"I am only ashamed that I waited this many months to act. I hereby resign my membership in the Church of Scientology." In a blistering letter that calls out some church lies, "Crash" director Paul Haggis quits Scientology after 35 years over its support for Prop 8. He says he was also influenced by this acclaimed St Pete Times series. The high level defection comes as ABC began running a multipart expose of the church that included choice video of Scientology spokesman Tommy Davis storming off when asked about the alien lord Xenu.
posted by CunningLinguist on Oct 26, 2009 - 324 comments

British Department of Health releases LR Hubbard Docs The British government has released documents compiled to expose Scientology's founder as a fraud. [more inside]
posted by HotPants on Aug 9, 2009 - 79 comments

The Truth Rundown: High-ranking defectors provide an unprecedented inside look at the Church of Scientology, its leader David Miscavige, and the Lisa McPherson case. Expose from the newpaper in Clearwater, Florida, the "worldwide spiritual headquarters" of Scientology, in three parts.
posted by mosessis on Jun 24, 2009 - 85 comments

Wikipedia will now no longer accept any changes originating from Scientology owned or controlled address space. [more inside]
posted by Antidisestablishmentarianist on May 29, 2009 - 122 comments

Sarah Palin understands the importance of religion in politics. That's why the Political Action Committee preparing for her 2012 presidential bid is being run by John Coale - an OT-VII Scientologist. [more inside]
posted by Joe Beese on Mar 26, 2009 - 75 comments

Bart Simpson is known for prank calls, but Nancy Cartwright, who provides Bart's voice on "The Simpsons," has been heard this week in a phone message using the voice of the cartoon fourth-grader to promote Scientology.
posted by Joe Beese on Jan 30, 2009 - 91 comments

Vince Offer, better known as the ShamWow guy or the SlapChop guy, isn't just a salesman. He's also a filmmaker, and he's battling the Church of Scientology.
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing on Jan 28, 2009 - 118 comments

Recently, everyone who pre-ordered a certain book on Amazon.co.uk received a letter notifying them "This item has been removed from sale for legal reasons." Amazon.com claims the book is temporarily out of stock. The book? The Complex: An Insider Exposes the Covert World of the Church of Scientology by John Duignan. Interestingly, on November 5th, Tom Cruise attended an "all hands" meeting of Amazon.com bigwigs. Photos. A random coincidence? What about all those one and two-star reviews that kept disappearing from books like Dianetics and Science of Survival?
posted by changeling on Nov 13, 2008 - 76 comments

Jack "Marvel" Whiteside Parsons was the right hand man to Aleister Crowley, a founder of modern US rocket science, and early partner to L Ron Hubbard. Celebrate July 4th by investigating this major character in the birth of our age. [more inside]
posted by unpoppy on Jul 4, 2008 - 36 comments

A 15-year-old in London is being prosecuted for holding a sign calling Scientology a "cult", during a peaceful demonstration (0:55-1:40). The teenager refused to back down, quoting a 1984 high court ruling from Mr Justice Latey, in which he described the Church of Scientology as a "cult" ... The City of London police came under fire two years ago when it emerged that more than 20 officers, ranging from constable to chief superintendent, had accepted gifts worth thousands of pounds from the Church of Scientology. The City of London Chief Superintendent, Kevin Hurley, praised Scientology for "raising the spiritual wealth of society" during the opening of its headquarters in 2006. Last year a video praising Scientology emerged featuring Ken Stewart, another of the City of London's chief superintendents via
posted by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 on May 21, 2008 - 128 comments

Former 'poster boy for Scientology,' Jason Beghe, OTV, Class V auditor, and seasoned character actor speaks out in a two hour interview about his experience as a celebrity in the CoS. [more inside]
posted by brain cloud on Apr 21, 2008 - 37 comments

If you have missed knowing about the 'declaration of war' from Anonymous, Jess Lee does a good job of summarizing the story. In short: some people don't like the Church of Scientology and have been waging a virtual war on the Church's various electronic presences. After some of that, someone called for a live action: protesting in front of CoS facilities. It happened this weekend. [more inside]
posted by phearlez on Feb 11, 2008 - 169 comments

