World · World News Bureau
Televangelist Jim Bakker, Disgraced Prosperity Gospel Pioneer, Dies at 86
Jim Bakker, whose televangelist empire once made him one of America's most prominent religious figures before his downfall in a fraud scandal, has died at age 86. Bakker's rise and fall became emblematic of controversies surrounding televangelism and the prosperity gospel movement.
LSN World News ·
Bakker rose to prominence in the 1970s and 1980s as the charismatic host of "The PTL Club," a daily television program that built a vast multimedia religious enterprise. At its peak, his organization operated a sprawling religious theme park in North Carolina and commanded a substantial following across North America.
His prominence came to an abrupt end in 1989 when federal investigators began examining financial improprieties within his organization. Bakker was subsequently convicted of wire and mail fraud related to the overselling of lifetime memberships to the PTL ministry. He served approximately eight years in federal prison before his release in the late 1990s.
Following his release, Bakker attempted to rebuild his ministry through television programming and a survivalist-themed online platform. He continued to be a polarizing figure within evangelical Christian circles, with critics pointing to his case as emblematic of accountability issues within televangelism, while supporters maintained that he had been rehabilitated and unfairly persecuted.
Bakker's life and career became the subject of extensive documentaries and cultural analysis examining the intersection of faith, commerce, and American media during the late 20th century.