Infamous Televangelist Jim Bakker Up to His Old Tricks in a New Episode of "The Con"

The next episode of ABC News’ The Con focuses on infamous televangelist Jim Bakker, who is up to his old tricks, attempting to con his faithful followers with a sham COVID cure.

What’s Happening:

Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker were once enormously successful at raising money for their televised religious programs. After its 1974 debut, their cable show became the highest-rated religious show in the country. In the 1980s, the Bakkers continued their success by building Heritage USA, a first-of-its-kind 2,200-acre Christian resort and amusement park, but the government would charge that Bakker had secured funding by defrauding his faithful viewers. In 1989, he was convicted and initially sentenced to 45 years in prison but ultimately only served five.
In 2021, prosecutors claimed that Bakker was once again up to his old tricks but this time without Tammy Faye. They said he made promises on The Jim Bakker Show that his “Silver Solution” was a cure for the coronavirus; however, instead of a miracle, they said drinking silver can be toxic and even turn consumers permanently blue in the face if consumed in large quantities. The FDA immediately issued a cease-and-desist order while the states of Missouri and Arkansas sued him for his false claims. Bakker entered a settlement agreement promising not to sell the solution anymore, but continued to deny wrongdoing.
“The Comeback,” a new episode of The Con, airs Thursday, September 1st (10:00-11:00 p.m. EDT), on ABC and next day on demand and on Hulu.
The ABC News Studios primetime series is narrated by Emmy, GRAMMY, Tony and Oscar winner and moderator of The View, Whoopi Goldberg, with weekly appearances by podcaster Laci Mosely (Scam Goddess) as a featured expert.
For the series, David Sloan is senior executive producer, and Carrie Cook serves as executive producer for ABC News. Eli Holzman and Aaron Saidman are executive producers for The Intellectual Property Corporation (IPC), a part of Sony Pictures Television, along with executive producer and showrunner John Henshaw.