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PODCAST

Speaking of Cults

A podcast about cults, coercive control and recovery. Formerly called the Sensibly Speaking podcast, in this weekly show host Chris Shelton interviews cult survivors, psychologists and other professionals and specialists about the topics of cult recruitment, retention and recovery. This also includes non-religious cults and extreme political movements including the more divisive elements of MAGA and left-wing culture war issues. There is nothing off-limits but we always try to be respectful of the

education

All Episodes

91:32

Speaking of Cults...Scientology Inside and Out with...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/11/15

This week I welcome Patty Moher, a former Scientologist staffer and kind of amazing person to talk to. We had a great chat about all things Scientology and I hope you'll enjoy it as much as we did.

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108:20

Speaking of Cults - Mormonism's Violent Legacy

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/11/01

This week I welcome back Bryce Blankenangel and Shannon Grover for another deep dive into Mormon history and culture, this time digging into a truly horrifying piece of history known as the Meadows Mountain Massacre. This is a bit tough of a listen in places but I think a very good show and I appreciate my guests broad knowledge on this topic.Glassbox podcast: https://glassboxpodcast.com

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94:59

Speaking of Cults...Journalism and Reporting on...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/10/25

This week I welcome journalist Tony Ortega to discuss his career, his interest in Scientology and get his perspective on issues related to the church and its leadership. Enjoy!Tony's Substack: https://tonyortega.substack.org Unbreakable Miss Lovely: https://shorturl.at/lKYPw

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96:11

Speaking of Cults...Scientology, Nazis and the REM...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/10/18

This week I welcome back Jon Atack to discuss his new book about the common origins of Naziism and Scientology, and then go deep into the REM Model of Human Behavior which I created and how that explains so much of what Hubbard was about, as well as how to undo cultic manipulations. Enjoy!

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128:22

Speaking of Cults...Chase Hughes and the NLP Grift...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/10/11

This week I welcome Zach Elwood, host of the People Who Read People podcast and a very fun guest to discuss the entrepreneurship of influence that is quite popular on social media these days especially as personified by Chase Hughes. Zach discusses his history with NLP and we talk deeply about the consequences of these practices. Enjoy!Zach's channel: ⁨@PeopleWhoReadPeoplepodcast⁩

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120:25

Speaking of Cults...The Religion/MAGA Connection with...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/10/04

This week I welcome Jennie Gage, an ex-Mormon/MAGA/trad wife who has a story to tell about her upbringing in the Mormon world, how she was literally trafficked before escaping into abject poverty to rebuild her life from scratch. As part of this, we go deep into the MAGA/Evangelical mindset, since there are such whopping contradictions between what Christian Nationalists say and what they do that it's impossible for most people to reconcile how any of it makes sense. Jennie helps up unpack all of

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115:22

Speaking of Cults...Growing Up a Witness with Bethany...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/09/27

This week I welcome Bethany Leger, host of the Stop the Shunning podcast and a former member of the Jehovah's Witnesses. She has a few interesting twists in her childhood growing up in the JWs and we had a lot to discuss in recovering from the cult experience.Bethany's channel: https://youtube.com/stoptheshunning⁩

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114:59

Speaking of Cults...Let's Talk Cult Recovery with...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/09/20

This week I welcome Michael Shemwell, host of the Shunned podcast and a former member of the Jehovah's Witnesses. We met while filming the Jubilee production about cults and here discuss our mutual experiences and the ups and downs of cult recovery. Michael's podcast: https://shunnedpodcast.com

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70:41

The Problems of Growing Up in Scientology with Pamela...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/09/13

This week I welcome back Pamela Nickel Williams, whose new memoir about her time growing up in and around Scientology has now been released. Pam has quite a story to tell and I hope you'll give it a look.Pamela's Website: https://clearlyliesaretrue.com

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93:38

Speaking of Cults...The Occult Roots of Nazism and...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/09/06

This week I welcome back podcast favorite Jon Atack to discuss his brand-new book, "If Scientology Ruled the World: Nazi Occultists, Sex Magick, Space Aliens, and the Second Coming." This book is as wild as it sounds and uncovers some things I can almost guarantee you have never heard or seen before regarding the common origin story of the Nazi's Aryan race theory and Hubbard's ideas about body thetans and spiritual rehabilitation. Enjoy!Link to Jon's website: https://jonatack.co.uk/ Link to book:

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02:05:44

Speaking of Cults...The Secret History of the Mormon...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/08/30

This week I welcome back Bryce Blankenagel and Shannon Grover to discuss events the Mormon Church would rather you don't know about. There's a lot and we only scratch the surface in this episode. Enjoy!Bryce and Shannon's podcast: https://glassboxpodcast.com Note: this podcast had an audio issue and had to be re-uploaded. Sorry for any confusion about that.

