{"store":{"baseInfo":{"podcastTitle":"Speaking of Cults","slug":"ChrisSheltonMsc","podcastDescription":"A podcast about cults, coercive control and recovery. Formerly called the Sensibly Speaking podcast, in this weekly show host Chris Shelton interviews cult survivors, psychologists and other professionals and specialists about the topics of cult recruitment, retention and recovery. This also includes non-religious cults and extreme political movements including the more divisive elements of MAGA and left-wing culture war issues. There is nothing off-limits but we always try to be respectful of the people involved even if we do not respect the beliefs or actions involved.","podcastLogo":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/17280792/SoC-square-logo.jpg","podcastShareLogo":"https://d2bwo9zemjwxh5.cloudfront.net/image-logo/17280792/SoC-square-logo_1200x628.jpg?s=b081c31436ca14849f66a03740ccbeb8&e=jpg","podcastUrl":"https://www.speakingofcults.com","podcastCanSearched":true,"feedUrl":"https://www.speakingofcults.com/feed.xml","theme":"podisc","podcastDeepLink":"https://www.podbean.com/pw/pbblog-feavt-107af18?from=usersite","removePodbeanBranding":"no","brandingLogo":null,"timeZone":{"timeZoneId":9,"gmtAdjustment":"GMT-07:00","useDaylightTime":1,"value":-7,"text":"(GMT-07:00) Mountain Time (US & Canada)","daylightStartTime":"Second Sunday Of March +2 Hours","daylightEndTime":"First Sunday Of November +2 Hours","timezone":"America/Denver"},"podcastDownloads":null,"totalEpisodes":376,"showComments":true,"iOSAppDownloadLink":null,"customizeCssUrl":null,"androidAppDownloadLink":null,"showPostShare":true,"showLike":true,"author":"Chris Shelton","enableEngagementStats":true,"shareEmbedLink":"https://admin5.podbean.com/embed.html?id=pbblog-feavt-107af18-playlist","language":"en","sensitivitySessionExpireTime":3600,"podcastApps":[{"name":"Apple Podcasts","link":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-sensibly-speaking-podcast/id1030984057","image":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/fs1/site/images/admin5/apple-podcast.png","title":null},{"name":"Podbean App","link":"https://www.podbean.com/pw/pbblog-feavt-107af18?from=usersite","image":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/fs1/site/images/admin5/podbean-app.png","title":null},{"name":"Spotify","link":"https://open.spotify.com/show/5xKCBOQMYaMUvd0l25L4eL","image":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/fs1/site/images/admin5/spotify.png","title":null},{"name":"Amazon Music","link":"https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/bdb16444-5e14-4f83-b2cd-8971b8819ebd/the-sensibly-speaking-podcast","image":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/fs1/site/images/admin5/AmazonMusic.png","title":null},{"name":"iHeartRadio","link":"https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-the-sensibly-speaking-podc-70651961/","image":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/fs1/site/images/admin5/iHeartRadio.png","title":null},{"name":"PlayerFM","link":"https://player.fm/series/the-sensibly-speaking-podcast","image":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/fs1/site/images/admin5/PlayerFM.png","title":null},{"name":"Listen Notes","link":"https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-sensibly-speaking-podcast-the-sensibly-t0v7zMVw1sU/","image":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/fs1/site/images/admin5/ListenNotes.png","title":null},{"name":"Podchaser","link":"https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/the-sensibly-speaking-podcast-198440","image":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/fs1/site/images/admin5/Podchaser.webp","title":null}],"components":{"base":[{"id":"MainStyle","val":"dark"},{"id":"Font","val":"EB Garamond"},{"id":"SecondaryFont","val":"PT Sans"},{"id":"PlayerColor","val":"#FFCE00"},{"id":"Favicon","val":null},{"id":"CookiesNotice","val":"hide"},{"id":"CookiesNoticeContent","val":"

Cookies Notice

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Your Host

Hello, my name is Chris Shelton and I am an author, consultant, podcaster, videographer, and former cult member. Welcome to my podcast!

Who is Chris Shelton?

Chris started a YouTube channel which has over 45,000 subscribers, produces the Sensibly Speaking podcast each week and has produced hundreds of videos laying out the scam of Scientology, educating on critical thinking and interviewing former members of Scientology and other destructive cults, as well as a range of therapists, cult exit counselors, educators and media personalities. Chris has also given talks and presentations around the United States about his experiences and has been featured on numerous podcasts and television shows. He was featured on Leah Remini’s Scientology and the Aftermath on A&E and served as a consultant to the show for its first two seasons. He has also written a critical analysis of Scientology and L. Ron Hubbard called Scientology: A to Xenu – An Insider’s Guide to What Scientology is Really All About, available on Amazon in printed form, e-book format and as an audio book.

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This week I am talking about how responsibility, causation and blame are used by cult leaders/predators to psychologically enslave their targets with guilt and gaslighting and how this can create not only unrealistic expectations or goals but can trap a person in a prison of belief.

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Speaking of Cults...The Blame Game and "Being Cause"