There's a new Twitter trend: uploading videos of people trying to "summon a demon."
The players place one pencil crosswise atop another pencil. After reciting the formula "Charlie, Charlie, are you here?" they wait to see if the top pencil will move.
In some videos, it clearly does move. Could it be blown by someone's breath or moved by a hidden wire? That's certainly possible. But the reactions of the participants (who start screaming and sometimes run away) seem genuine enough. Maybe they're just good actors. Maybe not.
Since I already think there's good evidence for macro PK, I wouldn't be too surprised to see an example of it spreading via social media.
In a way, it's the 21st century equivalent of the 19th century's table-tipping craze. In both cases, ascribing the phenomenon to supernatural forces, rather than to PK, could be psychologically useful as a defense mechanism. ("Fear of psi" may inhibit the phenomena, as discussed by Stephen E. Braude in this essay.)
The fact that most of the "Charlie" players are teens may also be relevant. Teenagers seem more likely to display PK talents. Most poltergeist cases, which arguably are manifestations of PK, center on troubled adolescents.
Unfortunately, since the Charlie phenomena appear to depend on spontaneity, they may be impossible to study scientifically. Setting up an experiment in a lab would probably make the procedure too formal and create the tension of high expectations. A lighthearted attitude — not taking the whole thing too seriously — may well be crucial to success. This was true of table-tipping also; it had to be approached as a parlor game, with the players singing songs and making light conversation. Again, this is probably a defense mechanism to deal with fear of psi.