Ten years ago today: ‘Going Clear’ exposed Scientology’s abuses for a new audience

 
TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: Ten years ago today, Alex Gibney’s HBO documentary ‘Going Clear’ premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, exposing Scientology’s abuses in a way that had never been done before. Hana Whitfield, one of the stars of the film, writes about the movie’s impact a decade later. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]

 
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Technology Cocktail

“If the pc is not in trouble, his best bet is to get on up the grades to Expanded OT III. If he is massy and is having trouble the best bet is to: (1) Be totally sure of his Int RD (2) Check O/Rs particularly of a major grade twice or by-passed F/Ns, locate and indicate them (3) FES, list the items and grades and do a Full Flow action from the beginning of his auditing, raising them all to Triple.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1974

 
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THE PROSECUTION OF DANNY MASTERSON

We first broke the news of the LAPD’s investigation of Scientology celebrity Danny Masterson on rape allegations in 2017, and we’ve been covering the story every step of the way since then. At this page we’ve collected our most important links as Danny faces a potential sentence of 45 years to life in prison. NOW WITH TRIAL INDEX.

 
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THE PODCAST: How many have you heard?

[1] Marc Headley [2] Claire Headley [3] Jeffrey Augustine [4] Bruce Hines [5] Sunny Pereira [6] Pete Griffiths [7] Geoff Levin [8] Patty Moher [9] Marc Headley [10] Jefferson Hawkins [11] Michelle ‘Emma’ Ryan [12] Paulette Cooper [13] Jesse Prince [14] Mark Bunker [15] Jon Atack [16] Mirriam Francis [17] Bruce Hines on MSH

— SPECIAL: The best TV show on Scientology you never got to see

[1] Phil Jones [2] Derek Bloch [3] Carol Nyburg [4] Katrina Reyes [5] Jamie DeWolf

— The first Danny Masterson trial and beyond

[18] Trial special with Chris Shelton [19] Trial week one [20] Marc Headley on the spy in the hallway [21] Trial week two [22] Trial week three [23] Trial week four [24] Leah Remini on LAPD Corruption [25] Mike Rinder 2022 Thanksgiving Special [26] Jane Doe 4 (Tricia Vessey), Part One [27] Jane Doe 4 (Tricia Vessey), Part Two [28] Claire Headley on the trial [29] Tory Christman [30] Bruce Hines on spying [31] Karen de la Carriere [32] Ron Miscavige on Shelly Miscavige [33] Karen de la Carriere on the L’s [34] Mark Bunker on Miscavige hiding [35] Mark Plummer [36] Mark Ebner [37] Karen Pressley [38] Steve Cannane [39] Fredrick Brennan [40] Clarissa Adams [41] Louise Shekter [42] John Sweeney [43] Tory Christman [44] Kate Bornstein [45] Christian Stolte [46] Mark Bunker [47] Jon Atack [48] Luke Y. Thompson [49] Mark Ebner [50] Bruce Hines [51] Spanky Taylor and Karen Pressley [51] Geoff and Robbie Levin [52] Sands Hall [53] Jonny Jacobsen [54] Sandy Holeman [55] Mark Bunker [56] Trish and Liz Conley [57] Trish Conley [58] Alex Barnes-Ross [59] Alex Barnes-Ross [60] Alex Barnes-Ross [61] Alex Barnes-Ross [62] Alex Barnes-Ross [63] Alex Barnes-Ross [64] Tory Christman [65] Tammy Synovec [66] Dennis Erlich [67] Alex Barnes-Ross [68] Valerie Ross [69] Kat in Austin [70] Mark Bunker [71] Phil Jones

 
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Source Code

“Nineteen fifty-one, I rolled up my sleeves and started to investigate the Whole Track. Because in late 1950 it had started to raise its ugly and unseemly head. And auditors who would run into it and try to audit it and pcs who dare bring it up, of course, ran into a considerable social ostracism of one character or another. That was not done. The first Foundation board tried to pass a regulation, a board ruling to the effect that nobody would ever look at, believe in or investigate past lives, and so forth. And yet auditors in auditing them kept running into them, you see? So that probably was the basic split-up of the first Foundation. The first Foundation wanted to sit there comfortably and just grind on and on in present-life engrams and consider that we had it all made and they wanted no further research or investigation of any kind whatsoever. Well, that wouldn’t go and that was that, because auditors were not turning out the results they should have turned out if one had only lived one life. So in 1951 this — I didn’t fly in the teeth of this. I would have investigated anything. I mean, there’s no real resistance on my part. You show me something, tell me I can’t investigate it, I’m liable to investigate it. You show me something and tell me I can investigate it, I’m liable to investigate it. I mean, there is no influence in that line. I, just down through the trillennia, I have not paid attention to and/or paid no attention to people who have told me not to look. I just have not paid any attention to this one way or the other. This, of course, adds up to a total neglect of the ‘finer sensibilities,’ I think they’re called, of other people. The finer sensibilities, I think, is another way of expressing the idea ‘he’s too yellow to look.’” — L. Ron Hubbard, January 25, 1962

