Media Reviews

A Cult Expert Reviews the Movie “Martha Marcy May Marlene”

Last night, I went to see Martha Marcy May Marlene, the new movie about a woman who runs away from a destructive cult. Writer/director Sean Durkin has clearly done his homework. His film gets so much so right. It provides such a clear window into a lot of the psychological themes of cult indoctrination—deceptive recruitment,

Steven Hassan, April 9, 2016

Thoughts on HBO’s Going Clear Documentary

I watched the two-hour HBO “Going Clear” documentary last night and wanted to share some immediate thoughts. First of all. Wow! It was very intense and will hopefully wake up the public to the power and danger of the Scientology cult. In particular, I welcome the call to action to revoke its tax exemption status

Steven Hassan, March 30, 2015

Steve Hassan Responds to NY Times Column Titled “The Cult Deficit”

Steve Hassan Responds to NY Times Column titled “The Cult Deficit”: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/28/opinion/sunday/ross-douthat-the-cult-deficit.htmlAs a former cult member, licensed mental Health counselor, author of three books about helping people protect themselves from cults, help those in them and to recover once out, I have great difficulty with this piece entirely.Cults abound: political cults; therapy cults; religious cults;

Steven Hassan, September 29, 2014