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               The REALL News

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The official newsletter of the Rational Examination Association
              of Lincoln Land

Volume 3, Number 1                                  January 1995

----------------------------------------------------------------
Electronic Version

If you like what you see, please help us continue by sending
in a subscription.  See the end of newsletter for details.
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In This Issue:

From the Editor -- Bob Ladendorf
From the Chairman -- David Bloomberg
A Look into the Sun - and Other Tabloids, Part 3 -- Bob Ladendorf
Supermarket Tabloids: The Persistence of (Alleged) Vision
    -- Bob Ladendorf
Letter to REALL
Subject Index
Author Index

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Purpose:
The Rational Examination Association of Lincoln Land (REALL)
is a non-profit educational and scientific organization.  It is
dedicated to the development of rational thinking and the application
of the scientific method toward claims of the paranormal and fringe-
science phenomena.

REALL shall conduct research, convene meetings, publish a newsletter,
and disseminate information to its members and the general public.
Its primary geographic region of coverage is central Illinois.

REALL subscribes to the premise that the scientific method is the
most reliable and self-correcting system for obtaining knowledge
about the world and universe.  REALL not not reject paranormal claims
on a priori grounds, but rather is committed to objective, though
critical, inquiry.

_The REALL News_ is its official newsletter.

Membership information is provided elsewhere in this newsletter.

Board of Directors:  Chairman, David Bloomberg; Assistant Chairman,
Prof. Ron Larkin; Secretary-Treasurer, Kevin Brown; Newsletter
Editor, Bob Ladendorf; At-Large Members, Prof. Steve Egger, Wally
Hartshorn, and Frank Mazo.

Editorial Board:  Bob Ladendorf (Newsletter Editor), David Bloomberg
(electronic version editor), (one vacancy).

REALL
P.O. Box 20302
Springfield, IL 62708

Unless stated otherwise, permission is granted to other skeptic
organizations to reprint articles from _The REALL News_ as long
as proper credit is given.  REALL also requests that you send
copies of your newsletters that reprint our articles to the
above address.

The views expressed in these articles are the views of the individual
authors and do not necessarily represent the views of REALL.

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                         From the Editor
                        -- Bob Ladendorf

   With the completion of my three-part series on the
supermarket tabloids, I want to raise an issue that needs to
be studied in the future, namely the tabloid television
shows. From shows that pay to talk shows that display every
kind of trivial perversion, America has become a nation of
complainers and exhibitionists. All these serve as a
distraction from the real issues and matters of the day:
war, poverty, environmental concerns, lack of critical
thought, and crime.
   Perhaps these issues are so big and seemingly too
complex to understand that Americans absorb themselves with
simple, trivial matters, from celebrity gossip to "weeping"
statues.
   With the New Year, we all need to redouble our efforts
to fight the irrational with critical thinking, the
paranormal with the real, and pseudoscientific assertions
with scientific evidence. As we enter our third year of
existence, we thank you again for your support and hope that
a good year as you bring skepticism to those matters that
count!

   As a reminder, if you have any further comments or
suggestions, please send them to me at REALL's address
listed elsewhere on this page, or send us e-mail at the
following addresses:

Bob Ladendorf__ [e-mail] (NOTE: 1st 8 are letters)

David Bloomberg_ [e-mail]

   We always like to hear from you!

                    /s/ Bob Ladendorf

                  ==============================

             From the Chairman
            -- David Bloomberg

   Last month, I wrote here requesting a possible homepage
site. Well, I didn't get any responses, but I'm definitely
still looking! Now, I'd like to add a request for the E-Mail
addresses of our members. I'd like to put together a mailing
list so we can send out information via E-Mail when we can.
So, for those of you with addresses, if you'd like to be
included on the list, please let me know either by phone,
letter, or, of course, E-mail to:
[e-mail]

   This month's meeting is going to feature the CSICOP
video, Beyond Belief! We showed this video once before, a
little over a year ago, but I think it's good enough that it
deserves another showing. In addition, we've gotten a number
of new members who regularly attend meetings but who haven't
seen this video yet. Also, this video is not as long as the
videos we've been seeing lately and will allow for
discussion afterwards. For more info on the meeting, see the
enclosed notice.
   I'm not sure what we'll be doing in February yet (if you
want to put your two cents in, we'll discuss it at the
January meeting), but we're planning a special speaker for
the March meeting. There will be more info on this in next
month's newsletter.
   Speaking of next month's newsletter, February is our
second anniversary! So you'll get a special extended
anniversary issue, featuring articles by both regular
authors and at least one new writer. Plus, you'll get the
"REALLity Checklist"_1994 in review. You may notice that we
left "REALLity Check" out of this issue to make room for the
subject and author indices, but that will be back next
month, too.
   As always, if you have any comments, compliments, or
even complaints, we want to hear about them! Happy New Year,
everybody!

