Cults, Culture & Coercion with Dr. Steve Hassan cover art

Cults, Culture & Coercion with Dr. Steve Hassan

Cults, Culture & Coercion with Dr. Steve Hassan

By: MeidasTouch Network Dr. Steven Hassan
Listen for free

About this listen

Steven Hassan, PhD, is one of the leading experts on cults and undue influence in the world. A former member of the right-wing Moonie cult, Hassan was deprogrammed 45 years ago and has dedicated his life to helping people out of cults and destructive situations. Dr. Hassan is a licensed mental health professional and has written four books, including The Cult of Trump and the seminal book Combating Cult Mind Control. On this podcast, Steve will explain HOW mind-control works, and how to protect yourself from its grips. He will also address ethical influence as the podcast will address the entire Influence Continuum. He’ll interview the biggest names in this field.© 2023 Meidas Media Network, Dr. Steven Hassan Personal Development Personal Success Social Sciences
Episodes
  • The cult of Frederick Lenz: The guru who glows gold, shapeshifts, and teaches computer programming, with Jim Picariello
    Dec 11 2025
    What does it feel like when an entire room seems to turn to shimmering gold, and you are certain you have just witnessed a miracle, only to later discover it was a hypnotic illusion? On this episode of Cults, Culture & Coercion, I sit down with my longtime friend, former client, and now colleague, filmmaker Jim Picariello. Thirty years ago, Jim was a devoted follower of Zen Master Rama (Frederick Lenz). His family hired me to help him leave the group, and together we unpacked how hypnotic suggestion, phobia indoctrination, and social pressure created those “supernatural” experiences and kept him trapped in a high-control cult.In this conversation, Jim walks us through his recruitment as an anxious college student, the engineered “golden light” experiences that convinced him Rama was enlightened, and the fears that cut him off from friends and family. We also talk about how his parents and I worked together to reach him ethically, how a single powerful hypnotic demonstration helped break the spell, and what it took for him to rebuild his identity and life on the outside.Today, Jim is a multi-award-winning filmmaker turning his story and decades of cult education into a dark romantic comedy feature called The Cult of Us, about two young people in different cults who fall in love and try to “rescue” each other. Along the way, we explore how fiction can teach people to recognize undue influence, authoritarian leaders, and coercive relationships in a way that is funny, moving, and truly life-saving. If you care about freedom of mind, rising authoritarianism, and how people actually wake up from destructive groups, this is an interview you will want to listen to and share. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
    Show More Show Less
    42 mins
No reviews yet
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.