Aerial View was WFMU’s first regularly-scheduled phone-in talk show. Hosted by Chris T. and on the air since 1989, the show features topical conversation, interviews and many trips down the rabbit hole. Until further notice, Aerial View is only available as a podcast, available every Tuesday morning. Subscribe to the newsletter “See You Next Tuesday!” and find tons of archives at aerialview.me. (Visit homepage.)

March 24, 2015: We Are A Dangerous Cult.

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View this in your browser. Tonight: We Are A Dangerous Cult. No, not WFMU. We're a largely harmless cult. I'm talking about Scientology. Tonight on Aerial View I'll be joined by special guest Tony Ortega, executive editor of Raw Story and former editor of the Village Voice, who's been investigating Scientology for twenty years and whose website The Underground Bunker documents the outrages of the "Church". Tony's new book - The Unbreakable Miss Lovely - is about the journalist Paulette Cooper, who exposed inner workings of the church only to experience Scientology's full wrath in a coordinated "Fair Game" campaign to ruin her life. Tony can also be seen in Alex Gibney's Scientology documentary Going Clear (based on the Lawrence Wright 2013 book of the same name), debuting on HBO this Sunday, March 29. Thanks. Thanks a lot! To everyone who pledged to Aerial View I offer my heartfelt thanks and humble appreciation. It means so much to me to hear your kind words about my show but we can't keep the lights on without the cash. Keep an eye on your mailbox for info about choosing prizes and submitting your pledge.  To everyone listening to the show who didn't pledge: I'm sure you have your reasons why but I don't know what those are. Care to share? Or, if you're thinking you'd like to change course and kick in, click on the pledge box below. Extra-special thanks to Listener Marcel, who adopted me for the next year. I look forward to all of our heart-to-heart adopter/adoptee talks and our trips to the ice cream parlor, ballpark and boat show. Don't Go, Godzilla! Click the screen grab above and go to 1:30:42 to see me singing Godzilla with the Hoof & Mouth Sinfonia at Sunday night's WFMU Marathon Finale. Or click right here to play the audio. As always, the finale was one hell of a party and I'd like to thank everyone who put it together but especially the band, led by Scott "H & M Meister" Williams. Artist Track Album Label Year Format Comments Images New * / Special *** Approx. start time Jonny Chris T. Greenwood  The Aerial View Master   → "The Aerial View Master" by "Jonny Chris T. Greenw... Aerial View Intros    2012  WAV          <-- Previous playlist | Back to Aerial View playlists | Next playlist --> RSS feeds for Aerial View: Playlists feed | MP3 archives feed | Email the Program Director | Other WFMU Playlists | All artists played by Aerial View | Listen on the Internet | Contact Us | Music & Programs | WFMU Home Page | Support Us | FAQ Live Audio Streams for WFMU: Pop-up | 128k AAC | 128k MP3 | 32k MP3    (More streams: [+]) Give the Drummer Radio: Pop-up | 128k MP3 Rock'N'Soul Radio: Pop-up | 128k MP3 Sheena's Jungle Room: Pop-up | 128k MP3 Listener comments! 6:04pm → Marshall Stacks: Excited to learn more about my favorite cult (next to WFMU, of course)! 6:04pm → Ken From Hyde Park: The part where the voice interjects "Showtime!" cracks me up, as does the barking dog near the end. Nice work at Hoof And Mouth the other night, Chris. 6:05pm → Greg from Bloomfield: Evening, Chris! Loved The Master, loved Going Clear, anticipating loving the HBO doc. 6:07pm → Marshall Stacks: Janet Reitman's Inside Scientology, which came out around the same time as Larry Wright's book, is also very good. 6:09pm → DanH: @Marshall Stacks, WFMU is not a cult. It's a way of life.   6:10pm → Matt in Hillsborough: i've got both going clear (book on cd) and jon krakauer's under the banner of heaven (the actual book, about fundamentalist mormonism) checked out from my library. this stuff is giving me the willies!   6:10pm → new listener guy: Oh my god!!! He's going to talk about Scientology. I'm going to go hide in my closet   6:11pm → Matt in Hillsborough: hey, i think i just listened to that disc (that that clip was taken from) today   6:12pm → Jess: Ask the guest about the number of members. The CoS says one thing but it is suspected that it is much less.   6:13pm → new listener guy: They may not be as big but their people are everywhere! 