Dougall Fraser describes himself as an “author, host, psychic, and cosmic coach.” He also reads auras and has called himself “the queer guy with the third eye.” In other words, he’s a fraud.
His website gives a bit of his history:
Dougall knew at a very early age that he saw the world and others differently. He could easily perceive the issues, secrets and desires in people’s lives. This trait was not always welcomed by others (especially at a party). He gave his first reading at the age of 8 and was regularly counseling adults while still in grade school. By the time he was 14, Dougall began to better understand his abilities and how to best use them for the greater good. He has studied meditation, psychology and healing extensively to enhance his natural talent.
Dougall has maintained a professional practice for more than fifteen years and is recognized as one of the country’s best psychics. His international clientele ranges from CEOs and celebrities, to people just like you who may need extra insight. With his own spiritual belief system, Dougall feels that we all have a blueprint for our lives. His main purpose is to help people assess and attain the life that they dream of.
Okay, we’re used to these bogus psychics. But they really know all this stuff, why are they reduced to inhabiting storefronts, giving readings over the phone the bereft, or even flogging themselves on websites? Why don’t they use their abilities to predict the stock markets or enrich themselves immensely by reading other people’s minds?
Of course they’re frauds: none of them have ever been able to pass the James Randi’s “Paranormal Million Dollar Challenge“, which they should easily pass if they have genuine psychic abilities, earning a cool million in the process.
At any rate, over at the Oprah Winfrey Network, a division of PuffHo, we have an article by Lisa Capretto touting a video in which “Famous psychic answers woman’s question before she even asks it.” The famous psychic, of course, is Dougall Fraser, and click on the screenshot below to see the short video of his “amazing” abilities.
OMG! He totally answers her question! What are the chances of that happening? (Of course, this is one “reading” selected out of many, but let’s not quibble about that.) Moreover, the article is totally credulous; here’s its substance:
Dougall Fraser reportedly gave his first psychic reading when he was 8 years old. Now in his late 30s, he’s done countless.
One such reading happened during a session at Nicole Richie’s Pearl xChange event, which featured talks aimed at empowering women in all areas of their lives. Fraser was one of the guest speakers that day, and he hosted a Q&A session with the audience during his time on stage.
A woman stood up to ask Fraser a question, but as soon as he laid eyes on her, he immediately began reading her aura, speaking about the colors he saw around her and explaining the issues that come along with having this type of energy. As it turns out, Fraser blew her away by addressing her exact question before she could say anything more than her name. The whole two-minute reading unfolds in the video above.
I would love to see people like this subjected to real scientific tests: ones in which the psychics are presented with people they’ve never met before, who are either trained to show no expression or, better yet, have their faces covered. Let’s see how well they do then! (I’d of course ask Randi or people like Penn and Teller to design these tests.)
This psychic nonsense falls halfway between Bigfoot and Catholicism on the scale of Harm to Society. The people who fall for Fraser’s ploy give up a bit of dosh and get a bit of entertainment. The downside, of course, is that they’re being bilked. I suppose in some cases, people like Fraser can serve as impromptu therapists, reading from people’s expressions what’s troubling them and giving them a happy solution, but it’s no substitute for real therapy. Others do damage by lying to people about the fate of their loved ones in the afterlife. And, of course, phone and storefront psychics take lots of money from people and give them very little.
Catholicism, on the other hand, not only bilks people, but warps many believers for life and feeds them delusions. The church has also enabled sexual abuse and consistently intrudes into politics, trying to control people’s sex lives and the reproductive status of women. On the less-harmful side of woo stands belief in things like Bigfoot, in which very little harm is done—at least as far as I know.
Overall, I don’t understand why the actions of people like Fraser aren’t illegal. They promise things they can’t deliver, they tout skills they don’t have, and pretend to put people in touch with loved ones who are dead. It resembles quack remedies like homeopathy (which should also be illegal), and there are no warning labels. When people like Fraser do their acts, they should be forced to wear a sign around their necks reading: “This act is for entertainment purposes only. I do not possess special abilities to read your mind or your aura.”
Finally, shame on PuffHo and Oprah for presenting this guy as if he had paranormal abilities.
Every time I pass the sign that says “Psychic” at the house near me I reflexively read it as – “Psychotic”, and I have a pang of sympathy for the victims of the fraud.