"From somewhere around 110,000 trillion trillion years ago" Scientology, a very litigious and secretive group had their website hacked recently and some documents have made it on to the web. The /i/nsurgency haxorz (a splinter group of the famous Anon folks) are claiming responsibility. This is part of an ongoing war of sorts. Also, a helpful Scientology acronym guide of sorts. [more inside]
posted by lattiboy on Jan 21, 2008 - 121 comments

Nutjobfilter. Tom Cruise on Scientology. It's one link to a video, but it's one link to a video that you really should watch.
posted by Optamystic on Jan 15, 2008 - 311 comments

Germany Seeks to Ban Scientology
posted by chuckdarwin on Dec 7, 2007 - 144 comments

This man is an on-duty BBC reporter, doing his best to make a Scientologist admit to brainwashing. The video was ended up on YouTube after being sent around by the Scientologists, so the BBC try to retaliate. Here's the reporter's explanation.
posted by cillit bang on May 13, 2007 - 151 comments

The Beginner's Guide to L Ron Hubbard. A surprisingly sympathetic look at the cultists everyone loves to hate. Or more specifically their slightly less crazy splinter church.
posted by mock on Feb 11, 2007 - 152 comments

To celebrate Tom Cruise's wedding, ABC News reprints the 1992 Ted Koppel interview with Cruise's best man, and spiritual leader, Religious Technology Center chairman David Miscavige. It was his first and last significant interview, and you can see why.
posted by Arcaz Ino on Nov 18, 2006 - 81 comments

Scientology nearly ready to unveil "super power."
posted by tranquileye on Aug 29, 2006 - 95 comments

"I ask, what is his real agenda? What is he trying to do? Is this how you treat artists? If I were another actor or filmmaker, would I work at a studio that takes one of their greatest assets and publicly does this?"
posted by wfc123 on Aug 23, 2006 - 39 comments

From organically-farming Zen centers to celebrity-cultivating Scientology centres^TM, California is a seedbed of the most earnest (and most frivolous or worse) branches of spiritual inquiry. What's in the water in the Golden State that has made it The Visionary State? In an interview with editor Geoff Manaugh of the excellent BLDGBLOG, author Erik Davis -- whose published passions have ranged from an analysis of Philip K. Dick's "divine invasions" to erudite musings on Led Zeppelin's fourth album to an ode to the joys of being a teenage bongeur -- talks about the formerly chic devil-worshipper Anton LaVey, Beat Zen, Aldous Huxley, the Watts Towers, and beyond, with great photos by Michael Rauner, who collaborated with Davis on the new book.
posted by digaman on Aug 10, 2006 - 30 comments

Xenu's chariot. Gentlemen, ignite your potential start your Thetans.
posted by caddis on Jun 8, 2006 - 18 comments

Did Isaac Hayes really quit South Park? Last night's show roasted Hayes for his irate departure following the now-infamous Scientology episode (banned from the air in Tom Cruise's litigious wake, full episode here). In the latest episode, masters of subtlety Trey Parker and Matt Stone depict Chef as having fallen prey to an insidious cult, the "Super Adventure Club", subsequently killing him off in a manner that would make Kenny jealous. But today FoxNews reports that Isaac Hayes has been in the hospital since Jan. 17th, following a stroke, and never issued a statement. Apparently, the Scientology Center issued it "for" him. [via] [previously discussed here here and here]
posted by mowglisambo on Mar 23, 2006 - 81 comments

It might not be funny, but it's true. An educational episode of South Park, via Waxy.org.
posted by mokey on Mar 19, 2006 - 111 comments

Isaac Hayes Quits 'South Park' Forgive the link to Fox News, however it is an AP story.
posted by Tablecrumbs on Mar 14, 2006 - 102 comments

