People who exploited wartime needs became, by definition, profiteers. They charged too much for copper, cotton, butter, you name it. They had it what was needed and they raised the price.

It wasn't until September 11 that we learned of new intangible commodities, which qualified as wartime needs. One who sought to profit from such needs is John Edward. He is the star of his own television program called "Crossing Over", which doesn't purport to be entertainment, but it does declare you will see John Edward talking to dead people. Recently he declared he would talk to the victims of the World Trade Center disaster.

Sometime around the week of October 20 the producers of "Crossing Over", Studios USA, announced that a special series of broadcasts would run during the November 'sweeps'. Edward would specifically read for friends and family of the 9/11 victims. One can only imagine what New Yorkers thought of the ads featuring Edward. His ads were the loudest example of wartime profiteering, and yet mostly ignored, but obtrusive enough to beat the shameless overkill marketing of American flags (made in China, Mexico, or Thailand).

On October 25, Studios USA President, Steve Rosenberg, told Broadcasting & Cable magazine that the resounding condemnation of Edward's WTC shows was, "A reaction that none of us expected." Wasn't John's ghostly antenna working when that message was sent?

The next day, the "Crossing Over" official web site, www.crossingoverwithjohnedward.com, posted the statement, "such readings will continue to be conducted privately they will NOT air."

Continue until when, I wondered? Almost 5,000 people died on September 11. Is he going to do psychic readings for every victim?

Edward is a self-titled 'medium' who haunts daytime TV. Recently I was privy to an insider's perspective on the business of mediums when I met a bona fide former psychic, Dan Yaman. If there was ever a question that John Edward is a fraud (and thereby crossed the line into wartime-opportunism), Yaman invalidates all possibility of doubt. Yaman's interest in cold reading began at the age of 12 following his passions for magic, showmanship and being the center of attention. After ditching the role of professional psychic for personal reasons—"I couldn't justify it any more in my own head,"—he wrote a technical book about spoon bending that was distributed in Canada. Yaman's comments on Edward suggest his questionable character. "I just have to say that the first time I watched him, I immediately saw a cohort doing the same shit I use to do," he says, "Granted, he's very good, but a fraud none-the-less." The guy is an entertainer.

Syndicates of "Crossing Over" heard the public objections to Edward communicating with the WTC dead, which is why Edward's 'sweeps' concept will remain on the cutting room floor and not be seen. Sadly, USA's Rosenburg's comments imply that pulling the shows had everything to do with damage control and saving a potential cash cow.

Indeed. On October 30, an unnamed USA exec was quoted in Media Life as saying, "Edward decided to do the special shows only after being asked by victims' families... 'Crossing Over' is the best rated of a crop of freshman talk shows."

"My guess is that this guy is out for himself," says Yaman, "so seeing the disaster like the WTC, he had to wonder how he could exploit it. You have to admit it would be a ratings windfall. It would catapult him to world recognition." But Edward didn't fight the cancellation, he knew that much. Publicly he had zero shame about the WTC series or his 'take' on it. His own home page is graced with a somewhat exculpatory essay called Life Changes In A Moment.

"Crossing Over" was crass and exploitative all along, pre and post 9/11. It airs in both one-hour and thirty-minute versions in different markets. The Sci-Fi Channel made pointed disclaimers that the show is for entertainment purposes, that you have to be the judge of his talents, and their site's "Crossing Over" page (http://www.scifi.com/johnedward/) even promotes a discussion board, which is constantly pummeled by meteoric anti-Edward people.

This season, Edward even added private B-level celebrity readings to the show's format. It's less a testament to his psychic ability that he can 'hear' the message from Jane Seymour's late father about a pet name he had for her, than it is proof that he's able to search all of the Medicine Woman's fan sites online.

The problem with Edward and people like him is that they do really bad things. They brag about helping police investigations when in truth they are interfering with the process of law enforcement and justice. They send cops and detectives on wild goose chases and give information that is so specific that it's treated as a lead and pursued. They tell parents of missing children that indeed their child is dead. They give general descriptions of the murder/s, but can't come up with a single name or complete license plate number or a shred of information that would be of substantial help.

There are plenty of online resources that verify Edward is a fraud. Skeptic (www.skeptic.com), CSICOP (www.csicop.org), The Official James Randi Site (www.randi.org), have dozens of archived articles covering everything from detailed explanations of "cold reading" and "NLP" (Neuro-Linguistic Programming ) to tattling on bad psychic television appearances.

The truth is, almost a hundred years ago Harry Houdini actively debunked mediums. No one has ever proven they've had communication with the dead. The most authentic thing about cold reading is that false information is becoming part of another person's real life and memories.

One of the most heavily trafficked articles I ever wrote was about Crossing Over (http://www.tv-now.com/vikireed/nov2000.htm). I'm still receiving feedback eleven months after its posting. Most letters were from people who, like me, believe Edward is a sham, his show is unmanly, and the truth should be pushed as hard as his show is. Only a handful of folks tended to believe in John and thought I was being too hard on him. True "Crossing Over" devotees didn't respond. Regardless of my attempts to squander his empire, it is as Yaman says, "Even if he is totally discredited, there would still be enough believers to keep him busy."

Copyright © 2001 Viki Reed. All Rights Reserved.

Viki Reed is a regular contributor to *spark-online. She writes about television.