Hypnotic tapes claims were inflated
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Paul McKenna, the television hypnotist, put his name to exaggerated claims about "powerful hypnotic tapes" his company was selling, the Advertising Standards Authority said yesterday. It was upholding a complaint challenging claims made for the audio tapes in a national newspaper advertisement.
The advertisement was headed "I will give you the power to succeed" and included the headlines "Immediate improvement" and "Lasting benefits".
It claimed: "I have helped thousands of people, from leading business people to sports champions, to maximise their performance. Now the same is available to you on the most powerful and effective hypnotic tapes I have ever made.
"As you will discover, hypnosis really works. It's powerful and it's safe ... improvement starts right away and generally takes a few weeks to complete."
The message in the advertisement was signed by McKenna, whose television show The Hypnotic World of Paul McKenna turned him into a household name. The ASA adjudication noted advertisers' point that the tapes were not always successful, but said it considered "that several of the claims exaggerated the benefits of hypnosis".
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments