The term "freak" was in common-enough currency that Hunter S. Thompson's failed bid for sheriff of Pitkin County, Colorado, was as a member of the "Freak Power" party.
However, many later members of the movement, those misunderstanding the countercultural roots, believed the term to be negative, and co-opted and embraced the term, and its usage broadened to describe a Christian subculture throughout the hippie and back-to-the-land movements that focused on universal love and pacifism, and relished the radical nature of Jesus' message.
In Australia, and other countries, the term "Jesus freak", along with "Bible basher", is still used in a derogatory manner.
In Germany, there is a Christian youth culture, also called Jesus Freaks International, that claims to have its roots in the U.S.
[citation needed] Contemporary Christian music group DC Talk released an album Jesus Freak in 1995, with its eponymous song being later covered by Newsboys, 4th Avenue Jones, and Owl City.