Big surprise: care of Oprah (she who employs a spiritual advisor)!! How much longer before this charlatan has his own TV show, where he gushes about his blow hard mentor? Geesh!!
Really? Halfway towards the Catholic Church in harming society? And it should be illegal?
Sorry, Professor, but I think this is one of those instances where the “fools being separated from their money” principle should hold sway.
And yet there are laws against using fraud to separate people from their money. Which is what psychics do. In rare cases people have recovered damages against psychics but given the unregulated nature of the psychic business, it’s very difficult. There should be specific laws regulating it.
Funny, I thought separating people from their money was mostly Wall Street territory.
Specific laws regulating it? That would spoil the whole effect!
Seriously though, there is a line between criminally misleading people about the nature of stocks, and indulging people’s appetite for woo.
Telling someone you can communicate with their deceased is just one step beyond telling them their deceased exists in a better place, and we indulge in the latter regularly and legally.
Virtually every other business is regulated, why shouldn’t the psychic business be regulated. Of course you can tell someone you can communicate with the deceased, obviously that’s free speech, the problem comes when you extract money from them by promising what you can’t deliver. Much like when money is extracted from people by promising them what stocks can’t deliver. There are strict regulations about that, and there should be strict regulations for the psychic business also.
As far as religion goes, which I assume you are referring to, there is no comparison. America, in its infinite wisdom, has decreed that religion is different from any other scam or confidence game. There are no religious scams, everything is allowed.
The guy is slick, that’s for sure. Like how he “saw” she had a lot of tension in her neck & back but when it got no rise from her he just carried on without referencing it again. Proud member of the Charlatans Unlimited brotherhood.
Yes. And upon getting agreement that people see her as a leader and one who can take on things, he (amazingly) describes how she then takes on too much, says yes too much.
Zounds! Who could have seen that??
The UK has a petition going to request Parliament debate aimed at psychics having to ‘prove’ their credentials before they are licensed to practice. In reality it would bar them in their entirety. So for UK readers only
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/117294
Good initiative. I hope it’s successful.
Signed, thanks.
Of course science can’t test psychics – the testing instruments and their skeptic operators emit low levels of radiation that interfere with a proper reading.
But radiation must follow the inverse square law. So do the tests from a distance. That is, if psychics claim that they can get auras from a distance.
The usual argument is that physics like thermodynamics wouldn’t work if magic did. *Science* does ‘reading’ from afar, how about that! =D
I watched the video and noticed two major things:
1.) The reading he gave could probably apply to 90-95% of the women in the room. Even people who aren’t “natural leaders” will think they are — and show me anyone, male or female, who doesn’t believe they’re agreeing to do things they’d rather not do and this stresses them. Even selfish, lazy people (and maybe even especially selfish, lazy people) believe they have this problem. The entire reading then could be said to be what’s called a “Barnum statement.” It applies to virtually everyone — but everyone thinks its a bit special to them.
2.) The “psychic” was watching the woman as he was reading her, and though the camera doesn’t show her face we can hear her ooh and aah. No doubt she is nodding and smiling. So there’s clear direction regarding what particulars to emphasize and elaborate on.
Fraser is also making use of another popular technique — employ some sort of esoteric expertise as a prop. It helps to guide you along, allows you to throw in a bunch of impressive sounding bullshit at will, and grants you authority. In this case, it’s reading auras. But it could be tarot, astrology, palm reading, whatever. Anything that makes you sound like you’ve studied up and know your stuff. This is technical, folks.
Part of the harm in this sort of thing is the more general one of screwing around with someone’s view of the world. Once you believe in one form of magic, the next one you encounter fits right in. Why not? The presumption that we need to be skeptical and guided by naturalism has been thrown out the window because of what we “know” to be true for ourselves. You only need to stick to reason and solid evidence if there’s some reason you don’t want to believe. Otherwise, it all starts to be fair game. People are then making choices based on anything at all.
I think religion is the popular gateway drug to this stuff (or vice versa.) It introduces a magical world view into someone’s core perspective. Anyone involved in any form of ‘organized skepticism’ is familiar with the “well, we can’t prove that God exists either” excuse. That’s why folks don’t want psychics like Fraser tested. They think believing in him is like believing in God: a good, humble thing in itself.
“In this case, it’s reading auras. But it could be tarot, astrology, palm reading, whatever.”