   P.S. Books (and Darwin fish) are IN! If you ordered
either, come to the meeting and pick `em up!


                    /s/ David Bloomberg

        ==============================

          A Look into the Sun -- and Other Tabloids
                      by Bob Ladendorf

            Part 3 -- The Lure of Money

   In the first part of this series on tabloids, I pointed
out that not all of the major supermarket tabloids are
alike, that only the Sun and the Weekly World News  (WWN)
[not the National Enquirer, Star or Globe] provide extensive
coverage of supposed paranormal and pseudoscientific
occurrences. In the second part, I demonstrated that the
articles in the Sun and the WWN have weak or vague sources
and the events allegedly occur in obscure, and often
foreign, locations. In Part 3, I examine the tabloids raison
d'etre, as well as briefly reviewing their long history in
American life.
   "Never shoot above the heads of the people" was Frank
Leslie's motto, and to Leslie, the news meant sensation, as
John Tebbel relates in his book, The Media in America..
"With a true instinct for the mass market," Tebbel says, "he
looked for the war in Nicaraqua, the bloody conflict in
Kansas, the sensational New York murder." Frank Leslie's
Illustrated Newspaper was a big hit, which started a spin-
off of a whole series of magazines. "In spite of its name,"
Tebbel comments, "this `newspaper' was actually a weekly
magazine of a kind now plentiful all over the world . . . ."
Frank Leslie started his magazine in . . . 1856.
   Even before that, there was the penny press, and, in
1845, the weekly national Police Gazette, with its
sensational crime articles. There followed the "yellow
journalism" era around the turn of the century, and tabloid
newspaper wars in the 1920s and `30s. In the `20s,
bodybuilder and tabloid publisher Bernarr Macfadden
developed the "composograph," a photograph that was altered
or enhanced.
   Which only goes to show that there really is nothing new
under the sun. Perhaps humankind has always held a
fascination with sex, crime and the supernatural. The
"common folk" of England crowded in to see new Shakespeare
plays, such as Hamlet, which features those three
sensational themes prominently. Now days we have the royal
couple's dalliances, the O.J. Simpson trial, and alien
abductions.
   Sensational stories sold newspapers then, and they sell
them now. According to Time magazine, the ongoing Simpson
story has raised the weekly National Enquirer's circulation
by 500,000 a week, and during the past half year, 21 of the
issues featured Simpson-related stories on its covers.
   As the expression goes, you don't have to be a rocket
scientist to figure out that all this sensationalism feeds a
public's ravenous appetite for gossip and is thus motivated
by money. No matter that the truth may be trampled in the
process. But what about the people behind the sensationalism
of the news_the writers and editors_who take the brunt of
ridicule and criticism from more mainstream journalists? How
do they with the sensationalism and fabricated stories?
There again, money talks.
   "Salaries for established reporters are $75,000 and
more" at the WWN, according to Sue Hubbell writing in the
Smithsonian magazine. "A recent hire, with no tabloid
experience, has started out at $53,000, and editors make
salaries well into the comfortable six figures."
   In contrast, beginning journalists average $20,000 a
year, those with five years' experience average $30,000, and
senior editors at the largest newspapers earn $60,000,
according to the 1994-95 Occupational Outlook Handbook
published by the U.S. Department of Labor.
   "Most of Eddie's [Eddie Clontz, WWN editor] staffers are
alumni of Harvard or Bryn Mawr or other good schools,"
writes Hubbell. "They include a veteran of the New York
Times, a former Capitol Hill reporter . . . , the retired
editor of juvenile nonfiction for J.R. Lippincott." Hubbell
also writes that Clontz once confessed, "We have to pay them
a lot because we are, in effect, asking them to end their
careers . . . . We're the French Foreign Legion of
journalism."
   Another reason that tabloids are decried is because of
their "checkbook journalism." The National Enquirer has an
editorial budget of $16 million , a "good portion" going to
pay for informants, according to Time. For instance, a
female maid to the murdered Nicole Simpson received $18,000
for her version of O.J. and Nicole's turbulent relationship.
Gennifer Flowers received $150,000 from the Star for her
story claiming she had an affair with President  Bill
Clinton. The Chicago Tribune reported in its March 20, 1994,
edition that British tabloids were just as eager to pay for
sex stories, with the News of the World paying a whopping
$262,500 to Bienvenida Sokolow, a defense minister's wife
who allegedly had an affair with a chief of the British
defense staff who was also married.
   Although only about 20 percent of respondents to a Roper
Poll in 1984 said that supermarket tabloids were "accurate,"
establishment press journalists have little room to smile,
as Hubbell points out in the Smithsonian article, for a
"comparable Roper Poll conducted the same year about the
credibility of the media in general found that 24 percent of
the respondents trusted newspapers and only 7 percent of
them trusted magazines."
   Although that poll would seem in one way to indicate a
skeptical attitude among respondents, the results may be
skewed by the respondents' possible guilt about admitting
belief in the tabloids. As other, more recent surveys show,
Americans have much higher percentages of belief in the
supernatural than about the accuracy of tabloids. Perhaps
what is needed is a new survey of nationwide tabloid
readership as well as in-depth individual studies to
determine any correlation between belief systems and tabloid
articles.
   If the paranormal and pseudoscientific articles in the
Sun and WWN and the gossip stories in the others have any
long lasting effects on American minds, perhaps it is in the
area of reinforcing myths. That connection is aptly pointed
out by S. Elizabeth Bird, a University of Minnesota cultural
anthropologist, in her book, For Enquiring Minds. Hubbell
writes in the Smithsonian that:

