in Los Angeles. David Miscavige is the ecclesiastical leader of the Scientology religion. It’s hard to understand not doing a modicum of due diligence to educate oneself before speaking on behalf of any organization. Here are some additional groundbreaking and courageous exposés of the church that came out before 2010, the year of Bass’s speech: 1981: “Scientology: The Sickness Spreads” (Readers’ Digest’s prolific Eugene Methvin), 1985: “Who Are The Scientologists?” (Washington Post editorial board) Excerpt: “Members of the ‘church’ have engaged in vicious and serious harassment of persons and organizations who investigate or speak out against the group, such as the St. Louis Post Dispatch, the Los Angeles Times, Readers' Digest, the Boston Globe, the St. Petersburg Times, Forbes Magazine, the American Medical Association, the Better Business Bureau and the American Psychiatric Association. [22], Former high-ranking Scientologist and spokesperson Mike Rinder claimed David Miscavige was unhappy with the church's handling of the documentary, and punished Rinder by exiling him to the United Kingdom to dig ditches. More on that later. There’s not a word in her statement about what she now thinks about the church. (Photo by Church of Scientology via Getty Images), The church was sadistic in its attempts to intimidate me. Scientology's David Miscavige has been running the show since Hubbard's death in 1986. he is ... [+] pictured here in 2016 at the church's global media center in Hollywood. Scientology churches offer Dianetics services. Please put front group activities in the Scientology Front Groups forum, rather than in … Given the organization’s extensive resources, it stretched into a ten-year legal battle. Scientology, however, is unique in that it contains practical means of enabling man to resolve his material concerns and so come to achieve his spiritual aspirations. (Full bio at mideastdig.com and richardbehar.com) For speaking engagements: Washington Speakers Bureau. The church is fervently opposed to psychiatry and psychiatric medicine, and works hard to keep mentally-ill members from getting treatment from licensed professionals. Here’s one excerpt, for example: Another first-hand account came from William Franks, a former chairman of the board of the church. The church sued and also ran a $3 million daily ad campaign for two weeks in USA Today attacking the articles, as well as Time generally and historically. All Interests. If attacked on some vulnerable point by anyone or anything or any organization, always find or manufacture enough threat against them to cause them to sue for peace....We’re playing for blood, the stake is EARTH.”. ], Scientologists are pretty good at brainwashing people. (That’s about $45 million in today’s money). Around the time we published, the church retained at least one private eye, who made bizarre calls to Forbes staffers. C 420153)" John Breckenridge Jr. You cannot assert what you're saying!" By Carol Kuruvilla. [4], Sweeney said of fair gaming: "While making our BBC Panorama film "Scientology and Me" I have been shouted at, spied on, had my hotel invaded at midnight, denounced as a 'bigot' by star Scientologists and been chased round the streets of Los Angeles by sinister strangers." 2009: A multi-part, trailblazing series in the St. Petersburg Times (by Tom Tobin and Joe Childs) that led to many additional stories over the next four years revealing life inside the church. More than 20 major journalism awards — including George Polk (twice); Overseas Press Club (twice); Gerald Loeb; National Magazine Award; Daniel Pearl; Conscience-In-Media Award — on subjects ranging from terrorism in Pakistan to counterfeiting in China; from corporate wrongdoing on Wall Street to the Russian mob in Siberia. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images), 1995: Tony Ortega, editor of the Village Voice, begins a quarter century of investigative stories. May be tricked, sued or lied to or destroyed... Start feeding lurid, blood sex crime actual evidence on the attackers to the press. The 1986 Forbes story also revealed how Hubbard apparently looted the church of enough money to have been on the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans—had he not died earlier that year under mysterious circumstances. I'm the Contributing Editor, Investigations, for Forbes magazine — and writing a book about Bernard Madoff, to be published by Simon & Schuster. The Church of Scientology focuses on getting Scientologists up the Bridge to Total Freedom. "[1][2], The scale of the controversy intensified when the Church of Scientology released a 40-second clip of video footage showing a screaming argument between John Sweeney and Scientologist Tommy Davis over the way in which Sweeney was interviewing critics of Scientology. Learn about Scientology, beliefs & practices, founder L. Ron Hubbard. Sweeney's outburst toward Tommy Davis prompted John Travolta to lobby British MPs in an attempt to stop the documentary from being aired. (Hubbard’s words have been in articles, books and news broadcasts for decades.) Finally, and this is a real stretch: let’s imagine that Bass didn’t know how bad they were until certain “allegations” (as she calls them) about Scientology emerged after her 2010 speech and 2012 and 2013 proclamations. Read Full Synopsis Cast + Crew Previous Cast Members More Cast Members. Did they get to Bass? As I wrote in another sidebar called “The Scientologists and Me,” at least ten attorneys and six private detectives were unleashed by Scientology and its followers in an effort to threaten, harass and discredit me. Of course, nothing approaches the harassment suffered by brave journalist Paulette Cooper, who wrote a critical book called “The Scandal of Scientology” in 1971. [6], The documentary was intended as an investigation of the claims of both critics of the Church of Scientology and the Church itself to see if the Church "still deserved its sinister reputation. Scientology And Me. Reachable at rbehar@forbes.com. The estate served not only as Hubbard’s home but as Scientology’s worldwide headquarters until 1967. An “Editor’s Comment” that ran with the 1986 story addressed the subject of first-hand witnesses. It almost worked: by impersonating Cooper, Scientologists got her indicted in 1973 for threatening to bomb the church. You are quoting the second half of the interview, not the first half! The church then took it to the U.S. Supreme Court, which declined to take their case.) And she is misleading the public about it right now. He told us that a Hollywood celebrity (who served as an unofficial Scientology spokesman) feared that if he defected from the church, details of his private sexual life would be made public. MAKE MORE MONEY. After Readers’ Digest decided to run a condensed version of the main story in virtually all of its editions—reaching about 100 million readers around the world—the church sued the Digest in multiple countries to try (unsuccessfully, of course) to stop them. It's what Scientology call a 'disconnect.' If your ever in the Times Square area you should come through for a visit. See Full Cast + Crew for Scientology and Me Features Load More Features Movie Reviews Presented by Rotten Tomatoes. 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