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This article is about the TV psychic. For other uses, see John Edwards (disambiguation).

John Edward McGee Jr., (born October 19, 1969 in Glen Cove, New York), better known as John Edward, is an author and television personality best known for performing as a psychic medium whose job is to help the spirits of the dead communicate with the living.

The son of a policeman, Edward was raised Roman Catholic. Although Edward later became non-practicing, he has said he never stopped feeling connected to God and is still closely connected to his Catholic roots.

He graduated from Long Island University with a degree in health-care administration.

Television shows

Crossing Over

Edward was the producer and host of the show Crossing Over with John Edward, which has been syndicated and aired on the Sci-Fi Channel in the United States and on LIVINGtv in the UK. In Crossing Over, Edward performs what mediums call a "reading", the purpose of which is to help spirits of the deceased communicate with the living.

Show format

Readings in Crossing Over involve Edward questioning audience members with information presented as being communicated by their deceased friends and relatives. Edward says he receives his information in images and clues which the audience must assist him in interpreting - the audience is not supposed to supply Edward with any prior information about themselves, their family or who they are trying to connect with "on the other side." Audience members respond to Edward's statements and questions, adding any details they feel are appropriate. The show often employs a split screen, showing a reading without sound on one half of the screen while on the other half the subject of the reading is shown in a later interview as they discuss their experience. A voiceover by Edward is also implemented at times, sharing further insights and inspirational messages.

In other instances, Edward conducted private sessions away from the studio audience. The subjects of these segments later talked in greater detail about the situation that led to their reading with Edward and the effect the reading had on their lives. Periodically, segments revisit people who have previously appeared on the show.

John Edward Cross Country

Edward's current show, John Edward Cross Country, has been broadcast on the Women's Entertainment Channel since March 2006. In this forum, the audience is not supposed to supply Edward with any prior information about themselves, their family or who they are trying to connect with "on the other side." The show opens with a statement that he simply lets his guides draw him to the people that spirits are trying to connect with, and the audience should only validate the information he gives them.

Paranormal study

Gary Schwartz, a psychologist and researcher in the controversial field of parapsychology, tested Edward and several other mediums and published his belief that Edward's abilities were genuine in his book The Afterlife Experiments. Although the study did not undergo scientific peer review, CSI's Ray Hyman, a psychologist and noted critic of parapsychology, wrote a detailed critique of Schwartz's methodology and conclusions in a 2003 issue of the Skeptical Inquirer. Schwartz responded to the critique, leading Hyman to write a rebuttal.

Criticism

Critics of Edward believe he performs the mentalist technique of cold reading. Choosing the first reading from a two hour tape of edited shows as a sample, magician and debunker James Randi found that just three of twenty three statements made by Edward were confirmed as correct by the audience member being read.

A 2001 Time article suggested that Edward used hot reading on Crossing Over. In another incident, Edward was said to have used foreknowledge to hot read in an interview on the television show Dateline. James Underdown of the Skeptical Inquirer attended a Crossing Over show in November of 2002 and said "there were no indications of anyone I saw collecting information... none of his readings contained the kind of specific information that would raise an eyebrow of suspicion."

Another accusation has been that Edward's accuracy on television is inflated by the editing process. After watching the broadcast version of the show he had attended and recorded, Underdown attributed a great deal of Edward's accuracy on television to editing and wrote, "Edward's editor fine-tuned many of the dead-ends out of a reading riddled with misses." Edward said in 2001 that Crossing Over was "edited for time, not for content."

John Edward has denied ever using foreknowledge, cold or hot reading.

Controversies

9/11

Shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks, Edward began filming at least one special in which he met with some relatives of the victims, with the intention of communicating with those who were killed. The trade magazine Broadcasting & Cable sent a story, "'Psychic' Plans WTC Victims Show", on the daily subscription-fax sent to news media and TV-station executives on October 25, 2001. Steve Rosenberg, president of domestic television for Edward's production company, Studios USA, had tentatively scheduled the program(s) to air during the November sweeps period, but news of the taping sparked a national outcry. Both Sci Fi and the Crossing Over with John Edward production office were flooded with phone calls and e-mail, some expressing outrage at the exploitation of the national tragedy, others at what they perceived at extreme tastelessness in search of ratings. Rosenberg initially ignored the criticism, insisting the programming would go on as scheduled, but within hours terminated plans.

Terri Schiavo

On the March 24, 2005 episode of the FOX News Channel morning show FOX & Friends, in response to a question as to whether Edward could communicate with the braindead Terri Schiavo, Edward said " definitely clear on what's happening now around her."

Appearances in the media

Edward has appeared in many televison shows, including: Entertainment Tonight, Live with Regis & Kelly, The Early Show, The Crier Report, The Tony Danza Show, The View, The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch, Fox and Friends, Maury, Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Wayne Brady Show, Dateline, 20/20, and the HBO Special, Life After Life: America Undercover.

Other notable appearances include:

• David Cross: In his comedy album It's Not Funny, Cross jokes: "Oh, man, so I was watching that show ... there's this guy on stage, and everybody in the audience believes he has contact with the dead and spirits talk to him? (The audience shouts "Crossing Over".) Crossing--? no, no, no, no, no, it was, it was church."

