Right-wing extremism, post-truth America, and media literacy converge in my conversation with David Pakman. Pakman is a prominent political commentator and the host of The David Pakman Show, with over three million YouTube subscribers. Known for his insightful arguments and approachable style, Pakman tackles complex social issues, educating us on the complex and nuanced sociopolitical landscape. Disclosure: I watch his show regularly and was a guest twice. In our conversation, he discusses key insights from his latest book, The Echo Machine: How Right-Wing Extremism Created a Post-Truth America, delving deeply into how decades of deliberate erosion of media literacy and critical thinking have contributed to our current rise into a landscape where fiction parades as the truth. It is a very intelligent, well researched and argued book. I recommend it highly. In this episode, we explored how modern media operates like a high-control group, using subtle brainwashing tactics and influence to shape beliefs and paralyze civic action. We started our conversation with what seems to be at the forefront of everybody’s mind: Donald Trump.  This was an important interview. Come give a listen!

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Cult influence can be found everywhere online, including the political sphere we see when we scroll on social media. Understanding how authoritarian control operates is critical in preserving our autonomy and individuality. In this new episode of The Influence Continuum, I talk with Dr. Stephen Kent, professor emeritus of sociology, who taught courses on alternative and sectarian religions. His research concentrates on issues related to harm caused by groups to individuals and society. It would be a mistake to call sounding the alarms reactionary. Yale scholars like Jason Stanley, Timothy Snyder, and Marci Shore, experts on fascism and propaganda, have left Yale to teach at the University of Toronto in Canada. They cite the rise of authoritarian structures in the United States as their reason for doing so. Our conversation draws lines between our collective decades of research into high-control groups and today’s authoritarian movements, disinformation wars, and the dangerous erosion of democratic norms. While these subjects once felt primarily like niche academic work, terms like “cults” and “authoritarian control” have become central to understanding our political world.

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On this episode of Cult Conversations: The Influence Continuum, we spoke with Lev Parnas, a Ukrainian-American businessman and former Trump insider turned whistleblower. He has withstood intimidation, threats, and time in prison to present evidence and help America better understand the truth about the cult of Trump. His book, Shadow Diplomacy: Lev Parnas and his Wild Ride from Brooklyn to Trump’s Inner Circle, is the story of a self-described “wheeler-dealer” who moved through Moscow, Wall Street, Miami, Hollywood, and the White House. It was in prison after he’d been indicted and sentenced for unlawful campaign donations when he realized he was being “used as a pawn” to protect Trump.

His biographical memoir gives an insider’s look into how money and power influenced international politics under the 45th presidency with Donald Trump, ultimately leading to his first impeachment trial for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. Lev continues his brave work to enlighten Americans with his attained insider knowledge of how Trump ran his administration on his Substack podcast Lev Remembers. He was also the subject of the 2024 documentary film produced by Rachel Maddow, From Russia with Lev, where he shared his vast knowledge and archived data from his time working with the first Trump administration. This is one not to miss!

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“You were involved for over 20 years with an apocalyptic, survivalist UFO-like cult. Before joining the cult, you were a bright 16-year-old who later attended Princeton and played football for them as a cornerback. Looking back, you were essentially a bright, educated, charismatic young man who happened to meet the wrong person at the wrong time.” Hoyt describes his upbringing as “normal,” growing up in an affluent family outside Philadelphia. He remembers himself as a social, talented athlete with many friends. While vacationing with family and friends on Nantucket, an upscale Cape Cod Island, he encountered a man named Frederick von Mierers (his real name was Freddy Meyers). Frederick approached 16-year-old Hoyt, laid a towel beside him, and engaged him in conversation about spirituality. Frederick would later become the leader of a cult known as Eternal Values.

Hoyt’s life didn’t end with his cult experience; it inspired his purpose. He dedicated himself to filmmaking, podcasting, and advocacy, educating the public about cultic dynamics.Hoyt is currently developing a memoir titled Picture Perfect, a documentary series, and a feature film based on his life and experiences. This is a fascinating person.

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“I do feel we have an obligation to speak up,” Alexandra Stein, PhD said on this episode of Cult Conversations: The Influence Continuum, “and it’s tough for people to resist these systems when there is total silence, and that’s what these systems kind of rely on.” Alexandra exited a ten year stint in a left wing political cult when she was 36 years old. Alexandra is a writer and educator specializing in the social psychology of ideological extremism and other dangerous social relationships. Her latest book, Terror, Love, and Brainwashing: Attachment in Cults and Totalitarian Systems, was released as a second edition in 2021. She is also the author of Inside Out: A Memoir of Entering and Breaking Out of a Minneapolis Political Cult. She presented her statement for the Congressional Record for the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol titled Political Cults and the Use of Cultic Tactics in the Recruitment and Mobilization of Participants in the January 6 Attack on the Capitol. Based in the UK, Stein is one of a growing number of ex cult members who have become academics who wish to share their expertise with others. A Fascinating conversation.

