| The Underground Bunker

Tony Ortega is a journalist who was formerly the editor of The Village Voice. He's written about Scientology since 1995, and in May 2015 released a book about Scientology's harassment of Paulette Cooper titled 'The Unbreakable Miss Lovely.' He continues to monitor breaking developments in the Scientology world from an undisclosed location in an underground bunker he shares with four cats and one of them wrinkly Shar Pei dogs. Despite his super-secret security protections, you can still reach him pretty easily by sending him a message at tonyo94 AT gmail.com (Drop him a line if you'd like to get an e-mail whenever a new story is posted.) [Header image courtesy John Rickard]

‘Piece of Blue Sky’ author Jon Atack hits a big Scientology anniversary

[We’ve been so honored over the years to publish pieces by Let’s Sell These People a Piece of Blue Sky author Jon Atack here at the Bunker. And once again, here he is, and this time celebrating a […]

PODCAST: Jon Atack on Charles Manson and Scientology

Jon Atack’s piece for us this week about Charles Manson and Scientology was such a hit with our readers, we knew we had to get him on the podcast this week to chat with him about it […]

Jon Atack takes issue with new theory about Charles Manson that ignores Scientology

[Charles Manson’s involvement in Scientology is well documented. So Jon Atack looked into a new theory of the Manson murders that is gaining a lot of traction and that for some reason completely ignores Manson’s interest in L. Ron Hubbard’s […]

A Scientology childhood: Jon Atack talks to ‘Bad Cadet’ author Katherine Spallino

Last month we published an excerpt from a new book, The Bad Cadet: Growing Up in the Church of Scientology’s Sea […]

Mike Rinder and Jon Atack explain why you find it so difficult to leave Scientology

While your proprietor is recovering from this first week of testimony at the Danny Masterson retrial, we hope you enjoy the latest discussion by these two titans of entheta as they discuss “peak experiences, placebo, and the sunk cost […]

Chris Owen and Jon Atack remember Jane Kember, Scientology’s ultimate spymaster

On Friday, we reported on the death of Scientology’s former “Guardian,” Jane Kember, at 85. We had learned about her passing the day before, and scrambled to put together a basic outline of what an important figure she is in Scientology. Since then, we’ve heard from two of the very best researchers and historians of […]

PODCAST: Jon Atack has some things to say about Mike Rinder’s new book on Scientology

The big news this week of course is that former Scientology spokesman and Leah Remini’s costar Mike Rinder has released his really terrific book about his experience in the church, A Billion Years: My Escape from a Life in the Highest Ranks of […]

Jon Atack escaped Scientology, but then he got himself into much deeper trouble

Not long after we started this website in 2012, we reached out to a person we had long admired who had written one of the greatest books about the history of Scientology. Jon Atack was one of those authors who had not only escaped Scientology to then write about it, but he had done so […]

Jon Atack and Chris Shelton answer the question: Are cult members stupid?

Jon Atack and Chris Shelton teamed up for a new video this week. Jon’s helper Spike Robinson describes what’s in […]

Jon Atack: Is Scientology really a ‘church’?

Perhaps no one understands the early history of Scientology like Jon Atack, author of one of the most famous books on the subject, 1990’s ‘A Piece of Blue Sky,’ which was more recently expanded and […]

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