79. Freeing the media from its materialist straitjacket – Jesper Madsen
Researchers who dare to go outside the box and investigate phenomena that the mainstream dismisses because they are inexplicable are labeled ”pseudoscientists”. Those who question elements of the accepted scientific view are labeled ”conspiracy theorists”. ”And journalists who dare to contact one of those researchers and do an interview are contaminated with the same labels”, says Danish journalist and communicator Jesper Madsen. ”No wonder many journalists hesitate to write or broadcast anything that is not in line with official science”, he concludes. When he was young, Madsen wanted to become an engineer. But during military service he changed course and decided he wanted to work in the humanities. Eventually he became a journalist. Since childhood Jesper had had a fascination for mysteries and the mystical aspects of life. A seven-week sojourn in San Francisco in 1996 turned out to be crucial. He met people with fascinating insights into the esoteric realm. He made his first contact with IONS, the Institute of Noetic Sciences, with which Jesper is now affiliated (the first Danish community group). He saw the need for a paradigm shift. But when he returned to Denmark with tons of notes, he found it difficult to know what to do with it. The mindset in Danish media was not very open to this kind of knowledge. Soon thereafter, Jesper Madsen found himself in a meeting about alternative medicine. He realized that this was connected to what he had learned. So, during the last 20 years, he has specialized in complementary and alternative medicine. It is well documented that many of the alternative medical treatments work, but if the standard double-blind trial is not employed, the results are ignored. ”To rely on only one investigative method is a matter of belief. They say that alternative medicine is based on belief, but this is also a belief. If you don't recognize the thinking behind the method you want to study, you won't understand why it works”, says Jesper and gives the salient example of homeopathy, which is vehemently rejected by the mainstream. The placebo effect is well documented by standard science. In some cases it is very strong. It is mostly described as some kind of undesirable noise in studies, but what it actually shows is that our ability to heal ourselves (and make ourselves sick) is much larger than we have been led to believe. All along, Jesper Madsen has had a profound interest in ”frontier science”, as he puts it. ”Now I feel somehow I want to go back to the basic, big questions”, he says. His latest endeavor is an engagement with the Galileo Commission, an offshoot from The Scientific and Medical Network, which aims to encourage investigations beyond the materialist worldview. Jesper is involved in the creation of a network of open minded journalists. ”I put my faith in English speaking countries like the US and the UK, because here in Denmark today I don't think more than two or three journalists, aside from myself, are open to this.” Links: Galileo Commission Scientific and Medical Network Stanislav Grof ”ESP Wars East and West” Edwin C. May Institute of Noetic Sciences