Once Exposed As A False Shepherds. But Now Making A Come Back
The first words were captured by a secret team of researchers as the Reverend Peter Popoff of Upland, California, stepped onto a stage at San Francisco's Civic Auditorium, where he was about to start a faith healing service that would be videotaped for his weekly national broadcast. The team heard (and captured on tape) an affectionate feminine voice from above: Hello, Petey. I love you! I'm talking to you. Can you hear me? If you can't you're in trouble, 'cause I'm talking as well as I can! (Her voice suddenly becomes businesslike.) ;I'm looking up names right now. This secret team of two was located in a hidden section of the auditorium complex. It consisted of Alec Jason, an electronics expert, and his assistant Bob Steiner. Jason was giving the thumbs-up sign to Steiner as they began a number of surreptitious recordings designed to expose how Reverend Peter Popoff was able to "divinely" recite personal details about audience members and their afflictions during his popular faith-healing services.
Peter Popoff, like many faith healers, calls out the names, illnesses, and sometimes addresses of people at his crusades, then "lays hands" on them and prays for their healing. The impression given at such services is that the information comes directly from God; indeed, a magazine distributed by Popoff's organization described an audience member being "called out by the Spirit for healing". Those in the audience are so impressed by Popoff's "Gift of Knowledge" that they break into applause. The subjects picked are so overwhelmed that they often break into tears. One woman who was "healed" at one of the meetings and later interviewed by CSER stated: " know he is real from the way he talked. He actually knew my address and had no notes to look at! he is real, all right!"
Evangelist/healer Peter Popoff has headquarters in Upland, California, whence he sends out slick fund-raising literature that is generated and printed by computer to appear as if it were personally typed and signed. Those on Popoff's mailing list have received Russian currency, handkerchiefs, and red felt hearts to be carried or worn, then each to be sent back with a check attached. Special envelopes and endless appeals for the emergency needs of his ministry arrive every week. Each is personalized by the computer, which drops the recipient's first name into the text occasionally after the salutation "Brother". Sometimes the letters start off typed, and in an ensuing page turn into what appears to be a handwritten request for money from Reverend Popoff himself. This "handwriting" is printed as well. A man preparing to enter the Popoff crusade in San Francisco in February was approached by a TV interviewer, "Why are you coming to see Reverend Popoff?" he was asked. "Peter wrote to me", replied the man, "and wanted me to come here today for a special message God has for me." He was blissfully unaware that thousands of persons in the Bay area received identical letters - identical, that is, except for the personalized effect generated by Popoff's computer.
These slick mail campaigns have paid off. Popoff is seen nationwide on 51 television outlets and heard on 40 radio stations, and has an average monthly budget of $550,000, according to his business manager. Popoff's effect on his followers is so great that on several occasions he has asked his audience to "break free of the Devil" by throwing their medications up onto the stage. Dozens of people have come forward and tossed their medicine bottles onto the platform. Prescriptions for digitalis, nitroglycerine tablets, oral diabetes medication, and many unidentified pills were discarded by people who might have needed such substances to stay alive.
When world-famous magician and psychic investigator James Randi and his close magician friend Steve Shaw first attended a Popoff healing, they noticed that Popoff "called out" people from the audience fast and accurately. He gave their ailments, named relatives, and even threw in an occasional street address for good measure. After Randi and Shaw had observed Popoff dealing with twenty or so people, it was obvious to them that Popoff was not using some mnemonic device. Shaw told Randi, "He's got something else going for him, and I think I know what I have to do." Randi agreed and sent Steve to get a closer look at Popoff. Steve noticed that Popoff was wearing a hearing aid in his left ear. (That device is somewhat unusual for someone who claims to be able to perform miraculous healings.) You can see the shiny plastic in there, clear as can be, Shaw told Randi. Since Popoff had a tiny receiver of some sort in his left ear, Randi needed an electronic surveillance expert. He enlisted the help of San Francisco based Alec Jason, who had extensive experience in police, detective, and intelligence work. A few weeks later, Popoff came to San Francisco. The day before his show, Jason visited the Auditorium with a twenty thousand dollar computerized scanning system, which Jason left turned on for a couple of hours.
Jason's electronic scanner is useful to locate anything new that is being broadcast. It works by going through all the radio frequencies, and memorizes essentially everything that is on the air. The scanner would be brought back when Popoff was performing, and it would automatically compare the different broadcast signals. Everything that it had heard before, it would ignore - so it would just look for new signals. The idea was to save time.
