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The Insider speaks: Scientology’s recent crises, now in a podcast with Chris Shelton

 Late last year, we got some eye-opening reports on how hard the pandemic has been on Scientology from someone inside the organization. We dubbed them The Insider, and they told us about chaos caused by Covid, new details on the ‘Chase Wave’ financial debacle, a detailed description of the Ideal Org scam, and even told []

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What Scientology’s nutty ‘OT 3’ — the Xenu tale — taught one member about Sea Org slavery

[An artist’s conception of Xenu from HBO’s ‘Going Clear’]

Summer 1984, Advanced Org Los Angeles. Alone in the small study room, heart pounding, mind overflowing with anticipation, I flipped open the folder containing the auditing instructions for OT 3, the secret level of Scientology known as the “Wall of Fire.” Finally, finally, after sixteen years in []

Le Monde & Vanity Fair: FBI probes Russian oligarch financing of ‘Top Gun: Maverick’

 [Yesterday’s breaking news: California supreme court denied Danny Masterson petition.]

On Sunday, just after our story about Tom Cruise and Scientology hit the home page of The Daily Beast, we received an email from a man named Andrew Eksner. He claimed that he was working with the FBI’s “Transnational Anti-Corruption Partnership with the headquarters at the []

CA Supreme Court denies Danny Masterson petition to review rape case motion

 Just in: After soliciting briefs from both the prosecution and the defense, the California State Supreme Court has denied Danny Masterson’s petition to review a motion to dismiss his rape charges that was struck down in []

Scientology co-opts ‘Top Gun’ success for its own fundraising needs

 In perhaps the most predictable move ever, Scientology is jumping on the success of celebrity member Tom Cruise’s biggest ever box office opening weekend for one of its own fundraising []

Danny Masterson: Attorney Tom Mesereau is out, trial delayed to October 11

[Danny Masterson and his former lawyer, Tom Mesereau]

Judge Charlaine Olmedo denied Danny Masterson’s motion to sever two of the counts against him, but she’s asked for more briefing on the other motion to dismiss he filed in his criminal rape case, delaying a ruling. But perhaps the bigger news from today’s hearing is that Danny’s []

Judge Olmedo to hear Danny Masterson’s latest motions to dismiss and sever rape charges

[Judge Charlaine Olmedo and Danny Masterson]

On Friday we spelled out in more detail what Danny Masterson’s defense is arguing in its latest motions in his criminal rape case. Today, Judge Charlaine Olmedo is scheduled to hear those arguments as Masterson’s attorneys try to convince her to dismiss the count of forcible rape in regards to []

The subchaser that never was: L. Ron Hubbard’s farcical first command

 It’s Memorial Day here in the US, and once again we’ve asked Chris Owen for an excerpt from his excellent book Ron the War Hero to commemorate L. Ron Hubbard’s war service. Make sure to pick up a copy of the book if you haven’t []

Tom Cruise’s hit movie couldn’t come at a better time for his Scientology best bud

 Your proprietor is big at the Daily Beast again today with a new story about everyone’s favorite Scientology topic: Tom []

Chris Shelton interviews Katherine Olson, who only escaped Scientology’s Sea Org last year

 Big news from Chris Shelton this week as he has graduated with a masters degree and he has a live guest this week on his podcast who has only recently escaped from Scientology’s Sea []