 
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Avast, Ye Mateys

“If you can tolerate running your legs off, getting grey hairs, bags under your eyes, streteched wits in the course of a day’s work amongst the living lightning, these could be a place for you in the Office of the LRH Comm Flagship. You’ve no idea what it takes at times to get an order duplicated, activated, executed and completed! Cats with some lives left who want it hot and dangerous can volunteer for the hottest spot aboard. Drop me a line — today — saying WHY you want a job with LRH Comm Flagship and I’ll look it over.” — LRH Comm Flagship, January 25, 1971

 
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Overheard in the FreeZone

“Recently a friend of mine had a crash, he told his mother and his mother fell to the ground an hour later, injuring herself. She had an accident, which is a PTS condition according to Scientology theory. There must also be an SP, according to the same theory, but, who’s suppressing her in that case? See? She had an accident, which links to a PTS condition, but the triggering was to be told bad news, to be told by his son that he had just crashed. Yes, she might also be connected to antagonistic terminals in present time as well as in the Whole Track, but the trigger at that incident was to learn about the crash. You can examine your own life and see if that’s true for you.”

Past is Prologue

2001: The Toronto Sun published an article on a visit to the org and discussions with Scientologists there. “There seemed to be a lot of activity around the front door of the Church of Scientology at the corner of Yonge and St. Mary Streets. I found was a guy named Bill Osvath. ‘I got involved 26 years ago,’ he says. ‘It has helped me out a lot personally.’ Today, he has a wife and four children, lives in the suburbs and loves watching movies. ‘I still go to the United Church at Christmas,’ he laughs. He also laughs when people think of Scientology as a cult. He says if you look in the dictionary under cult it merely describes a group of people with a leader. ‘You could say The Toronto Sun is a cult,’ he teases. The church has been at that corner for 20 years and inside that large building in which they own a number of offices, meeting rooms and at the back is a chapel. Bill also talked about the time he met John Travolta, who was quietly in town with his Scientologist wife, actor Kelly Preston. ‘They called and asked if John could come down and take a course,’ Bill recalls. ‘We said, sure we’d love to have him. He was very nice.'”

 
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Random Howdy

“People say to me, ‘So, have you met a Scientologist?’ And I laugh and think to myself, ‘What a beautiful thing,’ because maybe one day it will be like that, you know? You know what I’m saying. Maybe one day it will be that ‘Wow, Scientologists, they just read about those in the history books.’ You know?”

 
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Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker

Criminal prosecutions:
— Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Found guilty on two counts on May 31, remanded to custody. Sentenced to 30 years to life on Sep 7, 2023. Appeal brief due by December 23.
— ‘Lafayette Ronald Hubbard’ (a/k/a Justin Craig), aggravated assault, plus drug charges: Grand jury indictments include charges from an assault while in custody. Next pretrial hearing February 24, 2025.
— David Gentile, GPB Capital, convicted of fraud, awaiting sentencing.

Civil litigation:
— Leah Remini v. Scientology, alleging ‘Fair Game’ harassment and defamation: Some defamation claims were removed by Judge Hammock. Judge Hammock’s ruling is on appeal.
— Baxter, Baxter, and Paris v. Scientology, alleging labor trafficking: Forced to arbitration.
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson. Judge Upindra Kalra’s ruling denying Scientology’s motion to strike is on appeal.
— Jane Doe 1 v. Scientology, David Miscavige, and Gavin Potter: Case unsealed and second amended complaint filed. Scientology moves for religious arbitration, gets ruling to depose Jane Doe 1.

 
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SCIENTOLOGY: FAIR GAME

After the success of their double-Emmy-winning, three-season A&E series ‘Scientology and the Aftermath,’ Leah Remini and Mike Rinder continue the conversation on their podcast, ‘Scientology: Fair Game.’ We’ve created a landing page where you can hear all of the episodes so far.

