Class is in session and boy oh boy is it perturbing. Teaching is not just a profession, it's a calling to shape young hearts and minds—one that looks all wholesome on the outside, but once you're lured in, actually comes with labor exploitation, emotional manipulation, weird power dynamics created by the tenure system, and other sinister qualities that high- ... Show More
Jul 8
The Cult of America's Next Top Model
This week, Chelsea, Amanda, and guest Sarah Hartshorne (@sarahbhartshorne) dig into the high-gloss, high-drama, and disturbingly high-control world of America’s Next Top Model. Once hailed as a launchpad for aspiring models, the long-running franchise masked emotional manipulatio ... Show More
1h 21m
Jul 1
The Cult of Elon Musk (Part 2)
What happens when a billionaire tech mogul starts to look less like a CEO and more like a modern-day messiah? This week, Chelsea, Amanda, and Reese team up with historian and authoritarianism expert Ruth Ben-Ghiat (@ruthbenghiat) to explore the cult of personality surrounding Elo ... Show More
1h 12m
Jan 2024
cultish, a talk with amanda montell (revisit) [video]
[video available on spotify] today i present to you, amanda montell: a writer, linguist, and fellow podcast host. amanda has written three books. one of them, the age of magical overthinking, is about to come out. today i want to zoom in on one of our many common interests. she w ... Show More
50m 58s
Oct 2022
Cults: Manipulation Tactics, Celebrity Involvement, Escape w/ Lola Blanc + Meaghan Elizabeth
Joining the Deux U classroom this week are Cult survivors Lola Blanc and Meaghan Elizabeth. On their podcast, Trust Me, they talk to fellow survivors, former and current believers, experts, and everyone in between to try to get to the bottom of how extreme belief happens, who's s ... Show More
1h 7m
Jun 2022
Transcendental Meditation & Cult Intervention with Patrick Ryan and Joe Kelly
Want to learn how to levitate? Cult Interventionists and Founders of Cult News 101, Patrick Ryan and Joe Kelly, talk about their work with ICSA (the International Cultic Studies Association), how levitation played into their experiences with Transcendental Meditation, early cult ... Show More
1h 18m
Apr 2024
A Journey of Love: Andrew LeCompte on A Course in Miracles
This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. For Andrew LeCompte, his study of A Course in Miracles (ACIM) started off like the proverbial ‘good thing’ of so many cult survivor stories. He eventually taught ACIM in Mexico, Spain, Hawaii, and Canada–working as something like a NXIVM- ... Show More
50 m
May 2023
Destiny: Rev. Jim Willis, American Cults, Cabal, Corruptions and Charismatic Leaders
America has spawned hundreds of cults. Charismatic leaders periodically burst into the news for the most awful of reasons. We are awash with stories of brainwashed members’ struggles to leave. Meet the messianic leaders, see the indoctrination and manipulation, look at their beli ... Show More
1h 8m