   She [Bird] studied tabloids as folklore and notes
   their preoccupation with eternal themes: the hero
   who didn't die (Elvis, JFK and Jimmy Hoffa are our
   current favorites); children raised by animals
   (remember Romulus and Remus?); ghosts (haunted
   toasters are big right now); monsters (Bigfoot has
   replaced dragons); flying saucers (the psychologist
   Carl Jung once traced back though medieval
   paintings the image of round, healing objects
   coming from the skies in times of social
   disruption); fairy stories about princes and
   princesses (today's definition of royalty has been
   expanded to include Oprah Winfrey and Elizabeth
   Taylor).

   The supermarket tabloids may be ridiculed and
castigated, but they are read. One of them, the National
Enquirer, has been acknowledged as being "accurate" in some
of its Simpson stories by none other than the New York
Times, causing a firestorm of controversy.
   However, in the pursuit of truth, a darker exposure of
the tabloid news producers and its readers can be aptly
summarized in H.L. Mencken's wry statement, "No one in the
world, as far as I know_and I have researched for records
for years, and employed agents to help me_has ever lost
money by underestimating the intelligence of the great
masses of the plain people."

        ==============================

    Supermarket Tabloids: The Persistence of (Alleged) Vision
                      by Bob Ladendorf

   There is no current known scientific evidence to support
the claims that horoscopes are valid. There also is very
little evidence, if any, for being able to predict
particular events in the future, as well as pronouncing
one's lucky numbers.
   Not surprisingly, all three of these claims are often
featured in the supermarket tabloids. A glance at year-end
issues last year (late December to early January 1994)
shows that the Weekly World News (WWN) features 1994
predictions, a horoscope and lucky numbers; the Globe has
Mystic Meg's 1994 predictions, horoscope and lucky numbers;
the Star displays Jeanne Dixon's personal horoscope and
another horoscope; and the Sun glows with psychic
predictions and lucky numbers.

                         PREDICTIONS

   While unable to check every year-end prediction (and I
welcome evidence to the contrary), I found that WWN's 1994
predictions and the Globe's Mystic Meg's 1994 predictions
did not foresee the biggest celebrity news story of
1994_O.J. Simpson's arrest and trial for the murders of
Nicole Simpson and Ronald Goldman!
   Other predictions made by WWN's Emil Lebec that did not
come true include Monaco's declaring of war on the U.S.,
Saddam Hussein's seeking of political asylum in the U.S.,
the ousting of Castro from Cuba, and Yeltsin admitting
himself into the Betty Ford Clinic! WWN's "Hollywood
psychic" Bill Blake also missed with predictions, including
a producer's pitch to feature Jeffrey Dahmer in a half-hour
cooking show called The Ghoulish Gourmet and Madonna
marrying Boy George! Funny that he did not foresee Dahmer
being killed in prison in 1994.

                         HOROSCOPES

   Horoscopes are known for their vague language.
Consequently, with millions of people in existence, a
horoscope prediction is bound to be true for someone at some
time. Marilyn Wellman, "astrologer to the rich and famous,"
in the WWN, Jan. 4-11, 1994, tells me (Aquarius) to "Soak
yourself in love in 1994" and "Take time to play!" Are those
predictions, or merely advice? Mystic Meg in the Globe, Dec.
28, 1993, tells me that "As the love planet starts a three-
week stay in the psychic sectior of your chart, your love
moves are amazing." Well, Mystic Meg, I am married, so tell
me something I don't know!
   Meanwhile, Laurie Bradie in the Star's horoscope, Dec.
28, 1993, must have had more than 250 million Americans
smiling on Jan. 2, 1994, with these forecasts. Aries: "The
frustrations of 1st are nicely closed up on 2nd." (my
emphasis) Taurus: ". . . love life gets off to roaring start
on 2nd." Gemini: ". . . you settle a family or real estate
matter on 2nd." Cancer: "Good news and an educational
opportunity surface on 2nd." Leo: ". . . a lucky financial
trend gets underway on 2nd." Virgo: "Past kindnesses pay off
on 2nd." Libra: "You discover extra funds on 2nd." Scorpio:
"You capitalize on a social situation on 2nd." Sagittarius:
"You're in the limelight on 2nd and success is yours during
the New Year." Capricorn: "Business contacts and ventures
pay off on 2nd." Aquarius: "Financial rewards finally come
through on 2nd, thanks to partners, starting 1994 off with a
real bang." Pisces: "You and mate get exhilarating news on
2nd and look forward to a very prosperous New Year."
   Now, if you believe all these forecasts and predictions,
I've got this swamp land in Florida that I'd like sell . . . .

