I guess that it isn't particularly surprising, but here in SF there are quite a few shady groups which air programs on public access television. The following list is not exhaustive, but here are some of them:

-Eckankar
-Andrew Cohen (our friend!)
-Benjamin Creme/Lord Maitreya (show has great title, "Has Christ or Buddha Returned?")
-Jagad Guru (Science of Identity Foundation-- i couldn't figure out what this guy was about until i read the info on him elsewhere on this board. now i understand why all of the footage of him seems to be about twenty years old. on an odd note, one time i saw his show and he was wearing jim jones style mirrored aviator sunglasses...i couldn't figure out if it was some kind of joke he was playing, but either way, it definitely added to the creepiness factor. now if i could just determine the origin of his peculiar accent. it sounds like some sort of mutation of southern california-ese.)
-Supreme Master Ching Hai (she has a restaurant here in town called "Golden Era". i avoid it.)
-John-Roger/MSIA :roll:
-Prem Rawat/Elan Vital/Maharaji (this guy just oozes sleaze...can't believe that he is still around)

like i mentioned, there are more than just these ones. the other day i caught a christian fundamentalist preacher who seemed to be completely manic. what is that term that they use to describe the rapid, nonstop talking patterns of people undergoing a manic episode? pressured speech?

there are also a couple of general new age shows, like one called "bridging heaven and earth", which features all kinds of colorful characters.

gangaji and eli also each have their own shows, but i guess that it would be be pretty unfair to lump them in with the above. the one thing that unsettles me about them (particularly eli) and many of the other freelance nondual/advaita type teachers is that they often have this odd expression on their face; like they are trying too hard to look blissful. the expression is like a slightly spaced-out, otherwordly mild grin that is threatening to turn into a painful grimace. if they have indeed realized whatever they claim to have realized or to be able to transmit, i just hope that the strain of it is not hurting them. for all of their emphasis on effortlessness, there seems to be an undercurrent of strain there. i wonder if they try to maintain their same blissful expressions when they burn themselves or drop something heavy on their feet...

Supreme Master Ching Mai has opened a channel in Europe, Supreme Master TV. It's been advertised in The Big Issue, a nationwide charity magazine sold by homeless people in the UK (which is otherwise a very good publication; I don't think they realized the nature of the organization they were promoting). For more details check out the the swish website, [www.suprememastertv.com]

Fortunately, it doesn't sound very easy receive, not something your averate Freeview subscriber will channel-hop to.