• Family Guy: Edward was parodied in "The Cleveland-Loretta Quagmire", a 2005 episode in which a flashback shows Peter in the audience of Crossing Over.

• Penn & Teller: Bullshit!: In the first episode of the series, Talking to the Dead, they describe Edward and his claimed psychic abilities as part of an "art of deception", and complained that he refused to allow them to tape his seminar and accompanying psychic demonstration.

• The Amazing Meeting 3: Penn & Teller said they discussed the idea for a skeptic show to ABC executives. Penn told the executives that he knew they were going to reject the idea, but that the media was part of the problem. Penn told them to think about Edward claiming to speak to relatives who lost loved ones from September 11th. Penn said they dismissed the notion that Edward would air a show on the tragedy. However, after Edward did do a show, a few executives did call Penn saying they were outraged with Edward.

• PvP: In a story arc beginning April 1st, 2002, one of the characters (Brent) in Scott Kurtz's comic believes John Edward to be a fraud when the cast of the strip wins tickets to John's show.

• Royal Canadian Air Farce: On a 2002 episode, guest star Peter Keleghan portrayed Edward trying to communicate with dead loved ones of guest Elizabeth Taylor (portrayed by Luba Goy). Taylor was very uncooperative, and ended up giving John a headache, which Taylor tried to help with by giving John a massage.

• Will & Grace: Edward made a cameo appearance on NBC's Will & Grace in the 2004 episode "East Side Story".

• South Park: Edward was declared "The Biggest Douche in the Universe" in a 2002 episode of the same name.

Books

• 1998 One Last Time: A Psychic Medium Speaks to Those We Have Loved and Lost ISBN 0-425-16908-1
• 2000 What If God Were the Sun? ISBN 1-58872-003-9
• 2001 Crossing Over: The Stories Behind the Stories ISBN 1-58872-002-0
• 2003 After Life: Answers From the Other Side ISBN 1-932128-06-9
• 2004 Final Beginnings: The Tunnel ISBN 1-932128-02-6
• 2005 Practical Praying: Using the Rosary to Enhance Your Life ISBN 1-932128-12-3

References

1. Edward, John (1998). One Last Time. Berkley. ISBN 0-425-16908-1.
2. ^ Edward, John (1999). Crossing Over (Television series). USA: Sci-Fi Channel.
3. ^ Edward, John (2006). John Edward Cross Country (Television series). Women's Entertainment.
4. Schwartz, Gary (2003). The Afterlife Experiments. Atria Books. ISBN 978-0-7434-3659-5. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
5. Hyman, Ray (January/February 2003). "How Not to Test Mediums". Skeptical Inquirer. Retrieved 2006-12-04. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
6. Schwartz, Gary (2003). "How Not To Review Mediumship Research". Retrieved 2006-12-04.
7. Hyman, Ray (March 2003). "Follow Up Reply". Skeptical Inquirer. Retrieved 2006-12-04. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
8. Blumenfeld, Jon (2000-07-21). "Medium Dead". New England Skeptical Society. Retrieved 2006-12-12. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); External link in |publisher= (help)
9. ^ Endersby, Andrew (December 2002). "Talking the John Edward Blues". SkepticReport. Retrieved 2006-12-12. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); External link in |publisher= (help)
10. O'Dell, Cary. "Talking to Dead People". PopMatters. Retrieved 2006-12-12.
11. Randi, James (2006-04-21). "Swift:The Online Newsletter of the JREF". James Randi Educational Foundation. Retrieved 2006-12-11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
12. Leon Jaroff. ""Talking to the Dead"". Time Magazine. Retrieved 2006-06-14.
13. Nickell, Joe (November/December 2001). "John Edward: Hustling the Bereaved". Skeptical Inquirer. Retrieved 2006-12-13. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
14. ^ Underdown, James (September/October 2003). "They See Dead People — Or Do They?". Skeptical Inquirer. Retrieved 2006-12-11. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
15. "Can John Edward Speak to the Dead?". Larry King Live. 2001-09-10. CNN. {{cite episode}}: External link in |title= (help)
16. Edward, John (2001). Crossing Over. Jodere Group. ISBN 1-58872-002-0.
17. de Moraes, Lisa (2006-10-26). "Medium Crosses The Line: WTC Segment Canned". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2006-12-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
18. Radford, Benjamin (January/February 2002). "John Edward's televised tragedy seance scrapped". Skeptical Inquirer. Retrieved 2006-12-18. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
19. "Fox's psychic friend". Media Matters for America. 2005-03-25. Retrieved 2006-12-04. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links

• John Edward's official site
• John Edward on IMDB.com
• John Edward Tune in the Afterlife, interview

Critical articles

• "How come TV psychics seem so convincing?"
• Demystifying John Edward of Crossing Over
• Greatest Hits and Misses of John Edward
• How the Mass Media Package and Sell Psychic Medium John Edward
• Shooting Crap:Alleged psychic John Edward actually gambles on hope and basic laws of statistics
• Daily Variety review of "John Edward Cross Country"

• 1969 births
• Living people
• American television personalities
• Spiritual mediums
• Pseudoscience
• Will & Grace actors
• People from Long Island
• Psychics