        ==============================

               Letter to REALL

Dear David,

   As you may know by now the Rocky Mountain Skeptics have
been featured in many publications, including the enclosed
Time article, for leading the charge in exposing
"Therapeutic Touch" (TT). What began as our local effort to
expose TT in Colorado institutions for the antiscience that
it is, soon took on an international life of its own.
   We would like to engage your organization in
contributing to the worthwhile effort of exposing what
amounts to an institutionalized declaration of war against
science. If you think this is an exaggeration read what
Patricia Moccia, Chief Executive Officer of National League
for Nursing (the major accrediting agency for nursing
schools) wrote in Time in response to the enclosed original
article:
   "The National League for Nursing, mentioned in your
story, remains committed to supporting those who explore
alternatives to the traditional approaches of Western
medicine, which, for all its science, continues to make
profits by assaulting the mind, body and spirit of patients.
There is indeed more in the struggles around teaching
Therapeutic Touch to nurses than meets the eye....It's the
fear of losing control on the part of those who have
personal and professional investments in health care's
status quo."
   What we propose is that your organization survey
hospitals and nursing schools to determine the extent TT has
been institutionalized. If you think you can help with this
please contact me as we are already working with skeptics in
England, Australia and Canada.
   Also, could you please announce to your members the
formation of a new group that we hope can eventually become
independent and dedicated to dealing with nursing issues.
The group is Nurses for Rational Therapies. At this time
their address is the same as ours [Box 7277, Boulder, CO
80306]. We hope to find nursing professionals who can become
national leaders promoting sanity in this important area.

Best wishes,

Béla Scheiber, President
Rocky Mountain Skeptics

   [If any REALL members are interested in participating in
such a study, please let us know by contacting David
Bloomberg. He will be responding to this letter to let the
Rocky Mountain Skeptics know that we are interested.]

