Media Watch

Tales from the Talk Shows

C. EUGENE EMERY, JR.

oad the tape, grab the remote, functional relationships) are the bread Enquirer forecasts, 1992 was to be the press PLAY, and let's step back in and butter of these shows. But when year the Castro regime toppled, entire Ltime. it's time to get away from such topics as pro teams developed AIDS ("threaten- It's December 8, 1994, and Sally children from violent homes, overbear- ing to end professional sports"), and Jessy Raphael is poised to give the ing parents, rich abused women, and David Letterman and Jay Leno caused viewers of her TV talk show the inside women who have poor personal a sensation by swapping jobs at NBC. scoop on the still-simmering O. J. hygiene (all topics on Oprah Winfrey For 1993, according to Monti, Fergie Simpson case. Among her experts: the week that Monti appeared on the would pose naked for Playboy and "a "criminal psychic" John Monti. Raphael show), talk shows often serve cure for AIDS will be discovered in a Monti proceeds to weave a spell- up an unabashedly supportive look at little-known chemical found in ordi- binding tale, based on his psychic things supernatural. nary crabgrass." Whoopi Goldberg was supposed to give up acting and enter a vibrations, of how Nicole Simpson and The hosts of these shows sometimes convent in 1994, according to Monti. Ronald Goldman were murdered in "a argue that they're doing a public ser- drug deal that went bad" because vice by publicizing important issues Viewers gor none of this back- "Nicole owed huge amounts" to her swept under the rug by polite society. ground information. But during his murderers. But when the topic is psychics, UFOs, Raphael appearance, folks with a criti- Then, Monti says he has uncovered or other aspects of the paranormal, it's cal eye got a revealing look into the new evidence in the Simpson case. At real science that gets swept under the behavior of a psychic who claims to the boisterous urging of the audience, rug. The informed skeptic—if there is help police solve crimes. and at the risk of being arrested at the one—may get two minutes of on-air PLAY. conclusion of the show, he agrees to time to battle wave upon wave of asser- Before he reveals his startling piece tions and anecdotes. And the hosts and unveil his dramatic discovery on of evidence, Monti tells Raphael's sym- producers, in their endless search for national television. pathetic audience that he knows where compelling stories, either don't know, STOP. one of the two murder weapons in the or don't want to know, that some of the It is a scene that plays itself out—in Simpson case is buried—it's in O.J.'s tales spun by their guests are of ques- one form or another, using one theme backyard. He says he's told prosecutor tionable quality. or another—regularly on America's Marcia Clark where to find it, but she's television sets. From my home base in Consider the Monti appearance on ignored him. "1 don't know what her Southern New England, I am privy to the Sally Jessy Raphael show. If problem is," Monti says. "I think she is more than 15 network and syndicated Raphael or her staff had done their being bothered by DNA research too television talk shows featuring guests research, they would have discovered much, and she's not even from anxious to discuss everything from bat- that Monti has been consistently Harvard." tered men to women who say their wrong when he has tried to predict Then he explains how he scaled an beauty is ruining their love life. unexpected events in the National eight-foot fence to get past a police Personal relationships (actually, dys- Enquirer. According to Monti's guard, stood on Nicole Simpson's

