested. They loved it. That's what made them good speakers.
When it's all said and done, what really matters is that the speaker is entertaining. People will listen to gobbledygook if it's entertaining. Heck I'll even do that sometimes. They'll listen to science if it's entertaining too, but it's harder to make science entertaining. I'll sit and absorb facts. I love that, especially if its something I'm interested in.
People selected to listen to Leary. They bought tickets to his lectures, bought his books, etc. They selected to listen to McKenna, bought his books, paid to see him. Now people select to listen to Rogan. They don't select to listen to the real scientists. That's just how it is. Don't blame Leary, McKenna, Rogan. Blame the people who select these types to represent them.
Anyway, my point is if you're expecting a popular public speaker to be 100% factual and accurate, you're living in make believe land. It's just not going to happen.