episode-header-image

Nov 2022

1h 4m

Josh Lobo - What Happens When You Troll ...

About this episode

Up next

Jonathan Hirsch, Part 2 - Meditation, Getting Blessed, and Leaving Adidam

In part 2 with podcaster & writer Jonathan Hirsch (creator of podcasts like Dear Franklin Jones), Lola & Meagan discuss life in the cult of Franklin Jones, aka Adi Da. They discuss the dramatic meditation rituals in the group, what it felt like to get blessed by the leader, and h ... Show More

Jonathan Hirsch, Part 1 - A Guru, a Compound, and the Cult of Adi Da

This week’s guest is Jonathan Hirsch, podcaster, producer, and author who grew up in Adidam, a cult led by new age guru Franklin Jones - also known as Adi Da. In this week’s episode, Jonathan explains how his parents joined the group while on a spiritual journey that started with ... Show More

David Farrier - Conspiracies, Cults, and Investigating Arise Church

This week, Trust Me is joined by David Farrier, journalist and filmmaker known for documentaries like Tickled and Netflix series Dark Tourist. He shares about his work studying strange subcultures and conspiracy theorists and what he’s learned along the way, and then dives into h ... Show More

Recommended Episodes

256 - Cult! Cult! Cult! The Aggressive Christianity Mission Training Corps

<p>A very recent Christian militant cult, the Aggressive Christianity Mission Training Corps was founded in the late 1970s by married couple Lila and Jim Green. Lila would later change her name to Deborah, after the biblical prophetess of the God of the Israelites and the only fe ... Show More

The Cult of The Hammer Family

You're sure to *devour* this week's episode analyzing four generations of wealthy men who, in our little opinion, represent a stunning example of how a powerful American family can resemble a cult. This week, Isa and Amanda are joined by a third co-host of sorts, true crime TikTo ... Show More

111: If It Sounds Like a Cult..

Two Hot Takes host, Morgan, is joined by guests Amanda Montell and Isa Medina of Sounds Like a Cult! This episode features stories that have us questioning is this a cult? Is it a green flag cult or a red flag/you need to run cult? And are you wondering if you've ever been in a c ... Show More

The Cult of Spiritual Scammers (feat. Listener Stories!)

Time to spill some never-before-heard culty tales: This week, Amanda and Isa are reacting to shocking cult stories submitted by you listeners! Many thanks to those who wrote in to share their personal brushes with New Age scams, love-bombing strangers, elementary school rituals t ... Show More

The Cult of True Crime

From voraciously consuming gruesome podcasts by the dozen to amateur sleuthing gone wrong to fetishizing dangerous killers, the world of true crime definitely has a cult following… but does it ever go too far? This episode was chosen by our listener giveaway winner and features N ... Show More

The Cult of PTA Moms

Get ready for some no holds barred sh*t-talking, culties, because this week, Amanda and Isa are joined by the hosts of the motherhood-themed "I've Had It" podcast for a wild discussion of how PTA Moms are kindaaa just like a cult. Relentless groupthink, wacky power dynamics, oh m ... Show More

Mormon MomTok Drama Ft. Lola and Meagan From Trust Me

This week, Sara and Danny are joined by Lola Blanc and Meagan Elizabeth from the podcast "Trust Me: Cults, Extreme Beliefs, and the Abuse of Power" to talk all about the scandal that swept through Mormon MomTok. They discuss the Mormon MomToker at the center of it all, Taylor Fra ... Show More

#424: Stolen Youth - Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence | Part 1

<p>In 2010, on the small woodsy campus of Sarah Lawrence College located in Yonkers, New York, 50 year old Lawrence Ray came to “crash” with his daughter Talia in her on-campus dorm town-house that she shared with several other students, ostensibly until he found a place to live ... Show More

The Cult of Love Is Blind

Would you sacrifice your phone, passport, dignity, and freedom to move into an isolated pod for 10 days and compete against a sorority of strangers in search of True Love™, all for a world of fiendish reality TV consumers to see??? Sounds like cult behavior to me!!! This week, ju ... Show More

181: Unsolved: The Chilling 1977 Oklahoma Girl Scout Murders

<div>On June 12th, 1977, a group of Girl Scouts from Tulsa, OK, arrived at Camp Scott for what was supposed to be two weeks of fun, friendship, and adventure. The next day, the bodies of three campers are found brutally raped and murdered at their campsite. This horrific crime be ... Show More