
By: SKEPTICMAG, fidonet.org
To: fredric rice
Re: SKEPTICS ON OPRAH

@Date: Sat, 30 Sep 1995 21:26:45 -0400
From: SKEPTICMAG@aol.com

SKEPTICS ON OPRAH
If you want to see something really out of this world, watch the Oprah
Winfrey show on Monday, October 2 (unless it is delayed to a later day in the
week). For the first time in the 10 year history of the Oprah Winfrey Show,
Oprah has on a psychic. It is Rosemary Altea, a British psychic who claims
she can communicate with the dead. Her book, "The Eagle and The Rose,
subtitled "A Remarkable True Story," has been on the New York Times and Wall
Street Journal best seller lists the past couple of weeks. (The "Eagle" is a
Native American Indian--Altea's spirit guide, and she is the "Rose.") Altea
(not her real name) is using standard cold-reading techniques similar to
those of James Van Praagh, debunked last year on Unsolved Mysteries by
Skeptic magazine publisher Dr. Michael Shermer. Oprah flew Dr. Shermer to
Chicago for the taping of the show to be the voice of reason. But not only
that, she had numerous other skeptical people who had experienced failed
readings with Rosemary, and they said so on the air (let's hope they don't
cut them all). In addition, Oprah was being rather skeptical herself, and by
the time she turned to Shermer for his "reading" of the situation, the
audience was quite friendly toward him. Altea's big "hit" of the show was an
African American woman. Altea got that her mother had died of cancer some
years back, and this lady began screaming and crying (so no doubt this will
make the program). However,  Shermer pointed out to the audience that this
was not a random pick from the audience. In fact, he had shared a limo with
that woman from the hotel to the studio, and she had told him that she had a
reading from Altea the day before. Unbelievably, during the taping when
Shermer pointed this out, she denied it! So it goes!!

   The audience's friendly posture toward Shermer, however, seemed to change
a bit when someone asked him if he was also skeptical of God and life after
death. When he responded that he was, this seemed to raise some eyebrows. In
other words, it is okay to be skeptical of something as obviously bunk as a
poor cold-reading session. But to also challenge millennium-long beliefs in a
spirit world, backed by centuries of stories and myths, rituals and
celebrations, is another story. Oprah, however, seemed very open and friendly
to the idea of getting the skeptical viewpoint into her show.

--- GIGO+ sn 37 at nisc vsn 0.99.950801