        ==============================

    The REALL News -- 1993-94 Subject and Author Indexes

                        SUBJECT INDEX

48 Hours -- "R.C." 2:5.
60 Minutes -- "R.C." 2:5.
AARP Bulletin -- "R.C." 1:4.
Abduction -- "R.C." 2:6; "Probe D'roid" 2:6.
Alchemy -- "R.C." 1:5, 2:1.
Alexander, Greta -- "R.C." 2:10, 11.
Alien Abductions -- "Pencil-Neck Aliens" 1:1; "R.C." 1:4, 5,
   2:1,  5,  6;  "The Alien 'Booger' Menace"  1:6;  "No-Back
   Back  Page"  1:6;  "The  Omega  Projection"  1:9;  "Alien
   Suckers"  2:2; "Spawn of Inseminoid" 2:5; "Probe  D'roid"
   2:6; "The Eyes That Spoke" 2:7.
Alternative Medicine -- "R.C." 1:1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8,  10,  11,
   2:1,  3,  4,  5, 7, 11; "A Challenge to Federal  &  State
   Agencies"  2:8; "Alternative Medicine: Entertainment  vs.
   News at NBC" 2:8, "The New Fall Season" 2:10.
   Acupuncture -- "R.C." 2:7.
   Ayurvedic -- "R.C." 2:3.
   For   animals  --  "R.C."  2:1;  "Alternative   Medicine:
   Entertainment vs. News at NBC" 2:8.
   Homeopathy  --  "R.C."  1:1; "A Challenge  to  Federal  &
   State     Agencies"    2:8;    "Alternative     Medicine:
   Entertainment vs. News at NBC" 2:8.
   Office of -- "R.C." 2:11.
   Naprapathy -- "R.C." 1:2.
   Vitamins -- "R.C." 1:6, 2:5, 2:10.
Ancient  Secrets of the Bible, Part II -- "Logic  Abuse  and
   CBS"  1:5;   "Incredible Mysteries of Sun Pictures"  1:8;
   "REALLity Checklist -- 1993 in Review" 2:2.
Andrus, Walt -- "R.C." 2:5.
Arnold, Roseanne -- "R.C." 2:5.
Astrology -- "R.C." 1:5.
Ball Lightning -- "R.C." 1:6.
Balsiger,  David  -- "Incredible Mysteries of Sun  Pictures"
   1:8;  "Farrell  Till's Letter to CBS"  1:8;  "Noah's  Ark
   Hoax Update" 2:1.
Barber, Paul -- "Vampires -- Myth and Reality" 1:5.
Bernardin, Cardinal Joseph -- "R.C." 1:11, 2:2, 3.
Blackmore, Susan -- "Who is Susan Blackmore?" 1:9; "A Matter
   of Life and Near-Death" 2:6.
Boston Globe -- "R.C." 2:5.
Bovine Growth Hormone (BGH) or Bovine Somatotropin (BST)  --
   "R.C." 2:9.
Boylan, Richard -- "R.C." 2:11.
Braun, Dr. Bennett -- "R.C." 2:12.
CBS  --  "R.C."  1:2,  6, 2:5; "Logic Abuse  and  CBS"  1:5;
   "Incredible  Mysteries  of Sun  Pictures"  1:8;  "Farrell
   Till's Letter to CBS" 1:8, "Noah's Ark Hoax Update"  2:1;
   "REALLity Checklist -- 1993 in Review" 2:2.
Chicago Sun-Times -- "R.C." 2:7.
Chicago Tribune -- "R.C." 1:1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 11, 2:1, 2, 3, 4,
   5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12.
Clinton, President Bill -- "R.C." 2:2.
Cold  Fusion  --  "A Challenge to Federal & State  Agencies"
   2:8.
Computer   bulletin  board  service  (BBS)  --   "Electronic
   Skepticism" 1:10.
Conspiracies  -- "Saucers for Sale: An Evening  with  a  UFO
   Cheerleader" 1:3; "The Biggest UFO Conspiracy" 2:9.
The Courage to Heal -- "Child Abuse or Science Abuse?" 2:1.
Creationism (Creation/Evolution) -- "But the Bad News Is..."
   1:1;  "The Misconceptions of Evolution" 1:3; "R.C."  1:4,
   7,  8,  11; "Conversation with a Creationist" 1:5; "Logic
   Abuse   and  CBS"  1:5;  "Incredible  Mysteries  of   Sun
   Pictures"  1:8;  "REALL  at the  ISTA  Convention"  1:10;
   "Pseudo-Science  Terminology"  1:11;  "Noah's  Ark   Hoax
   Update"  2:1; "On the Till-Hovind Debate" 2:3,  "The  New
   Fall Season" 2:10.
Crop circles -- "R.C." 1:1.
Crosses, bleeding (see also: Icons, crying) -- "R.C." 1:4.
Cryptozoology -- Letter to the Editor, 2:5
Cults -- "R.C." 1:11.
Curran, Rep. Michael -- "R.C." 2:2, 9.
Dark Suckers -- "The Theory of Dark Suckers" 1:6.
Dateline NBC -- "R.C." 1:1, 11, 2:6, 12; "REALLity Checklist
   --   1993   in   Review"   2:2;  "Alternative   Medicine:
   Entertainment vs. News at NBC" 2:8.
Discover magazine -- "R.C." 1:6.
Dying  to Live: Near-Death Experiences -- "A Matter of  Life
   and Near-Death" 2:6.
