Skeptical Inquirer

Short description: Bimonthly magazine published by CSI

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Not to be confused with Skeptic (American magazine).

Skeptical Inquirer

Editor-in-chief| Stephen Hupp
Frequency| Bimonthly
Publisher|

* Center for Inquiry
* Committee for Skeptical Inquiry

Year founded| 1976; 50 years ago (1976)
Country| United States
Based in| Amherst, New York
Language| English
Website| skepticalinquirer.org
ISSN| 0194-6730

Skeptical Inquirer (S.I.) is a bimonthly American general-audience magazine published by the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI) with the subtitle "The Magazine for Science and Reason". The magazine initially focused on investigating claims of the paranormal[1], but evolved and expanded to address other pseudoscientific topics that are antithetical to critical thinking and science. The magazine "sets out to debunk all manner of claims relating to paranormal activity and pseudoscience" [2]. Notable skeptics have credited the magazine in influencing their development of scientific skepticism. In the "Letters to the Editor", the most frequent letters of appreciation come from educators.

## Contents

* 1 History
* 2 Focus
* 3 Reception and influence
* 3.1 Levy and Olynyk art project
* 4 See also
* 5 References
* 6 External links

## History

The magazine was originally titled The Zetetic (from the Greek meaning "skeptical seeker" or "inquiring skeptic"), and was originally edited by Marcello Truzzi.[3] About a year after its inception a schism developed between the editor Truzzi and the rest of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP). CSICOP was more "firmly opposed to nonsense, more willing to go on the offensive and to attack supernatural claims" while Truzzi wanted science and pseudoscience to exist "happily together".[4] Founder Paul Kurtz strongly believed "it's important that, when claims of the paranormal get wide public attention and belief, the skeptical position also get media attention".[5] Truzzi resigned to start The Zetetic Scholar and CSICOP changed the magazine's name to Skeptical Inquirer and hired Kendrick Frazier as the new editor.[6][5]

The first issue of S.I. was Fall/Winter 1976.[7] In 1995, S.I. changed format from digest size to a standard magazine size, increased the publication frequency from quarterly to bimonthly, and added newsstand circulation in addition to subscription.[8]: 176

In 2013, writer and skeptic Daniel Loxton posited that if Skeptical Inquirer was not the first skeptical publication, it is yet considered the "'birth of modern skepticism' (at least for the English-speaking world)" because CSICOP organized "this scholarship collectively [and] comprised a distinct field of study", and was the first to establish "best practices... specialist experts... buildings... periodicals and professional writers and researchers".[9]

Barry Karr is the executive director of CSI and Skeptical Inquirer. In June 2023, Stephen Hupp, a professor in the Department of Psychology at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, was named as the magazine's editor.[10] Hupp replaced Stuart Vyse, who was the interim editor in November 2022 following the passing of Kendrick Frazier.[11]

* Barry Karr, Executive Director

* Stephen Hupp, Editor

* Kendrick Frazier, Editor 1977–2022

In 2025, as a way to be more inclusive, Skeptical Inquirer launched an audio version of the magazine, available on several podcast sites.[12]

## Focus

The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry functions as a scientific society and, upon editorial acceptance, publishes articles from independent scientists and investigators in the Skeptical Inquirer.[8]: 170 Published topics have included fringe science, pseudoscience, paranormalism, psychic phenomena, astrology, ufology, homeopathy, and New Age, as well as articles on politics, general science, cyberterrorism, and others.[8][13] Writing for Scientific American in 1982, cognitive scientist Douglas Hofstadter said that the purpose of Skeptical Inquirer was to "combat nonsense" with articles in English that require no special knowledge or expertise, only "curiosity about truth".[6][14]

Loxton, writing in 2013 about the mission and goals of the skeptical movement, countered the idea that people no longer wanted to read about the paranormal, and recommended getting back to S.I.'s basics. Paul Kurtz in 2009 seemed to share this sentiment and stated that the organization would still research some paranormal subjects as they have expertise in this area, but they would begin to investigate other areas. "CSICOP has reached an historic juncture: the recognition that there is a critical need to change our direction", Kurtz wrote. While editor Kendrick Frazier did expand the scope of the magazine to include more topics on subjects that attacked science or critical thinking—such as climate change denialism, conspiracy theories and the influence of the alternative medicine movement—Frazier also noted that "paranormal beliefs are still widespread", and quoted surveys that state that the public, given a list of ten general paranormal topics, will select four as topics they believe in. While the general skeptic community believes that we should not waste more time debunking the paranormal, topics long ago discredited, Frazier says "millions of Americans accept them today".[13] Even with such long odds against "an organized paranormal lobby, a magical marketing machine", Loxton implores skeptics to continue researching, writing and publishing: "We can't win any ultimate victory over superstition or ignorance, but we can do a lot of good if we fight hard enough."[13]

