Psychic Detectives

Just came across this on YouTube.
Benjamin Radford managing editor of Skeptical Inquirer Magazine, talking at an event sponsored by the National Capital Area Skeptics in the United States of America on April 14, 2009.
His topic is, "The Truth About Psychic Detectives".
This talk is on YouTube, it is an 11 part video.
I will link the videos from YouTube below.
Well worth the view, it goes for about 1 hour 40 minutes.
YouTube video1
YouTube video2
YouTube video3
YouTube video4
YouTube video5
YouTube video6
YouTube video7
YouTube video8
YouTube video9
YouTube video10
YouTube video11

Continuing with the Psychic Detective theme.
I came across a radio broadcast whilst trawling the internet.
The radio station was Nova 100, in Perth.
They had Kelvin Cruikshank a New Zealand psychic that stars on the New Zealand show "Sensing Murder".
Kelvin was doing readings over the phone and also reading some staff members in the radio station.
Radio Psychic Readings
My analysis below.
Woman Broadcaster Do you want to talk to some of our listeners. Do you want to do readings on the phone.
K.C. No, no not usually at 8am in the morning just getting off the plane, will just have a chat.
My take Now making excuses in case of a failure, common ploy of the cold reader at the beginning of the reading.


Woman Broadcaster I am desperate to ask about a friend of mine but I can't talk about it because it will make me cry.
K.C. It's a female friend of yours, she is standing with you sweetheart.
Woman Broadcaster Yes.
My take A good guess, most females would have mainly female friends, otherwise husbands, boyfriends etc but she did not say husband, boyfriend brother etc.. Cold reading ok so far.

K.C. She is laughing at you, taking the mickey out of you, she is a character.
woman broadcasterShe is.
My take That was a bit of a guess that seemed to fit.

K.C. She is telling me to tell you to stop drinking too much wine.She knows that you like your wine.
Woman broadcaster Saying puzzly, no.I don't really like wine.
My take A cold reading miss.

K.C. What about her, she is basicly a party girl thats what I am looking at first thing in the morning.
Woman broadcaster uumm ok (she said dissapointedly.)
My take KC bombed out on that read then tried to switch it to her dead friend to try and find a fit but bombed again. Cold reading not so good. Then again it is 8am and just off the plane, that is a good excuse.

Male broadcaster Nicole you had a tragic event that happened only last week.
Nicole I had a mate pass away, wanted to know if he was allright, it was terrible circumstances, he took his own life.
KC conversation then he, is that right.
My take Question,just clarifying the sex most likely or a cold readers ploy of feeding back information that client has allready made known. This is impressive because the client particularly if emotional does not remember the conversation as
well as if they were more together.

KC Did he hang himself?
Nicole Yes
My take A question K.C. allready knew it was a terrible death so a suicide and hanging is a common way for men to suicide. They usually take the more violent means. A question that got a hit.

K.C. Was there a broken heart involved?
Nicole No
K.C. Are you sure about that
Nicole Are, yer, there was a bit of a broken heart going on.
My take Good persistant question by K.C., broken romance is a common suicide reason. Another question.

K.C. Did you ever date that guy?
Nicole No
My take A question by K.C., he did not know and bombed out. Again, a guess with the odds that did not pay.

Nina I get very emotional (crying) I want to know about my mum, my mum passed away last year
K.C. I have to ask one question, your mums dad has passed away, correct?
Nina Yes
K.C. She is coming through with him, and your mums mum has passed as well, and she has also got your dog or the family dog with her that had to be put down.
My take A common cold reading ploy asking a question, K.C. was very blatant at that usually the good cold reader is more subtle. Asking a question with the odds. Why did not the spirits say it is Nina's grandfather? But once he knew who
it is, said that he is coming through with his wife as well which was a question at first to see if she had passed. The family dog being put down, how common is that, I have had three so far.Pretty poor.

K.C. Are you one of three kids?
Nina Yes
My take A question that paid off, well done K.C., a good hit.

K.C. Two girls and a boy, or
Nina Yes
My take Another question that turned into a good hit, going well.

K.C. Mother is saying happy birthday, who's birthday is it so everyone can know.
Nina My birthday, March.
My take Could be anyones birthday in the family, KC did not know so asked the question, but March has 31 days so a poor fit. Good cold reading with a mediocre hit.

K.C. I have to hurry on the radio, started talking fast with her mum she has passed away as well?
Nina Yes
My take Another question with the odds.

K.C. I want you to know she is apples, she uses the word apples, I don't know why she would say that.
Nina Right
My take A risky guess that did not pay off, if it did, wow, if not, no harm done.

K.C. She is asking me about a Rose, Rosemary Rozy, roz
Nina Don't know
K.C. Yes you do know about it a Ro connection.
Nina Ok, I will think about it.
My take Another attempt at a hit that bombed, but K.C. persisted and Nina said ok will think about it. A cold reading ploy of blaming the client for having a faulty memory. If a Ro name comes up or she remembers a Ro name well she will think
wow. This is a common cold reading ploy.Another question. Also used what I call "Psychic speak" he said "a Ro connection".
There are many statements that are "psychic speak". Probably more on this in a separate thread.

K.C. Hey before you go do you have two kids
Nina No, but my sister does.
K.C. A boy and a girl?
Nina No, two girls
My take K.C. tried to get some cred. back with another question disguised as a statement. Bombed out big time there. 8am start again did that. The believers will say but he mentioned 2 kids, but it was a guess that he essentially bombed out on.

Geoff sports reporter I lost Paul my older brother to leukemia
K.C. Just trying to get a link. Your paternal grandfather & grandmother have passed away?
Geoff Right.
K.C. Just trying to establish a link, can you imagine a whole lot of people standing here and all talking at once
My take Asking a question to get info but disguising it as trying to get to the right person through all of the othersthat are pestering him.

K.C. Asking about a birthday, they have a big bunch of balloons. Someone relative to you or around you within the next week or two.
Geoff Today, my nephews 21st.
My take Another question that elicited a good hit. The odds of a family member or friend, or workmate having a birthday within 2 weeks is not bad odds, the bigger the family the better the odds. A good cold reading ploy. I would have been
impressed if KC had said that your nephew is having his 21st birtday today.

K.C. Your bro is acknowledging his nephew, is that his nephew or son.
Geoff My nephew and his nephew
My take Another question, KC had no idea of the relationship between the deceased brother and Geofs nephew. Why did not the spirits tell him, be more specific? Why acknowledge the nephew? Why did the spirit not tell KC about the nephews birthday that day. The spirit acknowledged the nephew but only vaguely hinted at a birthday earlier. You see the nephew came up at the first attempt at info from KC from a question then he uses that info to make his reading more believable.
A good cold reading ploy that one. Do you believers get that connection from birthday to nephew to acknowledgement, he built
up a good reading there using cold reading.

K.C. He has a footy as well, did he play footy, or you or did you play together
Geoff He was a mad footballer played for Brunswick
My take Duh, a sports reporter with a footy connection, him or his brother. That was a blatant question of KC, he really took the short odds there.

K.C. He is throwing darts at me, dart board.
Geoff Throwing darts (he is trying hard to get a connection to that)
My take A big miss, well he is sticking to the sport agenda. Trying to stay with the odds but bombing out again.
If he got a darts connection then Geoff would have been very impressed

K.C. When they throw darts it is like a teaser, trying to make you smile.
My take Switching this around to make his miss look much better. A common cold reading ploy.

K.C. He is also saying this two, have you got two of your own kids yet.
Geoff No
My take Another question that bombed, the two kids did not work this time. Bad luck KC

K.C. He is saying two, two, two, two, are you one of two.
Geoff I am the 4th child there is two boys.
My take KC persisting with this two, Geoff must find a link there soon.

Geoff Two boys, two girls
K.C.Geoff Any of those guys born in February
Geoff No
My take Geoff finally found a two link, then KCs guess about February bombed right out. Cold reading question not so good.

K.C. He is saying, should have seen some of the girls he has dated
Geoff Those days are over
Then it is said by woman broadcaster that Geoff has just got engaged
My take Another guess with the odds, did not seem much of a hit.

K.C. A Island connection, Fiji, Raratonga some connection, I don't know if that has happened yet.
Woman Broadcaster Where's Amra from
Geoff Lebonese parentage.
K.C. A connection with something happening over there in the future
My take Another miss from a question. Maybe he took the odds and hoped he was honeymooning in the Pacific Islands. But a vague comeback about something happening in the islands in the future is pretty poor cold reading. A big miss but the woman broadcaster is becoming KCs little helper. I think KC has that effect on all women.

K.C. He is also making me feel of the connection of own home, do you own your own house.
Geoff No
My take KCs cold reading not too good with Geoff, it's that bloody 8am start again.

K.C. Give mum a big hug, mum not coping, dad keeps it in the closet, it is important for her to understand it is not her fault. She somehow blames herself, you may not have heard that from her.
My take Very common for mothers to be emotional about a death and dad to bottle it up a common male trait. Typical for women to blame themselves for a lot of the problems, look at domestic violence and how the women victims often blame themselves.
He also added the "you may not have heard that from her" in case he has not, and thinks KC is wrong when really he is
fitting it to be right, rightly or wrongly.

K.C. Where does Margaret or Marg come into it.
Geoff No
K.C. Don't right it off, I know what I am talking about.Mellisa, Mark, a big M
Geoff Marney, Margaret, Aunty Margaret's alive
My take Well another question that bombed big time, but he tried to salvage this by saying don't write it off.
Geoff may fit this later in life, if he remembers well he then will be impressed with KC, if not no harm done. But Geoff did fit it with a aunty margaret.

All of the readings were conducted mainly with questions from KC. Some of them did fit, but most did not.
There was a lot more in this reading that could not be validated such as he/she is ok, he/she loves you. He/she is with
you.
The skilled cold reader builds the reading on information gleaned from the client then feeds it back skillfully to make it
look like the psychic has come up with it.