Discerning The Unknown

I'm Ryan Peterson. I am a veteran Radio Broadcaster.

Between 1989 and 2006, I worked at Radio Stations in Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin. In the early 2000's, I was Program Director at a Wisconsin Radio station, and I hosted a 3-hour daily Radio Talk Show before "Podcasting" was ever heard of.

My goal on "Discerning the Unknown" is to have a fun and enlightening conversation where the listeners and I can both learn something from the featured expert guest.

I tried the "political debate" type of show when I was a Talk Show Host on the radio many years ago. I didn't like it.

I don't argue or debate politics. I won't have guests on my show that I disagree with politically. My show is not about fighting, arguing or debating. If listeners want to continue the political division by listening to a one-sided commentary of the world that tells them what to believe, strokes their ego and totally aligns with their political views, then there are plenty of podcasts on the Internet for that. You can go find one of them.

I present information to listeners from experts that the listener may not have heard or thought of before. Stuff that makes us all think.

I may share some relatable stories from my 12 years as a Radio Broadcaster or I may share some from 17 years as a Police Officer. I'm now retired from both of those careers but I enjoy podcasting more than I enjoyed either of those past lives.

On this podcast, I'll ask experts to share their experiences and their research. We'll discuss "What we think and Why we think it."

That covers a lot of ground.

The intent of "Discerning the Unknown" is to have a calm and comfortable conversation that is both fun, informative, and entertaining.

One thing I'll focus on is NOT spreading Fake News. The pandemic of "Fake News" floating around today IS dangerous and it IS a problem.

Misinformation has become more prevalent each day and it can cause harm in so many ways. To effectively slow the spread of Fake News, we have to realize that we all have a responsibility to scrutinize what we read, hear or repeat and ensure that it is the truth. Rumors, Speculation, and Theories are not News.

YouTube and Facebook Memes are NOT the news. We need to be discerning before we spread that to others either in person or on social media.

I still have a fascination with the paranormal, and I'll still discuss Mysteries of History, both recent and Ancient. But I will no longer have psychics on my show simply because they claim to be psychic.

I'll encourage Critical Thinking and I will promote Emotional Intelligence. I'll ask if the data supports the theory.

I'm also a retired Police Officer, Sergeant and Chief of Police in a small Wisconsin municipality. I spent 17 years in Law Enforcement, and I place a high value on ethics, truth and evidence that tells the real story.

My intent is to present the facts. Factual information that can be verified.

It's ok for us to be Open-Minded, but we can still request the facts.

Be Discerning of new Information. Trust AND Verify.

If we can't do both, we should reconsider whether or not we spread it to others.