E-rays  (Erdestrahlen  rays) -- "A Challenge  to  Federal  &
   State Agencies" 2:8.
Encounters  -- "Close Encounters of the FOX Kind" 2:3;  "The
   New Fall Season" 2:10; "R.C." 2:11.
End of the world -- "The Omega Projection" 1:9.
Evolution -- See Creationism (Creation/Evolution)
Exorcism -- "R.C." 1:11, 2:9, 2:10.
Extrasensory  Perception (ESP) -- "Myths  and  Reality:  The
   Science Gap" 1:1.
Eye to Eye with Connie Chung -- "R.C." 2:5.
Facilitated communication -- "R.C." 1:10.
The  Faith  Healers  -- "Book Capsule -- The Faith  Healers"
   1:4.
Faith  Healing  -- "Book Capsule -- The Faith Healers"  1:4;
   "R.C." 2:2, 12.
False  Memory Syndrome (FMS) -- "R.C." 1:7, 8, 10, 11,  2:2,
   3,  4,  5,  6, 7, 9, 12; "Child Abuse or Science  Abuse?"
   2:1;  "REALLity Checklist -- 1993 in Review" 2:2;  Letter
   to the Editor, 2:9.
   FMS  Foundation -- "R.C." 1:7, 8; Letter to  the  Editor,
   2:9.
   FMS-related lawsuit -- "R.C." 2:6.
Fire in the Sky -- See Walton, Travis.
Flim-Flam -- "Book Capsules -- Flim-Flam" 2:4.
Frontline -- "R.C." 1:7,10.
Ghosts -- "Paranormal Fraud Exposed" 1:1.
Greer, Dr. Steven -- "R.C." 2:5.
Gypsy  Fortune Tellers -- "Lights, Camera, Action -- A  Tale
   of Two TV Shows" 1:4; "R.C." 1:8, 2:12.
Handwriting, analysis of -- "R.C." 2:2, 7.
Harkin, Senator Tom -- "R.C." 2:11
Hovind, Kent -- "R.C." 1:7; "On the Till-Hovind Debate" 2:3.
The Hundredth Monkey and Other Paradigms of the Paranormal -
   -  "Book  Capsules  --  The Hundredth  Monkey  and  Other
   Paradigms of the Paranormal" 2:4.
Hyman,  Ray  --  "Ray Hyman: 'The Very Model of  the  Modern
   Major Skeptic'" 2:2.
Icons, crying (see also: crosses, bleeding) -- "R.C." 2:6.
Illinois  Science Teachers Association (ISTA) --  "REALL  at
   the ISTA Convention" 1:10.
Illinois   Times  --  "R.C."  1:11,  2:6,  7,  9;  "REALLity
   Checklist -- 1993 in Review" 2:2.
Institute  for Creation Research (ICR) -- "But the Bad  News
   Is..." 1:1, "Noah's Ark Hoax Update" 2:1.
International  Society of Cryptozoology  --  Letter  to  the
   Editor, 2:5.
Island Skywatch -- See Knell, Bill.
Jackson, La Toya -- "R.C." 2:5.
Jacobs, David -- "Spawn of Inseminoid" 2:5.
Jammal,  George -- "R.C." 1:6; "Incredible Mysteries of  Sun
   Pictures"  1:8,  "Noah's Ark Hoax Update" 2:1;  "REALLity
   Checklist -- 1993 in Review" 2:2.
Knell,  Bill  -- "Saucers for Sale:  An Evening with  a  UFO
   Cheerleader" 1:3.
Kroth, Jerry -- "The Panicky Guy" 2:9.
Landers, Ann -- "R.C." 1:6, 2:2; "REALLity Checklist -- 1993
   in Review" 2:2.
Larue,  Gerald -- "R.C." 1:6; "Incredible Mysteries  of  Sun
   Pictures" 1:8, "Noah's Ark Hoax Update" 2:1;
Loch Ness Monster -- "R.C." 2:2, 4.
Mack, John -- "R.C." 2:5, 6; "Probe D'roid" 2:6.
Mars, "face" on -- "R.C." 1:10.
Member Survey -- 1:10; "REALL Survey Results" 2:2.
Mesmerism -- "A Challenge to Federal & State Agencies" 2:8.
N-rays -- "A Challenge to Federal & State Agencies" 2:8.
Near-Death Experiences (NDE) -- "A Matter of Life and  Near-
   Death" 2:6.
New York Times -- "R.C." 2:5.
Newsweek -- "R.C." 1:6, 2:1, 3.
Nickell, Joe -- "R.C. 2:11.
Noah's  Ark -- "R.C." 1:2, 6; "Incredible Mysteries  of  Sun
   Pictures"  1:8;  "Farrell  Till's  Letter  to  CBS"  1:8,
   "Noah's   Ark  Hoax  Update"  2:1;  "On  the  Till-Hovind
   Debate" 2:3.
Nova -- "R.C." 1:10.
The  Omega Project:  Near-Death Experiences, UFO Encounters,
   and Mind at Large -- "The Omega Projection" 1:9.
Omens  and Oracles: Collective Psychology in the Nuclear Age
   -- "The Panicky Guy" 2:9.
Out  of  Body Experiences (OBE) -- "Who is Susan Blackmore?"
   1:9; "A Matter of Life and Near-Death" 2:6.
Parade -- "R.C." 1:4, 2:2, 2:12.
PBS -- "R.C." 1:10.
Peoria Journal Star -- "R.C." 1:7.
Perpetual  motion  --  "A  Challenge  to  Federal  &   State
   Agencies" 2:8.
Presley, Elvis -- "R.C." 1:7.