The January/February 2023 issue featured an article by Craig Foster that examined Skeptical Inquirer Vol. 1, no. 1 comparing it to the current publication, and found that "1976 principles of skepticism" still resonate forty-six years later "The Truzzi and Kurtz editorials are so consistent with contemporary skepticism, I think Skeptical Inquirer could reprint them today, without dates, and readers wouldn't find them peculiar." Furthermore "The only out-of-place sentiment seems to be imagining the journal as an exchange between skeptics and paranormal promotors".[7]

## Reception and influence

Science communicator Neil deGrasse Tyson said Skeptical Inquirer is his favorite magazine and it tells him what people are currently "misthinking" about.[15] In his 2017 book, Bill Nye recommended S.I. to his readers as a magazine that "promote[s] the aggressive form of critical thinking needed to immunize us to fakery".[16] Eric Zorn wrote that S.I. "remains a favorite of those of us who can, in fact, handle the truth".[17]

Several notable skeptics have described the magazine as influential to the early stages of their development as scientific skeptics. In 1996, Perry DeAngelis and Steven Novella, observing that the magazine had no listing for a Connecticut skeptic group, founded the New England Skeptical Society and eventually the Skeptic's Guide to the Universe (SGU) podcast.[18]

Writing for Scientific American, Douglas Hofstadter asked the question, why would Skeptical Inquirer succeed when the only people who read it are people who do not believe in the paranormal? The answer, he says, lies in the back of the magazine in the "Letters to the Editor" section. "Many people write in to say how vital the magazine has been to them, their friends and their students. High school teachers are among the most frequent writers of thank-you notes to the magazine's editors, but I have also seen enthusiastic letters from members of the clergy, radio talk-show hosts and people in many other professions."[6]

Daniel Loxton, in his essay "Ode to Joy" about discovering Skeptical Inquirer magazine as a freshman at his University writes...

> But the true treasure, the lamp at the end of the cave, the thing that helped set the course of my life, was hidden away in the periodical collection: a complete set of the Skeptical Inquirer, going back to its launch in 1976. I couldn't believe such a wealth of skeptical research existed! I worked my way through the stack systematically, hungrily....[19]

The magazine has been criticized for not sufficiently debunking racist pseudoscience, after publishing a special issue "A Skeptic's Guide to Racism", author Kavin Senapathy noted the entire issue was authored by white men demonstrating a "woefully shallow grasp of how racism works". [20]

### Levy and Olynyk art project

Inspired by the four decades of Skeptical Inquirer magazine, an exhibition titled Some Provocations from Skeptical Inquirers by artists Ellen Levy and Patricia Olynyk, was held at the Baruch College Mishkin Gallery in February 2016. Reviewer Eileen G'Sell wrote that the artists "plumb the depths of the murky ontological sea that is empirical belief."[21] Writing for The Brooklyn Rail, reviewer William Corwin stated that the artwork represented "this built-in confrontation between fact and fiction (which) was the basis of the Skeptical Inquirer itself and its playful willingness to consider the most unlikely phenomena."[22]

## See also

* CSICon
* Skeptic (U.S. magazine)
* The Skeptic (UK magazine)
* The Skeptic's Dictionary
* Skeptical movement
* Snopes.com

