Content provided in partnership with

Nothing But Trouble in Miss Cleo's Tarot Cards - psychic hotline sued for false advertising - Brief Article

Skeptical Inquirer, Nov-Dec, 2001 by Kevin Christopher

Miss Cleo--the new juggernaut of psychic hotline telemarketing--has been embroiled in lawsuits garnering national attention. During the past year, television in the United States has been glutted with ads featuring Miss Cleo, who prognosticates in an exotic Jamaican lilt for an off-screen voice viewers might assume is a caller. Waving her jewelled hand over a tarot spread, she amazes the off-screen voice with her insights into love and money.

Most Popular Articles in Reference: The importance of understanding organizational culture; Credit card attitudes and behaviors of college students; What factors attract foreign direct investment?; Libraries Need Relationship Marketing - mutual interest marketing concept, ...; How to set performance goals: employee reviews are more than annual critiques; More »

Apparently the tarot cards never gave Miss Cleo any warnings of lawsuits or stool pigeons. The tarot hotline company's troubles began on November 1, 2000, when Pennsylvania Attorney General Mike Fisher filed a lawsuit against Access Resource Services, Inc., the outermost layer of corporate identity for the tarot hotline. The lawsuit was precipitated by 125 consumer complaints about misleading direct mail solicitations from Miss Cleo which promised thirty "free" minutes of psychic talk time. According to the November 1, 2000, press release issued by the Pennsylvania attorney general's press office, customers who called the 800 number expecting the half hour of free phone time were bilked by four methods: 1) callers placed on hold were falsely promised that they wouldn't be charged for the time they waited to be connected to a psychic reader; 2) callers were connected to a pay-per-call line without their knowledge; 3) callers were falsely promised that they were entitled to free gifts and free phone time with a psychic; and 4) callers were directed to a 900 number for a "free" reading, but when they actually called that number they were informed that if they hung up they would be billed for the call-including the "free" reading. One former Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, resident told the attorney general's office that she was charged for more than $700 worth of "Psychic Network" calls she claims she never made.

A July 26, 2001, CNN story announced that the attorney general of the state of Missouri, Jeremiah Nixon, filed two suits against Access Resource Services, Inc. and its registered agents, American Information Services, Inc. of Miami, Florida, and Lexis-Nexis Corporate Services of Dover, Delaware. According to one suit, filed in the Sr. Louis circuit court, the three corporate defendants were accused of ninety-four violations of Missouri's "Telemarketing No-Call List" law. The law allows consumers to register themselves on a list barring telemarketers who operate in the state from calling them.

An August 8, 2001, Associated Press story by Paul Sloca reported that Access Resource Services, Inc., agreed to pay $75,000 in fines and will obtain a copy of the state's no-call list of 800,000 numbers as its settlement with the State of Missouri. The other Missouri lawsuit, filed in Jefferson County, and accusing the defendants of falsely advertising a free three minutes, is still pending.

On August 1, 2001, Mark Austin, reporter for KSAT-TV in San Antonio, Texas, interviewed a former employee of the Miss Cleo hotline who wished to remain anonymous. According to this former call-taker, "She's [Miss Cleo] jus an actress. She doesn't even read cards, 16153 is her extension, if you call. You won't get through to her. You'll get another reader." The woman alleges that she was trained on methods of getting callers to stay on the line beyond the three minutes offered for free and gleaning information useful to badger them into calling back: "We'd get a bonus for every piece of information they'd get, and by the time we got all of this information out of them, the three free minutes was up, and then you'd go on to your reading."

All news stories published so far have been content to cite Access Resource Services, a Delaware corporation based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, as the corporation that owns and operates the Miss Cleo enterprise. Thanks to Florida's freedom of information laws, I have researched Miss Cleo and found a tangled web of companies. The main hive of activity is lodged on the tenth floor of an office building in Fort Lauderdale. The registered agent of Access Resource Services, Inc. is a corporation called American Information Services, Inc., based in Miami. According to its online privacy statement, the Web sites operated by the company include the following: mindandspiritclub.com, cleoreading.com, tarotsecrets.com, tarotsecret. com, cleoprediction.com, cleopredictions.com, myfreereading.com, cleocontest.com, meetcleo.com cleospirit.com, visitcleo.com, mindandspirirpin.com, mindandspiritmember.com, misscleo. com, cleoralk.com, cleotaror.com, cleotarotcards.com, famouscleo.com, mrs cleo.com, mycleo.com, mymisscleo. co rn, cleochar.com, rarorcleo.com, cleo talk.com, cleoenergy.com, cleomembers.com, cleoreadings.com, cleopsychic.com, freecleo.com, cleofanclub. com, and cleorarotcards.com.

Anyone who feels they have been bilked by Miss Cleo is urged to contact your state's attorney general. Contact information can found at www.naag.org.

Nothing But Trouble in Miss Cleo's Tarot Cards - psychic hotline sued for false advertising - Brief Article

Skeptical Inquirer, Nov-Dec, 2001 by Kevin Christopher

Find Research Guides for:

Find Featured Titles for: Reference

Most Popular Articles in Reference

Most Popular Publications in Reference