LEAH REMINI: SCIENTOLOGY AND THE AFTERMATH

An episode-by-episode guide to Leah Remini’s three-season, double-Emmy winning series that changed everything for Scientology watching. Originally aired from 2016 to 2019 on the A&E network, and now on Netflix.

SCIENTOLOGY’S CELEBRITIES, from A to Z

Find your favorite Hubbardite celeb at this index page — or suggest someone to add to the list!

 
Other links: SCIENTOLOGY BLACK OPS: Tom Cruise and dirty tricks. Scientology’s Ideal Orgs, from one end of the planet to the other. Scientology’s sneaky front groups, spreading the good news about L. Ron Hubbard while pretending to benefit society. Scientology Lit: Books reviewed or excerpted in a weekly series. How many have you read?

 
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THE WHOLE TRACK

[ONE year ago] Mike Rinder and Claire Headley tie RTC to Scientology mayhem for Leah Remini lawsuit
[TWO years ago] WTF? Scientology gets Yuma TV anchor fired for piece about Lisa Marie Presley
[THREE years ago] Danny Masterson gets boost from Mom & brother Chris, who secure his $3.3 million bail
[FOUR years ago] Scientology in Russia: Historian Chris Owen does the deep dive we’ve been waiting for
[FIVE years ago] My mom is the auditor in the ‘Reckless Ben’ Scientology infiltration videos
[SIX years ago] Scientology’s ‘grass roots’ social media effort is actually led by its most mediocre spokesman
[SEVEN years ago] The Battle of Portland, part 2: Pressuring a court by surrounding it with Scientologists and celebs
[EIGHT years ago] Brandon Reisdorf: Scientology complained to probation dept. over ‘Leah Remini’ appearance
[NINE years ago] For a class-action lawsuit against Scientology’s rehab network, a setback in California
[TEN years ago] Who are the 8 Scientologists profiled in ‘Going Clear,’ premiering today? We have a guess.
[ELEVEN years ago] Jon Atack: Do Scientology’s training routines turn you into a sociopath?
[TWELVE years ago] Newsweek Confirms It: L. Ron Hubbard Was a Blowhard

 
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Posted by Tony Ortega on January 25, 2025 at 07:00

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Our new book with Paulette Cooper, Battlefield Scientology: Exposing L. Ron Hubbard’s dangerous ‘religion’ is now on sale at Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats. Our book about Paulette, The Unbreakable Miss Lovely: How the Church of Scientology tried to destroy Paulette Cooper, is on sale at Amazon in paperback, Kindle, and audiobook versions. We’ve posted photographs of Paulette and scenes from her life at a separate location. Reader Sookie put together a complete index. More information can also be found at the book’s dedicated page.

The Best of the Underground Bunker, 1995-2023 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2023), The Village Voice (2008-2012), New Times Los Angeles (1999-2002) and the Phoenix New Times (1995-1999)

Other links: BLOGGING DIANETICS: Reading Scientology’s founding text cover to cover | UP THE BRIDGE: Claire Headley and Bruce Hines train us as Scientologists | GETTING OUR ETHICS IN: Jefferson Hawkins explains Scientology’s system of justice | SCIENTOLOGY MYTHBUSTING: Historian Jon Atack discusses key Scientology concepts | Shelly Miscavige, 15 years gone | The Lisa McPherson story told in real time | The Cathriona White stories | The Leah Remini ‘Knowledge Reports’ | Hear audio of a Scientology excommunication | Scientology’s little day care of horrors | Whatever happened to Steve Fishman? | Felony charges for Scientology’s drug rehab scam | Why Scientology digs bomb-proof vaults in the desert | PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | The mystery of the richest Scientologist and his wayward sons | Scientology’s shocking mistreatment of the mentally ill | The Underground Bunker’s Official Theme Song | The Underground Bunker FAQ

Watch our short videos that explain Scientology’s controversies in three minutes or less…

Check your whale level at our dedicated page for status updates, or join us at the Underground Bunker’s Facebook discussion group for more frivolity.

Our non-Scientology stories: Robert Burnham Jr., the man who inscribed the universe | Notorious alt-right inspiration Kevin MacDonald and his theories about Jewish DNA | The selling of the “Phoenix Lights” | Astronomer Harlow Shapley‘s FBI file | Sex, spies, and local TV news | Battling Babe-Hounds: Ross Jeffries v. R. Don Steele

 

Tony Ortega at The Daily Beast

 

Tony Ortega at Rolling Stone