## References

1. ↑ Rosenwald, Michael (April 18, 2025). ""Joe Nickell, Paranormal Investigator and ‘Real-Life Scully,’ Dies at 80"". https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/18/science/joe-nickell-dead.html.
2. ↑ Abramovitch, Seth (June 24, 2019). ""Inside HowdyCon, a Gathering of Anti-Scientologists"". https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/inside-howdycon-a-gathering-anti-scientologists-1220703/.
3. ↑ Paul Kurtz (2010). Exuberant Skepticism. Prometheus Books. p. 218. ISBN 978-1615929702. https://books.google.com/books?id=HFsEut6lA94C&pg=PA218. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
4. ↑ Douglas Hofstadter (1985). Metamagical Themas. Penguin. p. 95. https://archive.org/details/MetamagicalThemas/page/n101/mode/2up. Retrieved 2020-04-14.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Rensberger, Boyce (June 25, 1978). "Skeptics are Scored on Paranormal Issue". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/1978/06/25/archives/skeptics-are-scored-on-para-normal-issue-scholar-tells-scientists.html.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Hofstadter, Douglas (February 1, 1982). "About two kinds of Inquiry: 'National Enquirer' and 'The Skeptical Inquirer'". Scientific American 246 (2): 18–26. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0282-18. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/metamagical-themas-1982-02/. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Foster, Craig (December 29, 2022). "On the Origin of Skeptical Inquirer". https://skepticalinquirer.org/2022/12/on-the-origin-of-skeptical-inquirer/.
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Frazier, Kendrick (1996). "Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP)". in Stein, Gordon. The Encyclopedia of the Paranormal. Prometheus Books. pp. 168–181. ISBN 1573920215.
9. ↑ Loxton, Daniel (May 13, 2013). "Modern skepticism's unique mandate". The Skeptic Society. http://www.skepticblog.org/2013/05/13/modern-skepticisms-unique-mandate/.
10. ↑ "'Skeptical Inquirer' announces SIUE's Stephen Hupp as editor". Illinois Business Journal. July 31, 2023. https://www.ibjonline.com/2023/07/31/skeptical-inquirer-announces-siues-stephen-hupp-as-editor/.
11. ↑ "Skeptical Inquirer Magazine Introduces New Editor Stephen Hupp". The Center for Inquiry. June 12, 2023. https://centerforinquiry.org/press_releases/skeptical-inquirer-magazine-introduces-new-editor-stephen-hupp/.
12. ↑ Hupp, Stephen (December 30, 2024). "News Bites: From Hurricane Fake Photos to Skeptical Inquirer's Audio Edition". https://skepticalinquirer.org/2024/12/news-bites-from-hurricane-fake-photos-to-skeptical-inquirers-audio-edition/.
13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Loxton, Daniel (2007). "Where do we go from here?". The Skeptic Society. http://www.skeptic.com/downloads/WhereDoWeGoFromHere.pdf.
14. ↑ In Stein 1996, p. 174\. Douglas Hofstadter (1982): "The purpose of the Skeptical Inquirer is simply to combat nonsense. It does so by recourse to common sense, which means it is accessible to anyone who can read English. It does not require any special knowledge to read its pages, where nonsensical claims are routinely smashed to smithereens. All that is required to read this maverick journal is curiosity about how truth defends itself (through its agent CSI-COP) against attacks from all quarters by unimaginably imaginative theorizers, speculators, eccentrics, crackpots, and out-and-out-fakers."
15. ↑ Tyson, Neil deGrasse (September 15, 2023). Miracle Drugs & Quick Fixes with Neil deGrasse Tyson & Nick Tiller. 3:13 minutes in. Retrieved December 16, 2024 - via YouTube. "...Skeptical Inquirer magazine, my single favorite magazine in the world — let the record show. Yes, every [inaudible] I wait for it to show up. How are people misthinking things today? And there it is, and they show it."
16. ↑ Nye, Bill (2017). Everything All at Once : How to unleash your inner nerd, tap into radical curiosity and solve any problem. Rhodale. p. 211. ISBN 9781623367916. https://books.google.com/books?id=uxouDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA211. Retrieved December 16, 2024. "A vaccine against deception ... As a counterforce to all the predatory deceivers, several skeptical organizations fight the good fight for science. The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry ... and the Skeptics Society are two of the leading lights. They seek out specific claims, evaluate them, and publicize their versions of the process ... Both CSI and the Skeptics Society put out magazines that promote the aggressive form of critical thinking needed to immunize us to fakery."
17. ↑ Zorn, Eric (October 23, 2020). "Column: In memory of the amazing James Randi, ignore the charlatans and listen to science". Chicago Tribune. https://www.chicagotribune.com/2020/10/22/column-in-memory-of-the-amazing-james-randi-ignore-the-charlatans-and-listen-to-science/. "In 1976, Randi was one of several founding members of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), an academically minded organization aimed at combating "a rising tide of uncritical belief in astrology, parapsychology and other unfounded subjects,” as contemporary news reports put it. CSICOP's magazine, The Skeptical Inquirer, remains a favorite of those of us who can, in fact, handle the truth."
18. ↑ Bernstein, Evan (August 19, 2013). "Remembering Perry DeAngelis Today". The Rogues Gallery. http://theness.com/roguesgallery/index.php/skepticism/remembering-perry-deangelis-today/.
19. ↑ Loxton, Daniel (April 27, 2010). "Ode to Joy". The Skeptic Society. http://www.skepticblog.org/2010/04/27/ode-to-joy/.
20. ↑ Senapathy, Kavin (February 2, 2020). ""The Skeptics Movement Can’t Afford to Ignore Racial Inequality"". https://undark.org/2020/02/20/center-for-inquiry-race-pseudoscience/.
21. ↑ G'Sell, Eileen (2016-03-19). "Sumptuous Skeptics: Ellen K. Levy and Patricia Olynyk Stage Creative Inquisition". http://artefuse.com/2016/03/18/sumptuous-skeptics-ellen-k-levy-and-patricia-olynyk-stage-creative-inquisition-124450/.
22. ↑ Corwin, William (April 2016). "Truth in the Visual Arts Skepticism in the Work of Ellen K. Levy and Patricia Olynyk". http://www.brooklynrail.org/2016/04/artseen/truth-in-the-visual-arts.

