Sarah Edmondson, Part 2 - DOS, Disillusionment, and Leaving Keith Raniere

Sophie Fergi, Part 1 - Kidfluencing, Joining the Squad, and the Dark Side of YouTube

This week is part one with Sophie Fergi, former child influencer who told her story in the Netflix docuseries Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing. In this episode, she explains how she first met YouTube kidfluencer Piper Rockelle, and how Piper’s mom Tiffany formed the “Squad,” a group of children making content together for their YouTube channels. Sophie will share what it was like to film the videos, which included fake challenges, fake crushes and relationships, and carefully curated drama that blurred the line between reality and performance, and how she began to see red flags with Tiffany, who created characters - based on family animals - which she used to speak inappropriately to the kids. Next week, she’ll talk about moving in with Tiffany and Piper, and how everything began to escalate. See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

Jasper Hoffman, Part 2 - Undercover Therapy, Leaving the Mennonites, and the Aftermath

This week, the girls are back with Jasper Hoffman, writer, podcaster, and former Mennonite. In part two today, Jasper explains what the perfect Mennonite woman looked like, how concerns were raised when she wasn't compliant enough, and how over time she became depressed and developed an eating disorder in response to the pressures of the group. She’ll share how her mom secretly found her a therapist on the outside, even though it was against the rules, and how that therapist helped her write a letter to withdraw her membership, which led to the harassment of her family. We’ll talk about how she tried to go back after she left but realized she really didn’t belong, and why she started the Plain People’s Podcast. SOURCES The Plain People's Podcast [https://www.theplainpeoplespodcast.com/] See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

Jasper Hoffman, Part 1 - From Atheists to Mennonites

This week, the girls are joined by Jasper Hoffman, writer, podcaster, and former Mennonite. In part one, she explains how her parents went from a being punk rock atheist and an anthropology major to homesteading, homeschooling, and going to church: first a non-denominational one, and then a Mennonite church that came to town for “Revival Week” when Jasper was a kid. She’ll describe how it then escalated to her family moving to the Midwest, getting rid of all of their material possessions, and committing wholeheartedly to being Mennonites, with redacted encyclopedias and physical punishment in the basement for children who were considered rebellious–and why she was forbidden from going back to school. Plus, stay tuned for part two next week, in which she tells her story of leaving the church. SOURCES The Plain People's Podcast [https://www.theplainpeoplespodcast.com/] See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

Dr. Christine Marie - Undercover in a Cult Town: Taking Down False Prophet Sam Bateman

This week, Lola’s mom Dr. Christine Marie (and the podcast’s very first guest!) comes back on the show to talk about moving to FLDS town Short Creek, how she and Lola’s stepdad Tolga earned the trust of new self-proclaimed polygamist prophet Sam Bateman, and what else was going on behind the scenes of what’s in the Netflix docuseries Trust Me: The False Prophet. She’ll tell the girls about her frustrations with the speed of the case, what it was like going undercover with the FBI, the bravery of all of the women involved, and being there for the raid that finally landed him in prison for sexual abuse. See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

Nikki G, Part 2 - The Seven Mountain Mandate, “Church Hurt,” and Why Cults Aren’t Just a White People Problem

In part two with Nikki G., she discusses more of the high-control groups she joined, the political project of the Seven Mountain Mandate that she was part of, the connection between biblical concepts of obedience and white supremacy, and how everyone joins cults, even if white people are the biggest group talking about it. Plus, the difference between “church hurt” and religious trauma. SOURCES Surviving the Black Church Podcast [https://survivingtheblackchurch.buzzsprout.com/] Black Religious Trauma Recovery Network [https://www.blackreligioustraumarecoverynetwork.com/] Nikki G. Speaks [https://www.nikkigspeaks.com/] See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.