James van Praagh: The First Major TV Psychic

James van Praagh was the first person on American TV to perform readings live and on-air. 

He had started out a slowly gaining a reputation as a medium and psychic, giving private readings. He released audio tapes and books and his circle grew until the 1997 show, The Other Side. 

There, he made a great impression and his fame was secured.

What does he do?

Like John Edward, he acts as a medium between the living and the dead, passing on messages from the other side.

Unlike John Edward, however, he has tended to move away from the spotlight and, instead, concentrate on authorship and on producing and being associated with TV shows which have a spiritual element. 

For example, the popular show The Ghost Whisperer is produced by him. His life and experiences were also turned into TV shows and mini-series and he had a syndicated day-time talk show called Beyond with James van Praagh. 

In other words, he has moved back a little from the limelight and used his influence to make psychic powers more popular through the media.

Is he a genuine psychic?

If someone has come up 'through the ranks' as it were by doing private readings, then it seems very likely that they have accessed their psychic powers well. 

After all, if he was no good, his circle of influence would not have widened and he wouldn't have come to anyone's attention at all.

Anyone can claim to receive messages from 'the other side', It is what the recipients of the messages feel about it that is important.

I've never had a reading from him so I can't say. But what I can say is that he has paved the way for a greater acceptance of the psychic and unseen aspects of this world. That is  not only because of his readings and his subsequent popularity, but also because of his involvement in the promotion of popular series which talk about such matters, making them familiar and accessible to the public.

For that alone, I'd say James van Praagh is a famous psychic.

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