'I had my first nightmare in years': Man who watched Scientology Network for 24 HOURS reviews the shows he saw, revealing channel is full of 'agonizingly boring' and 'offensive' content
Daily Mail, UK/March 21, 2018
By Aoibhinn McBride
A man has revealed what he learned about Scientology after watching Scientology TV for 24 hours straight.
Detailing his experience for Vice, writer Jamie Lee Curtis Taete explained that he wanted to learn more about the controversial religion as all his information had previously come from the documentary Going Clear, South Park and Leah Rimini's show Scientology and the Aftermath.
'And a lot of what you hear about Scientology is mockery, or criticism for the many, many f*cked up things the church has done,' he wrote.
'I’ve probably been exposed to more of Scientology’s words than the average person, because I’ve written about them and read their books and visited their buildings.
'But the vast majority of things I’ve seen about Scientology have come from non-Scientologists so he decided to tune into the new TV station to try and get a better insight into the religion from a Scientologists perspective,' he added.
Listing the shows he watched during the 24 hour period, Taete revealed he watched mostly the same shows on repeat as the new network 'loves to repeat stuff'.
The first thing he watched was a show called Inside Scientology, introduced by head of the church, David Miscavige.
The writer shared that Miscavige admitted that the show was targeted towards non-Scientologists, however Taete found it so 'jargon-heavy', he deemed it too difficult to understand for any non-Scientologists.
However, as the show was replayed several times throughout the 24 hour period, he started to make better sense of the content and realized it was trying to explain how Scientology could 'get you a better job' and 'make you look five to ten years younger'.
The next show Taete watched was called Meet a Scientologist and featured Greg and Janet Deering, a couple who own a banjo business that has provided instruments for Taylor Swift, the Dixie Chicks and Mumford and Sons.
However, Taete wasn't impressed by the content.
'Was it interesting to hear about how there was a point in time where banjos almost died out and these guys helped to repopularize them? Definitely!' he said of the show.
'Was it interesting to hear that Janet once went on a road trip with Greg's mother, or that Janet's dad worked as a wind tunnel operator, or that Greg once designed a banjo inspired by Woody Harrelson's character in Zombieland? Absolutely not.'
The next program on the list was a show named Principles of Scientology, which aims to teach people 'you are not your body'.
Next on the list was a show named Destination: Scientology, which suggested that the church decided to open a community center in Inglewood in 2011 to try and heal the scars left by the LA riots in 1992.
'I'm fairly sure the implication was that Scientology is the reason that the rioting that happened in Ferguson didn't spread nationwide? But I'm also just confused,' he wrote.
Taete also watched a show called Voices for Humanity which discussed the presence of Scientology in Columbia.
However, he deemed it 'offensive' after he realized it suggested that Scientology was responsible for a reduction in crime and murders in the region.
He explained: 'They seemed to be saying that the people of Colombia were unable to figure out that murdering or beating or robbing someone was bad until Scientologists gave them a pamphlet telling them that human rights are actually good.'
Another program he watched was L. Ron Hubbard: In His Own Voice and L. Ron Hubbard Library Presents.
'Lumping' these two shows together, Taete explained that he had done this because they were 'essentially the same show'.
He also noted that these shows seemed to contradict the way the organization runs itself and its followers by claiming L.Ron Hubbard was 'appalled that universities and religious institutions don't give out their information freely'.
However, it was at this point that Taete noted that the church was also behind an attempt to frame journalist Paulette Cooper in a bomb plot because she wrote critically about them, seemingly contradicting everything the show said.
He also found the message that 'all men have inalienable rights to think freely, to talk freely, to write freely their own opinions, and to counter or utter or write upon the opinions of others' contradictory.
Next on the list was another documentary style show called I Am a Scientologist, which Taeste described as the 'worst show on the channel'.
Outlining it as 'agonizingly boring', the show's simple concept revolved around various members of the church from around the world telling the camera how Scientology had saved their lives and helped their careers.
The final show he watched was called Common Sense for Life, a 'super dramatic' film based on a booklet written by L.Ron Hubbard called The Way to Happiness.
However, overcome with fatigue, the writer kept drifting in and out of sleep so didn't get to see the film in full.
Taete also included the kinds of commercials he witnessed while watching the TV station, and revealed that Scientology TV only played ads that dealt with Scientology or Scientology-related organizations.
'As the shows themselves are basically commercials for Scientology, it meant that, at times, I was in a commercial break, from a commercial, watching a commercial for an upcoming commercial,' he explained.
In conclusion, he detailed that following his 24-hour TV binge, he had his first nightmare 'in years'.
'An apocalyptic black cloud had enveloped my neighborhood, trapping me inside my house. Then I discovered a man had broken in and started putting up advertising posters in my living room. I noticed a cop outside, and called for help.
'But when he came inside my house, he started sticking up posters too,' he shared.
'I'm not sure if Scientology inspired it, but it felt poignant,' he added.
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