## External links

* Official website

Template:Center for Inquiry

* v
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Pseudoscience

Terminology|

* Cargo cult science
* Charlatan
* Crank
* Fringe theory
* Fringe science
* Pseudoarchaeology
* Pseudohistory
* Junk science
* Paranormal
* Pathological science
* Quackery
* Snake oil
* Superseded scientific theory
* True-believer syndrome
* Voodoo Science

Topics
characterized as
pseudoscience|

* 2012 phenomenon
* Acupuncture
* Adrenal fatigue
* Alchemy
* Alternative medicine
* Ancient astronauts
* Anthroposophic medicine
* Applied kinesiology
* Aquatic ape hypothesis
* Astrology
* Bates method
* Biodynamic agriculture
* Bloodletting
* Body memory
* Catastrophism
* Chiropractic
* Chromotherapy
* Conspiracy theory
* 9/11 conspiracy theories
* Chemtrail conspiracy theory
* Climate change denial
* Moon landing conspiracy theories
* Conversion therapy
* Creation science
* Cryonics
* Cryptozoology
* Crystal healing
* Detoxification
* Colon cleansing
* Dianetics
* Doctrine of signatures
* Doktor Koster's Antigaspills
* Dowsing
* Ear candling
* Electromagnetic hypersensitivity
* Electronic voice phenomenon
* Eugenics
* Facilitated communication
* Feng shui
* Flat Earth theory
* Germ theory denialism
* Graphology
* HIV/AIDS denialism
* Hollow Earth theory
* Homeopathy
* Humorism
* Indigo children
* Intelligent design
* Japhetic theory
* Levitation
* Lunar effect
* Lysenkoism
* Magnet therapy
* Mediumship
* Naturopathy
* Nazi archaeology
* Nibiru cataclysm
* Numerology
* Orgone
* Palmistry
* Perpetual motion
* Phrenology
* Polygraph
* Primal therapy
* Pseudoarchaeology
* Pseudohistory
* Genocide denial
* Historical negationism
* Holocaust denial
* Pseudoscientific metrology
* Psychohistory
* Quantum mysticism
* Rapid prompting method
* Recovered-memory therapy
* Reiki
* Scientific racism
* Aryan race
* Melanin theory
* Trepanning
* Ufology
* Vertebral subluxation
* Voice stress analysis
* Water memory
* Cowpathy

Promoters of pseudoscience|

* Andrew Wakefield
* Deepak Chopra
* Gaia, Inc.
* Goop (company)
* Jenny McCarthy
* Mehmet Oz
* William Donald Kelley

Related topics|

* Bourgeois pseudoscience
* Demarcation problem
* Scientific method
* Suppressed research in the Soviet Union
* Traditional medicine

Resources|

* Committee for Skeptical Inquiry
* Cults of Unreason
* Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience
* Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science
* Quackwatch
* JREF
* The Psychology of the Occult
* The Ragged Edge of Science
* The Skeptic Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience
* Skeptical Inquirer
* The Skeptic's Dictionary

List of topics characterized as pseudoscience

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