12 SKEPTICAL INQUIRER • MAY/JUNE 1995 blood stains and began poking around and exciting method of marriage ther- they have been abducted. I guess there's the grounds. Under some bushes, he apy" in which couples are hypnotized something going on here." says, he found something extraordi- and taken back to past lives in an But Povich has it wrong. nary. attempt to fully understand the prob- The 3-million figure comes from "Do you think you should have lems in their current relationships. UFO promoters who believe that if turned it in to the With hypnotist you have had four of five experiences police?" Raphael asks. Hazel Denning claim- —waking up paralyzed and sensing a "What were they ing that die technique presence in the room, discovering an going to do?" Monti "resolves possibly any hour or more of unaccounted time, retorts, sparking problems you have," experiencing a feeling of flying, seeing unusual lights in a room and finding applause from the Oprah acknowledges unexplained scars on your body—you audience. that the concept may have probably been abducted by As he reaches into seem strange, but "all extraterrestrials. About 2 percent of the his briefcase to I'm asking is that you nearly 6,000 adults polled fell into that remove a paper bag, be open-minded." category, which translates into 3.7 mil- Monti remarks, "I One volunteer, lion Americans. don't know what's Michael Gilbert, says going to happen to that when he's been If Povich or his staff had bothered me after this," an hypnotically regressed, to check, they would have discovered interesting statement he's seen dinosaurs. that none of the people surveyed were coming from a psy- Sally Jessy Raphael Oprah, apparently even asked if they had been abducted. chic. pan of the 35 percent Povichs guests include Harvard psy- From the bag, Monti removes a of the population whose Flintstones chiatry professor John Mack—who kitchen knife. Someone in the audi- view of history makes them believe argues that UFO-abduction tales are so ence yells, "Oh my God!" humans and dinosaurs lived in die similar they must be real—and Jone Monti, who claims to help police, is same era, sees nothing wrong with this. Victoria, a marketing director kid- handling the knife without gloves. "I'd want to come napped by "very dark, When "world-renowned psychic" back (to the present) very short" space Dayle Schear asks to hold it, Raphael too if I was you," she aliens. Victoria says says: "Oh, surely. That's a good idea." jokes. she realized she had been abducted after Monti hands the knife to Schear Oprah then shows she underwent hyp- and she begins rubbing her hands on a hypnotized Karl notic regression thera- it, obliterating any hope of finding fin- Homann being asked py and Mack asked gerprints on the would-be weapon. if his current wife, her if the five black Karen, is present in "Do you think we should have han- dogs she remembers the past life he is dled it with gloves or something?" as coming to attack recalling. Homann Raphael asks as Schear returns the her at the age of six announces: "I'm knife to Monti. were actually dogs. Responds Schear: "It's a little late Karen." Denning ex- Suddenly, Victoria now." plains that husband says, she realized that The only dose of reality comes at and wife were once "they weren't dogs at the end of the program when "Dana," one soul "and then Oprah Winfrey all!" a fan of O.J.'s, can't take it anymore. they split." There are no questions raised "These people are so fake," she And when Denning talks Homann about whether Mack was subtly asserts. "If you're so psychic, could you into the future, a technique known as encouraging Victoria to see the dogs please tell me what kind of matching "progression," Homann sees himself as space aliens, or whether she went to bra set I have on?" meeting a space alien. "It's going to Mack in the first place because she We're not to know. The "Sally" happen. I'm going to meet them," knew of Mack's interest in extraterres- show quickly goes to commercial. Homann says while in a trance. "He's trials. STOP. REWIND. PLAY. ugly. But he's not mean." It's July 19 and Oprah Winfrey's on STOP. FAST FORWARD. PLAY. Then there's "Dianne," a computer the tube to talk about "an incredible It's Tuesday, December 20, and executive from Massachusetts, who Maury Povich is explaining that he's claims she is abducted every couple of Gene Emery is the science writer for the about to do his first show on UFO weeks. Has Povichs team planted a Providence Journal, 75 Fountain St., abductions because a recent poll says Providence, Rl 02902. "three million Americans believe that Tales continued on page 54