Primetime Live -- "R.C." 1:4.
Psychics  -- "R.C." 1:1, 2, 2:3, 2:10; "The Frustrations  of
   Skepticism"  1:3; "Lights, Camera, Action --  A  Tale  of
   Two   TV  Shows"  1:4;  "Predicting  the  Lottery"   1:8;
   "Another Psychic Encounter" 2:3.
   Psychic  Detectives -- "R.C." 1:1; "A Brief Meeting  with
   Jackie   Mari,   Psychic"   1:4;   "Psychics   and    Law
   Enforcement" 1:7; "Police Use of Psychics, Results  of  a
   1993 Questionnaire" 2:4.
   Psychic Hotlines -- "R.C." 1:4.
   Russian Psychics -- "R.C." 1:10.
Psychology Today -- "R.C." 2:5.
Randi,  James  "The Amazing" -- "Book Capsule --  The  Faith
   Healers"  1:4; "R.C." 1:10; "Book Capsules --  Flim-Flam"
   2:4; "A Night of Magic and Skepticism with Randi" 2:5.
Remembering  Satan:  A  Case  of Recovered  Memory  and  the
   Shattering of an American Family -- "R.C." 2:5.
Ring, Kenneth -- "The Omega Projection" 1:9.
Roswell, N.M. -- "The Biggest UFO Conspiracy" 2:9.
Rothman, Milton A. -- "Myths and Reality:  The Science  Gap"
   1:1.
Sagan, Carl -- "R.C." 1:4, 2:5, 2:12.
Satanic Ritual Abuse -- "R.C." 2:9.
Schanzle-Haskins, Ellen -- "R.C." 2:10, 11.
Science journal -- "R.C." 1:10, 2:1.
The Science Gap:  Dispelling the Myths and Understanding the
   Reality  of  Science -- "Myths and Reality:  The  Science
   Gap" 1:1.
Science News -- "R.C." 1:10.
Scooby Doo -- "Scooby Doo, Where Are You?" 2:8.
Secret Life -- "Spawn of Inseminoid" 2:5.
Sightings -- "R.C." 1:5, 2:11; "The New Fall Season" 2:10.
Skepticism,  general: "Myths and Reality:  The Science  Gap"
   1:1;  "So  Now You're a Skeptic" 1:1; "Proper  Criticism"
   1:2;  "The Frustrations of Skepticism" 1:3; "10 Tips  for
   Successful  Letter  Writing" 1:7;  "The  Five  'Laws'  of
   Quack  Science" 1:11; "Pseudo-Science Terminology"  1:11;
   "Scooby Doo, Where Are You?" 2:8, "What It Means to be  a
   Rational Skeptic" 2:10.
State Journal-Register -- "R.C." 1:1, 4, 7, 8, 2:4, 5, 6, 7,
   9, 11; "Child Abuse or Science Abuse?" 2:1.
Sun  International  Pictures, Inc. -- "R.C."  1:2,  6,  2:5;
   "Logic  Abuse and CBS" 1:5; "Incredible Mysteries of  Sun
   Pictures"  1:8;  "Farrell  Till's  Letter  to  CBS"  1:8,
   "Noah's  Ark  Hoax  Update" 2:1; "REALLity  Checklist  --
   1993 in Review" 2:2.
Tabloids -- "A Look into the Sun -- and Other Tabloids" Part
   1, 2:11, Part 2, 2:12.
Talk shows -- "R.C." 2:7, 11, "The New Fall Season" 2:10.
Taos hum -- "R.C." 2:1.
Till,  Farrell -- "Logic Abuse and CBS" 1:5; "Farrell Till's
   Letter   to  CBS"  1:8;  "Incredible  Mysteries  of   Sun
   Pictures" 1:8; "On the Till-Hovind Debate" 2:3.
Time  Magazine -- "R.C." 1:6, 2:5; "Incredible Mysteries  of
   Sun Pictures" 1:8.
Today show -- "R.C." 2:5.
Total Recall -- "Probe D'roid" 2:6.
Traxler,   Ranse   --   "But  the  Bad  News   Is..."   1:1;
   "Conversation  with  a Creationist" 1:5;  "REALL  at  the
   ISTA Convention" 1:10.
US News & World Report -- "R.C." 1:4.
UFOs  -- "Pencil-Neck Aliens" 1:1; "Myths and Reality:   The
   Science Gap" 1:1; "Saucers for Sale:  An Evening  with  a
   UFO  Cheerleader"  1:3; "The Saucer  Error"  1:4;  "R.C."
   1:4,  6,  2:1, 5; "The Alien 'Booger' Menace"  1:6;  "The
   Omega   Projection"  1:9;  "Alien  Suckers"  2:2;  "Close
   Encounters  of  the FOX Kind" 2:3; "Spawn of  Inseminoid"
   2:5,  "The  Eyes that Spoke" 2:7; "The Panicky Guy"  2:9;
   "The Biggest UFO Conspiracy" 2:9.
USA Today -- "R.C." 2:1.
Vampires -- "Vampires -- Myth and Reality" 1:5.
Vampires Burial and Death: Folklore and Reality -- "Vampires
   -- Myth and Reality" 1:5.
Virgin Mary -- "R.C." 2:2, 11.
Vista, CA -- "R.C." 1:8.
Walstad, Bruce -- "R.C." 1:2, 8.
Walton, Travis -- "R.C." 1:4.
War of the Worlds -- "The Panicky Guy" 2:9.
Witches -- "R.C." 1:8, 2:9.
Wright, Lawrence -- "R.C." 2:5.
The X-Files -- "R.C." 1:8.
Yogi, Maharishi Mahesh -- "R.C." 1:1, 2:3.