Scientology has a plausible explanation for everything they do -- that's the genius of it," says Sara. "But make no mistakes: Scientology is brainwashing." [Previous MeFi Scientology Threads]
posted by nuclear_soup on Mar 1, 2006 - 105 comments

Psychiatry: an Industry of Death. That's the name of Hollywood's newest museum, kicked off in style by Lisa Marie Presley, Priscilla Presley, Giovanni Ribisi, Jenna Elfman and other celebs. It's sponsored by the Citizens Commission on Human Rights, a "psychiatric watchdog group" sponsored by guess who.
posted by gottabefunky on Dec 27, 2005 - 95 comments

There's been alot of discussion, both in the mainstream media and in a plethora of links here on MeFi, about the Christian Right's view on the issues of gay marriage and abortion. But what of The Church of Scientology? Well, as it turns out, they're not big fans. But much like Christianity, there is apparently a 'moderate' Scientology as well, and at least one ex-member argues that Scientology has no strong edicts in regards to gay marriage. An interesting insight into how a big ticket issue is considered and debated within one of the world's major cults.
posted by Effigy2000 on Nov 21, 2005 - 35 comments

Penthouse Interview with L. Ron Hubbard Jr Chilling interview with the son of Scientology's founder.
posted by konolia on Nov 18, 2005 - 109 comments

Those crazy Scientologists are at it again. This time, a New Zealand website owner has been ordered to relinquish his clever domain name, scienTOMogy.info under threat of legal action. The site, an ugly-looking collection of links to other Scientology-debunking websites, serves as a clearinghouse for information about one of the church's most notorious members, Tom Cruise. CoS claims the domain is similar enough to their official website address to be confusing to Internet users.
posted by wakko on Oct 19, 2005 - 42 comments

This fall, Professor Tom Cruise will favor us with a four-part lecture series on The Modern Science of Mental Health. Personally, I'm looking forward to "Diagnosis and Treatment of So-Called Clinical Depression with the Hubbard Mark Super VII Quantum Electropsychometer", which may well be on its way to becoming the most downloaded video ever, after Triumph and that Star Wars kid. [via]
posted by mowglisambo on Sep 27, 2005 - 75 comments

Tom Cruise Is Nuts dot com.
posted by fandango_matt on Jul 9, 2005 - 65 comments

Here's an account of conditions and abuse in a Scientology prison camp. Considering Scientology's philosophy, the use of prisons and slave labor (often used for the benefit of celebrities) shouldn't be surprising. (for these links, you may need a good dictionary)
posted by pandaharma on Jun 24, 2005 - 55 comments

Has anyone else noticed actor Tom Cruise going more and more wacky in public? Is his love affair with the hot-young-actress really a sham? Is this a PR stunt run dangerously wild, or Scientology in action? Oprah's scared, are you? The folks at FreeKatie.net think you should be.
posted by BrodieShadeTree on Jun 14, 2005 - 109 comments

Scientology extends a tentacle into public schools. Just as adults can have a hard time getting drug treatments without a heavy dose of Jebus, now the Scientologists are trying to cut in earlier and give school kids a heavy dose of L. Ron via the drug prevention program Narcanon, provided free to schools.
posted by badstone on Jun 9, 2004 - 31 comments

Self-help equals self-harm? Are self-help books harmful rather than helpful? This article argues that dissatisfaction with one's abilities and achievements will not not be helped by affirmations of self-worth. Nor will we succeed in coping with the bitter feelings for those who have wronged us by practing the "anger therapy" of slamming a punching bag. [More Inside]
posted by gregb1007 on Dec 1, 2003 - 24 comments

Oh... the evils of psychotherapy. And they are many - by turning to therapists, we don't get the strong emotional bonds that are the benefit of sharing your trouble with friends. (More Inside)
posted by gregb1007 on Nov 18, 2003 - 35 comments

You too can discover the wonders of Scientology. Please take with you this educational material straight from the 70's. [via Daypop]
posted by Dr_Octavius on Jun 26, 2003 - 27 comments

Tom Cruise is lobbying politicians for money. Will the story ofXenu be taught in schools? Will our govenrment fund it? Will the Thetans ever recover their god-like powers?

