Cancer Video | Treatment Survival & Education - Project Alpha

Project Alpha - Today on NBC

JREF DVD #014Project Alpha was a hoax orchestrated by the stage magician and skeptic James Randi. It involved planting two fake psychics, Steve Shaw and Michael Edwards, into a paranormal research project. The researchers became convinced that the pair's psychic powers were real. The hoax was later revealed publicly.

The success of Project Alpha led Randi to use variations of the technique on several other occasions. Perhaps the most famous example led to the downfall of TV evangelist and faith healer Peter Popoff, when Randi had a man pose as a woman with uterine cancer, which Popoff happily "cured". In another example, Randi hired a performance artist to pose as a channeller known as "Carlos", who was presented on Australian TV and soon had a wide following. After this hoax was exposed the artist was constantly approached by people who believed him to be genuine, even if he told them directly that he was an actor.

Channel: Nonprofit
Uploaded: March 24, 2008 at 7:55 pm
Author: JamesRandiFoundation

Length: 00:04:58
Rating: 4.97
Views: 2262

Tags: shaw nbc project randi psychic today jref edwards james michael steve alpha

Video Comments:

Obelisk2290 (November 16, 2008 at 4:00 pm)

Randi you rule

Cacadore (November 13, 2008 at 1:39 am)

Kirkwhisper''Randi may well have exposed Uri Geller as a fraud, which is of little importance to me. But he has not proved that the supernatural does not exist''But he has proved that no 'psychic' can do the trick under proper controlled conditions. Once you've elimintated all natural causes like trickery, then you can talk about supernatural. But not until then, or otherwise you're illogical.

smgill21 (November 10, 2008 at 2:50 am)

I didn't see any of this on the first viewing. We don't need evolutionary biologists to argue against "intelligent design", we need more magicians!

Kirkwhisper (October 31, 2008 at 6:33 pm)

Randi may well have exposed Uri Geller as a fraud, which is of little importance to me. But he has not proved that the supernatural does not exist. I have seen the supernatural on quite a few occasions in everyday settings in which no magic, illusion, or special effects were involved. So have many of my acquaintances. I don't like Randi's cocky attitude because he has thrown the baby out with the bathwater.

Shutitup18 (October 15, 2008 at 10:16 pm)

It's amazing that very brilliant and well-respected scientists are fooled by this trickery. Obviously they want psychic phenemona to be real despite evidence to the contrary. I suppose when you've been working in such a skeptical field for so long you want to see a miracle right in front of your very eys. A poor excuse to risk your reputation to allow some con-man to rob you of your scientific credibility and integrity.

BlackWaltz5 (August 17, 2008 at 3:14 pm)

Indeed he did. Very nicely too!

thepugsta (June 20, 2008 at 9:50 am)

BANACHEK.

MishaVargas (May 8, 2008 at 2:18 pm)

I believe he bent it twice. Once at the beginning, and again when he pretended to adjust himself in his chair. Very clever.

mjr256 (May 1, 2008 at 4:45 am)

Does having the last name Edwards predispose you to psychic hucksterism? LOL

Great video. Thanks Randi.

nwajoe (April 7, 2008 at 10:56 am)

That single tine bend is great. He pre-bends the tine and then he slightly turns the fork in his hand to reveal the bend. That first camera angle almost ruins it because you can see the tine is already bent. It is just amazing that guys with degrees and titles couldn't pick up what was happening. Truly there are some people that want to be fooled, even if it means repudiating the basic tenants of the scientific method to get the desired results.