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58:06

Speaking of Cults...The Cult Foundations of the...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/08/23

This week I welcome author Jane Borden, who recently published Cults Like US about the cult roots of American society and how these have perpetuated to this day in many of the moral and social values we take for granted or just don't think about too much. We have a lot of food for thought for you in this one. Enjoy!Jane Borden's website: https://janeborden.com

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32:26

Speaking of Cults...Why Smart People do Dumb Things...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/08/16

This week I am revisiting the REM Model (TM) and discussing more real-world examples of how it might be used to help figure out or understand ourselves and other people and why we do some of the crazy stuff we do. Enjoy!

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24:18

Speaking of Cults...Why Diddy Got Away With It

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/08/09

In this week's shorter-than-usual podcast, I give a full rundown on the indictment and trial of Sean Combs and why it was that he completely got away with years of domestic abuse and coercion. "Diddy" turned his business into a sex-trafficking criminal enterprise (allegedly) and there will be no justice for his victims because of how our laws and justice system operate. You'll understand why after you hear this.

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28:16

Speaking of Cults...Your 30-Minute Guide to...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/08/02

Here is your explanation for why people act the way they do, why people join and stay in cults and why people will fight to the death for some of the most irrational and hateful beliefs and ideas. If you've ever run into anyone that you just couldn't understand, this podcast is going to help you finally figure that out. Enjoy!

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01:26:07

Speaking of Cults...Abuse in the Community of Jesus...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/07/26

This week I welcome Ewan Whyte, a man who grew up in an incredibly abusive Christian Nationalist group called the Community of Jesus and who was sent to Grenville College - a boarding school under the ownership of this cult. His story has a happier ending than most and he had difficulty talking about some aspects of his experience but I hope this podcast will still be informative of his experience and a cautionary tale about giving over your life to a belief system that is really nothing more than

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02:01:44

Speaking of Cults...Escaping Fundamentalist Mormonism...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/07/19

Imagine being born into slavery in Mexico as a female in a Mormon polygamist cult that treats all women like chattel, not good for anything but doing what they are told and making babies. That's what my guest, Pamela Jones, escaped from after being raised amongst seriously violent religious extremists (who are still operating their cult in Mexico and are richer than ever). As an adult, she got out with all nine of her children and started a new life in the US. Pamela has an upcoming book about her

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01:32:16

Speaking of Cults...Cult Recovery is a Rocky Road

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/07/12

This week I am bringing back Jason Horvatic, a former Scientologist who came out publicly about two years ago and had some contentious views and statements to make about me, Scientology and his own views about his experiences. Well, the road to recovery has many pitfalls and dark alleyways that people can go down, but they can also come right back out again. This podcast is a pretty plain English discussion about all of this and where Jason is at now. I hope this will be of interest and it helps

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01:10:40

Speaking of Cults...Breaking the Spell of Religion...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/07/05

This week I am welcoming back Dr. Maurice Turmel aka "Dr Moe" to discuss religious trauma and his new book on the subject. We go over a number of key principles underlying religious trauma which I think might help anyone who is overcoming an abusive religious background. Hope this one helps!Dr. Turmel's website: https://drmoe2000.bandcamp.com

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01:21:34

Speaking of Cults...Project Esther - The Modern U.S....

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/07/03

I'm posting this bonus podcast mid-week since I didn't want to delay getting this information and interview with Dr. Clint Heacock out to you. Project Esther is one part of a series of actions being taken by the White House to repress free speech and demonstrations and curtail our rights. Current events are running at a lightning pace and I want to do my part to help inform you what is actually going on in the US right now.Links discussed: Dismantling Doctrine podcast:

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