NOTE:  R.C. = REALLity Check

                        AUTHOR INDEX

Auerbach, Roy -- "The Five 'Laws' of Quack Science" 1:11.
Bartelt, Professor Karen -- "On the Till-Hovind Debate" 2:3.
Bloomberg, David -- "REALLity Check" 1:1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7,  8,
   10,  11, 2:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12; "Myths and
   Reality:   The Science Gap" 1:1; "Origins of REALL"  1:1;
   "The  Frustrations of Skepticism" 1:3; "Saucers for Sale:
   An  Evening with a UFO Cheerleader" 1:3; "Logic Abuse and
   CBS"  1:5;  "Incredible Mysteries of Sun  Pictures"  1:8;
   "Predicting  the  Lottery"  1:8;  "REALL  at   the   ISTA
   Convention" 1:10; "Electronic Skepticism" 1:10,  "Pseudo-
   Science Terminology" 1:11; "Noah's Ark Hoax Update"  2:1;
   "Child  Abuse or Science Abuse?" 2:1; "REALLity Checklist
   --  1993  in  Review" 2:2; "Close Encounters of  the  FOX
   Kind"  2:3;  "Book Capsules -- Flim Flam,  The  Hundredth
   Monkey  and  Other  Paradigms  of  the  Paranormal"  2:4;
   "Alternative  Medicine: Entertainment vs.  News  at  NBC"
   2:8;  "The  Biggest UFO Conspiracy" 2:9;  "The  New  Fall
   Season" 2:10.
Egger,  Professor  Steve -- "Psychics and  Law  Enforcement"
   1:7.
Hartshorn, Wally -- "So Now You're a Skeptic" 1:1.
Hyman, Professor Ray -- "Proper Criticism" 1:2.
Kottmeyer,  Martin -- "Pencil-Neck Aliens" 1:1; "The  Saucer
   Error"  1:4;  "The Alien 'Booger' Menace"  1:6;  "No-Back
   Back  Page"  1:6;  "The  Omega  Projection"  1:9;  "Alien
   Suckers"  2:2; "Spawn of Inseminoid" 2:5; "Probe  D'roid"
   2:6; "The Eyes that Spoke" 2:7; "The Panicky Guy" 2:9.
Ladendorf, Bob -- "Saucers for Sale:  An Evening with a  UFO
   Cheerleader"  1:3;  "Book Capsule -- The  Faith  Healers"
   1:4;  "A  Night of Magic and Skepticism with Randi"  2:5;
   "A  Look  into  the  Sun -- and Other Tabloids"  Part  1,
   2:11, Part 2, 2:12.
McGrath,  Robert  E. -- "Vampires -- Myth and Reality"  1:5;
   "Who  is  Susan Blackmore?" 1:9; "Ray Hyman -- 'The  Very
   Model  of  the Modern Major Skeptic'" 2:2; "A  Matter  of
   Life and Near-Death" 2:6.
Madigan, Tim -- "Scooby Doo, Where Are You?" 2:8.
Mendum,  Mary Lou -- "10 Tips for Successful Letter Writing"
   1:7.
Randi,  James  -- "A Challenge to Federal & State  Agencies"
   2:8.
Scott, Dr. Eugenie -- "But the Bad News Is..." 1:1.
Till, Farrell -- "Farrell Till's Letter to CBS" 1:8.
Traxler,  Ranse  --  "The Misconceptions of Evolution"  1:3;
   "Conversation with a Creationist" 1:5.
Voelkering,  Joe -- "What It Means to be a Rational Skeptic"
   2:10.
Walstad, Detective Bruce -- "Paranormal Fraud Exposed"  1:1;
   "A   Brief  Meeting  with  Jackie  Mari,  Psychic"   1:4;
   "Lights,  Camera, Action -- A Tale of Two TV Shows"  1:4;
   "Another   Psychic  Encounter"  2:3;   "Police   Use   of
   Psychics, Results of a 1993 Questionnaire" 2:4.

        ==============================

              A Nod to Our Patrons

REALL would like to thank our patron members.  Through their extra
generosity, REALL is able to continue to grow as a force for critical
thinking in Central Illinois.  Patron members are those giving $50
or more.  To become a patron of REALL, please see the membership
form below.  Patron members are:

David Bloomberg, Springfield    John Lockard, Jr., Urbana
David Brown, Danville           Robert Smet, Ph.D., Springfield
Alan Burge, D.D.S., Morton      Edward Staehlin, Park Forest
Wally Hartshorn, Springfield    Ranse Traxler, O'Fallon
Bob Ladendorf, Springfield

           ==============================

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