Theology ?
I don’t think theology as such could be used for cold reading. God speaking and telling you things? Oh sure, just look at faith healers for one good example.
I actually have a hard time watching these “Psychic” con-artists in action. You can just see the ego-puffing they get by pretending to have these powers, and from the gullible, awed feedback they are getting from their marks. Just the fact that they get away with such ego-inflating satisfaction from b.s. that bilks others is a combination I have a hard time watching.
Yeah; I normally operate under the assumption that most people are good and try, especially in matters of import, to do the right thing as far as they can determine/are able. Then you see stuff like this and are reminded that a lot of people aren’t and don’t.
I agree that this scamming should be illegal, and in some places it is. But I have to ask, why should these be illegal but priests, reverends and other paid religious people, who deliver just as much BS, be legal?
I think a lot psychics do harm. A lot of fools get advice from them and follow it. Just like religious leaders do harm.
Do you really need “fake”?
That was my first thought: “fake psychic” is tautological. I do understand why it’s there, though – can’t emphasise the point too much.
He also reads auras and has called himself “the queer guy with the third eye.”Well, he’s an attention seeker – they always are – but making claims like that in the right clubs will get him all sorts of attention which he might not be expecting.
As Donald Trump is demonstrating, there is huge (“Huge”) audience for someone who tells people what they want to hear.
I dated a guy whose brother claimed I had a black aura with a big hole in it. Looking back, it was clear he wanted me out of his brother’s life because he didn’t like his brother thinking independent thoughts. He eventually convinced him to break up with me.
Woo gets you what you want.
✨
🤔
Rarely comment, but here goes
I have posted here before that I was into this stuff, but I honestly thought I was helping people. I read cards and runes. Back in those days guys like John Edwards (the guy on the Sci Fi channel show) who claimed to talk to the dead earned my wrath. I didn’t believe in ghosts, although I believed in a lot of woo, but I saw these kinds of people as the carnival tricksters they are.
Despicable then, and despicable now, preying on the grieving and troubled people for money. It took me a while to realize I was not helping people at all, and if I really wanted to help, I would learn how to do something concrete and factual. I also wasn’t very good at it – I might have felt differently if I was raking in the bucks, but I would usually do readings for free or trade of services (also am/was 2nd degree Reiki. What a waste of money that was).
As far as harm goes, what these people do looks lesser than what Big Christian Churches do, but if it one person’s life, troubles and sorrows that are promised to be fixed with a spell, or a reading, or a healing, and they spend all of their money, well, it’s just as bad.
Shame on Oprah for putting out there yet another fraud, and shame on him for exploiting people who want and need some kind of help or compassion.
Oh, and the only Dougall I want to see is this one:
https://youtu.be/QSA9TgtaQZg
Money quote of the day:
This psychic nonsense falls halfway between Bigfoot and Catholicism on the scale of Harm to Society.
They need to test Dougall like they did Gibson Praise on the X-Files. That kid had incredible psychic ability. He even knew what the people questioning him had for breakfast. If Dougall can pass the tests that Gibson did, I’ll believe he has psychic abilities. The Truth Is Out There but Dougall doesn’t have it.
Oprah? Peddling woo?
Gosh what a surprise!
[/sarcasm]
cr
“…tout a fake psychic”
Isn’t that redundant?
“…these bogus psychics”
There you go being redundant again!
More seriously, I don’t know how could it be (fairly) be made illegal? Yes, it’s false advertising and preys on the gullible and desperate. But can we really ban people from claiming abilities that cannot be measured? How do we prove it to be false advertising?
Homeopathy, on the other hand, makes medical claims even if kept intentionally vague. I don’t see how it isn’t banned until its promoters come up with hard scientific evidence that their wares are not just overpriced placebos.
“it’s no substitute for real therapy”
What ‘real therapy’? The only kind with any evidence base is cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). The rest is as no different from what this guy is peddling.
While clearly not all (due to testing already done) aura-seers are like this, I wonder if some of them are suffering from something unnoticed eye problems or maybe (rarer still) synaesthesia.
As posted in the first place
Is there anyone who had been there for real on the show (I mean in any show of those so called psyched) had asked the psychic:
Why don’t you take a real test (like 1M $ Paranormal challenge)?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Million_Dollar_Paranormal_Challenge
Why don’t you win the lottery?
and so on …