SKEPTICAL INQUIRER • MAY/JUNE 1995 13 Guru frontpage 11 for a half-hour while the control group For a while, Henning threatened to merely closed their eyes and relaxed. take Veda Land away from Niagara divine their secret mantra by ESP! Blood samples were taken and mea- Falls unless the city fathers refused to In 1994 the cost of a basic TM surements made of chemicals indicat- allow a gambling casino to open in course jumped from $400 to $1,000. ing stress. The researchers concluded town. Gambling, said Doug, always Officials insist that for decades the that TM meditation failed to induce a brings a plague of hookers. When the price has been too low to meet expens- metabolic state distinguishable from city refused to bar gambling, Doug es. Besides, they argue, the new price one achieved by just sitting quietly and changed his mind. After all, could not will winnow out dabblers. possibly dozing. Veda Land's Vedic flyers counter the Does mantra meditation relieve Similar studies have shown that evils of betting and prostitution by stress more effectively than praying or focusing on a Hindu mantra is no more their sidhi powers? "Darkness," just sitting quietly with closed eyes? In effective in calming the mind than declared Doug, "cannot show itself in 1976, a study of this was made at the focusing on any other word, such as the face of light." University of Michigan and reported in peace, one, or banana. Psychologist Will Veda Land and its floating Science News (June 19). A group of David Holmes, at the University of building ever get off the ground? It's trained TMers were compared with a Kansas, could find no physiological dif- possible, but my crystal ball tells me it control group of subjects unfamiliar ference between meditation and relax- is no more than a fantasy in Doug with TM. The TM group meditated ing for 20 minutes in a reclining chair. Henning's field of consciousness. D

young diabetic boy telling his father beings don't offer the specific dates, Idles from page 13 that he has just seen the Virgin Mary at times, and locations of devastating remote-controlled camera in Dianne's Medjugorje, in the former Yugoslavia. earthquakes or other unpredictable residence to capture the frequent kid- But the words on the tape are so mud- natural phenomena so skeptics can nappings on tape? Apparently not. dled, the producers superimpose the believe. STOP. FAST FORWARD. PLAY. child's reputed words on the screen. If Raphael introduces a man whose It's the day after Christmas and Sally the child did see Mary, it didn't cure his rosary beads supposedly turned to gold Jessy Raphael's topic is mystical vision- diabetes. His mother claims the need after a visit to Medjugorje. Has aries. She's brought in Michael H. for insulin dropped for about a week, Raphael or her staff had the rosary ana- Brown, journalist and author of The but in the end the youngster has not lyzed to check if gold is really there? Final Hour, to help her "investigate" been healed. Apparently not. Have Raphael or her various reports of people seeing God, Among Raphael's other guests are staff done their homework and discov- Jesus, and the Virgin Mary. "Estela," who says that the Virgin ered that people often rub off the silver Brown, asked about the authentici- Mary visits her monthly. Estela reveals plating to reveal copper or brass ty of such apparitions, sounds as if he's that Mary looks exactly like the photo- beneath, or that tarnishing caused by reading from the same playbook as graph she had been looking at just repeated rubbing can give silver a gold- John Mack when he declares, "I have before the apparition appeared, an odd en hue? If they have, Raphael's not no doubt because of the consistency coincidence Raphael never questions. telling her viewers. and detail" from place to place and Then there's "Jim," who has repeat- PAUSE. from person to person. edly spoken to God and Jesus. Raphael And the television industry's quest Raphael shows a videotape of a doesn't think to ask why these divine to inform the public continues.

You can make a lasting impact on the future of skepticism. . . . when you provide for the SKEPTICAL INQUIRER in your will. CSICOP and the SKEPTICAL INQUIRER changed the terms of discussion in We would be happy to work with you and your attorneorneyy In fields ranging from pseudoscience and the paranormal to science the development of a will or estate plan that meets your wishes. and educational policy. You can take an enduring step to preserve A variety of arrangements are possible, including gifts of a fixed its vitality when you provide for the Skeptical Inquirer in your will. amount or a percentage of your estate; living trusts or gift annu- Your bequest to CSICOP, Inc., will help t o provide for the future ities, which provide you with a lifetime income; or a contingent of skepticism as it helps to keep the SKEPTICAL INQUIRER financially bequest that provides for the SKEPTICAL INQUIRER only if your pri- secure. Depending on your tax situation, a charitable bequest to mary beneficiaries do not survive you. CSICOP may have little impact on the net size of your estate—or may For more information, contact Barry Karr, Executive Director even result in a greater amount being available t o your beneficiaries. of CSICOP. All inquiries will be held in the strictest confidence.

Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal • PO Box 703, Amherst NY 14226-0703 • 716-636-1425

54 SKEPTICAL INQUIRER • MAY/JUNE 1995