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 Cult survivors often have the instinct to want to save as many people as possible from the cult they survived. However, healing from the things they encountered while in the cult is often a first step before a survivor can help others escape. Cult survivors usually seek to heal with some form of therapy and move on. Nori was a member of ISKCON from 1978 to 1988. As a member of the PR office, Nori lived in a bubble with some of the cult’s abuses hidden from her so she could maintain her positive opinion of the cult as part of her work. After leaving the cult, Nori learned about the abuse of women and children in the cult. The University of Illinois Press published Nori’s memoir, Betrayal of the Spirit, in 1997. After that she wrote and self-published Child of the Cult and Cult Survivor’s Handbook For a more detailed look at the atrocities the Hare Krishnas committed, check out the documentary Monkey on a Stick: Murder, Madness, and the Hare Krishnas. Nori Muster and Steve Gelberg are two former members interviewed in this well-done film. Join us for a fascinating discussion that includes art therapy and other expressive therapy approaches to healing.

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For many, practices like meditation and yoga are among the most thrilling avenues for deepening spiritual awareness. At their best, these techniques can serve as a neurological and biochemical reset—enhancing self-awareness and empowering transformation. But at their worst, they can cause a loss of personal grounding, leaving individuals vulnerable to exploitative relationships or mental, physical, and even sexual harm under unethical or authoritarian figures. As a result, people often find themselves wagering between powerful tools for psychological growth and the risk of undue influence. In this episode of Cult Conversations: The Influence Continuum, I speak with my longtime friend and colleague, David Christopher Lane, PhD—Professor of Philosophy and Sociology at Mt. San Antonio College—about this delicate balance. David is the author of numerous books, including The Making of a Spiritual Movement: The Untold Story of Paul Twitchell and Eckankar, The Radhasoami Tradition, Exposing Cults: When the Skeptical Mind Meets the Mystical, The Unknowing Sage, and The Virtual Reality of Consciousness. Cambridge University Press published his most recent book, The Sound Current Tradition: A Historical Overview, in 2022. He also co-authored an annotated bibliography on the Radhasoami movement for Oxford University Press. Beyond academia, David is a world champion bodysurfer with titles spanning from 1997 to 2016. David is also an expert on neuroscience and virtual reality technology. 

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Those who have experienced Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD) will often report the profoundly painful experience of being thrown into past trauma by a particular trigger. Common examples include war veterans who may experience full body activation following a loud explosive noise. Another example is victims of violent crimes being shown content about similar circumstances that can launch them into the past. This experience of being thrown back in time has been thoroughly analyzed utilizing Time Perspective Therapy (TPT) by co-developer and counselor Rosemary Sword. Rose is the co-author of the renowned 2012 book The Time Cure: Overcoming PTSD with the New Psychology of Time Perspective Therapy. She worked on the book with her husband, clinical psychologist Richard Sword, PhD, and Philip Zimbardo, PhD, psychologist and professor at Stanford University. When Richard passed away from gastric cancer a year and a half later, she continued her work on TPT with Zimbardo, eventually coming to their new book Seeing Through the Grief. While it was released in the spring of 2024, Zimbardo sadly passed away in October. Other projects they worked on included a second TPT book titled Living & Loving Better, partnering with Happify.com Premium to offer Overcome PTSD and Heal from Grief and Loss, as well as a Psychology Today column, The Time Cure. This is a fascinating interview.

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Power can be rapidly stripped away from individuals, or it can be taken away layer by layer. Not everyone makes it out of a cult, but life can become particularly meaningful when they do. A new purpose can arise for the person, more substantial than the grasp of mind control. Leaving an authoritarian cult is the experience that Dr. Debbie Haski-Leventhal, PhD, shared with us on this episode of Cult Conversations: The Influence Continuum. She found this meaning after a period of healing and self-exploration when she left the Kabbalah Centre. Her parents brought her into it when she was only five years old. She devoted her life to it as a chevre (hand-picked servants of Philip and Karen Berg, its leaders). She was able to escape by age nineteen. Debbie currently describes her role as “a professor of purpose and impact”, working with individuals and companies to make lives more meaningful. She crafted her book after decades of exploring what pro-social and satisfying behaviors bring to life. Her book is both inspirational and practical, laying out pointers from the model she developed. She believes strongly in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and works with business leaders to better utilize their human resources into meaning on both an individual and group basis. I must say, I loved this book, listened to it as an audiobook, and then bought it as a paperback and read it. It is a must-read book, in my opinion, for all survivors of mind control cults. It is an inspiration!

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“How did I get to the point where I am upset with this current administration?” Joe Szimhart asks at the start of this week’s Cult Conversations: Influence Continuum episode. His journey from a self-described “cult believer” to a leading expert on esoteric religious movements offers invaluable insights into how authoritarian influence takes hold in both spiritual and political spheres.

Like Joe, I transformed my experience in my former cult, the Moonies, into a lifelong mission to understand undue influence and help others regain their minds. We are coming together on this episode because we are on alert about the dangerous overlap between authoritarian influence and today’s political landscape. Our conversation reveals a sobering truth: self-indoctrination can be just as powerful as formal brainwashing—and no one is immune. Being well-read won’t help you to avoid getting recruited into a cult. Nor will being highly intelligent protect you and or being happy. However, psychoeducation will help you learn how to identify destructive cults and what research you need to do before giving them your contact information or agreeing to do any activity with strangers- no matter how attractive the recruiter is. We talk about Agni Yoga and Church Universal and Triumphant cults- and how Vlamimir Putin and his wife were devotees of Agni Yoga and Michael Flynn did a “decree” from Elizabeth Clare Prophet’s cult. Flynn traveled the USA with the Moonies cult for their Rod Of Iron Freedom Festivals recruiting for Trump and the supposed “civil war” to come. This is a fascinating interview.

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