What does The Church of Scientology need money from the Government for? Is the most expensive religion in the world running out of money from Suing and Harrassing everyone who speaks out against Scientology?
posted by da5id on Jun 19, 2003 - 30 comments

The non-serious voice of Scientology? Scientology apparently used to have a sense of humor. Make sure to check out the cover art! (via boing boing)
posted by padraigin on Apr 9, 2003 - 15 comments

ScientologyWatch.org - a blog that's sure to bug Norwegian fishermen, Brazilian soccer players, Japanese businessmen, Greek artists and Italian educators. [Link via Politech]
posted by boost ventilator on Mar 3, 2003 - 23 comments

Diana Hsieh, a blogger in California, is being sued for suggesting that a link exists between Scientology and Front Sight, the largest firearms training facility in the country. Now another site is being threatened with legal action by Front Sight, because of negative comments posted by users on their message board. Light of Reason has some well-written entries about these events (search for "scientology" on their page).
posted by TreeHugger on Nov 15, 2002 - 8 comments

Google censors search results "Google, the world's most popular search engine, has quietly deleted more than 100 controversial sites from some search result listings. "
posted by mert on Oct 24, 2002 - 53 comments

Church of Scientology rewrites history. Archive.org, a site which archives the Internet for historical purposes, has been forced to block ALL archived material for Xenu.net, which contains "copyrighted" church information. The DMCA requires an immediate takedown of this kind of content, but it can be restored rapidly if the content owner (xenu.net? Archive.org?) appeals the decision and decides to fight the ruling. If so, it could be the undoing of the CoS, whose copyrights are highly suspect. Until now, the cost of fighting the CoS has forced defendants to settle, but there are good people out there who might see this as the perfect opportunity to act. Anyone up for a little pro bono work?!
posted by insomnia_lj on Sep 21, 2002 - 27 comments

A man and his Church A fascinating case history of a big dot com company and the Scientology Church. What does it tell us?
posted by Postroad on Jun 3, 2002 - 6 comments

$cientology pays up for once. Lawrence Wollersheim won a case in 1986 against Co$ regarding abusive treatment, but it's taken 16 years for him to get paid. "Show me the money," indeed. (more inside)
posted by PeteyStock on May 15, 2002 - 3 comments

Google runs into Copyright Dispute... Does the Church of Scientology have a leg to stand on in suiing Google for linking to church documents? Be sure to check out Operation Clambake, the site in question who claims all documentation on their site is ", is allowable under the "fair use" provisions of internationally recognized copyright law". If it is truly a question of copyright, shouldn't the Scientologists be suing the site in question and not Google???? When Google removed the link, it outraged the technology community - can Google win in this case??? Check out what Don Marti has to say about the issue...
posted by gloege on Apr 22, 2002 - 1 comment

Earthlink founding investor Reed Slatkin to plead guilty of defrauding over 800 people out of $254 million in a Ponzi scheme. Several of the victims were members of the Church of Scientology, where he was a minister. Oh, and he filed for bankruptcy too so there's no chance for reparations... I don't know how to feel!
posted by kfury on Mar 27, 2002 - 10 comments

Google rejects AdWords critical of Scientology. I hate this topic but I can't leave it alone. Google is being accused of being overly cautious in all its dealings with Scientology. A Google rep is quoted to say that they are under no pressure from Scientology to reject the ads. (more inside)
posted by maudlin on Mar 27, 2002 - 25 comments

Google restores Xenu.net's webpages back into its index. It looks like this was all started by Scientologists armed with the DMCA which makes an ISP liable for not only its content (cache) but also to where it links! Considering xenu.net is overseas and not subject to US law, this looked like a very easy way for the CoS to silence its critics. In the meantime anti-CoS geeks are buying up adwords on google to celebrate. [google search using just the word Scientology] Refresh a couple time to see the ads.
posted by skallas on Mar 21, 2002 - 7 comments