February 12, 1998: Reverse Speech - David John Oates

Art Bell welcomes back Australian researcher David Oates for an extended exploration of reverse speech, the theory that human language simultaneously produces unconscious communication when played backward. Oates demonstrates with classic examples, including Neil Armstrong's lunar landing audio reversing to "man will spacewalk" and his own infant daughter producing clear English words in reverse before she could speak forward.

The bulk of the program focuses on reverse speech analysis of President Bill Clinton and the Lewinsky scandal. Oates plays reversals from Clinton's public statements that appear to confirm the sexual relationship, including crude references and the phrase "I see that we're broken." Hillary Clinton's reversals suggest emotional pain and a private understanding with her husband. Press Secretary Mike McCurry's speech reverses to reveal frustration, while Clinton's remarks on Iraq produce the chilling phrase "let's shoot for the assassin."

Oates also presents reversals from NASA officials containing the word "Cydonia" and a reference to a starship, and he revisits reversals from a previous guest known as Harlot, a self-described devil worshiper. He addresses criticism of bias in his Clinton analysis and emphasizes the strict research protocols governing syllable count, tonal signature, and contextual congruence that distinguish legitimate reverse speech findings.