6:14pm → Marcel M: Chris! My son! Awesome guest and topic! Been looking forward to this. Hi all.   6:14pm → new listener guy: I'd rather be a prisoner of Isis than the Scientologists   6:14pm → V Priceless: Hey Chris! Great interview! L. Ron was a Mellotron owner. Ha!   6:15pm → ?: @nlg: that's not using your head, that's losing your head   6:16pm → new listener guy: They scare the bejesus out of me you never knew who is one and who isn't   6:17pm → new listener guy: Most staffers in the pentagon are Scientologists need I say more 6:18pm → tomasz.: i guess what i wonder is, is Scientology on the wane a bit these days? perhaps the guest will talk about this anyway 6:19pm → Marshall Stacks: @nlg - I thought the Pentagon people were Grey Aliens - not so? 6:19pm → steve: where's IX Key? he was once a Scientologist and told some absolutely crazy stories on the comments a while ago...   6:20pm → CDToaster: "Seducted" by that? I think you meant, "Seduced."   6:20pm → new listener guy: I remember hearing a radio interview and the person said most if not all pentagon staffers are followers of Scientology 6:21pm → Mike Sin: I found "The Master" incredibly intelligent. Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix really delivered. 6:21pm → Marshall Stacks: @nlg - I stand corrected. 6:22pm → Marcel M: Wow 14 hour difference for adults.. 6:22pm → chris: Paul Haggis essay: tonyortega.org... 6:23pm → common: wow! this is great! my friend snuck a video camera into the church of scientology in the 90s and got some crazy footage. we were in a band and she wrote an awesome song about it. 6:23pm → chris: I'm with you, Mike. The Master was an intelligent, compelling, well acted film.   6:24pm → new listener guy: You could have a church where you do nothing but get high and eat melted chocolate all over your body and the stupid ass republicans will say "hey it's religious freedom" 6:24pm → chris: we want links to the video, common! ;-) 6:25pm → common: @chris: i'll have to contact her. she actually worked for the village voice. 6:25pm → dale: i worked on broadway and 50th street back in the 80s. if i went out for a lunchtime walk and headed west the scientologists were all on 50th street where there headquarters were and politely hassled people. hubbard had just died but they went on and never even acknowledged his passing 6:26pm → dale: ..THEIR headquarters..   6:27pm → new listener guy: No one in Hollywood would dare say one word against l Ron Hubbard and dianetics.   6:28pm → LES: Why do so many musicians and actors get mixed up with this church Tony?   6:29pm → new listener guy: @chris after the show check your car from head to toe! Don't let anyone get behind you when your walking the street   6:29pm → Peter: Tony do you think Scientology will be around in the next 10 years? And if not how would they go away? 6:30pm → tomasz.: LES that's a good question yeah   6:30pm → new listener guy: They are fanatical but cases! The as gestapo would be proud of them 6:33pm → common: hey tomasz. i know this has nothing to do with scientology, but did you win knuckles? 6:33pm → tomasz.: @common, ha ha, no, i wish. i'm just paying tribute to him (i nicked the photo from the FMU website)   6:34pm → new listener guy: Al Queda is less fanatacle than those who follow Scientology   6:34pm → P-90: awwwww...Knuckles go bye-bye 6:34pm → common: @tomasz: nice! 6:35pm → ! I X Key !: They say there are 8 million members, but there are only a few thousand.   6:35pm → new listener guy: @chris when you go home don't drink anything! Throw everything out in your fridge even if it's not opened, they have ways! 6:36pm → chris: the grounds of my compound are constantly patrolled by bomb-sniffing emperor penguins... i'm not worried, nlg   6:36pm → P-90: $30,000?! Is that covered under Obamacare?   6:36pm → Listener Robert: Thiamine would be good for alcoholics. Niacin wouldn't hurt too, in normal amounts, maybe even amounts sufficient to cause flushing, but not really big doses. 6:37pm → tomasz.: i suppose this kind of answers LES' question 6:37pm → chris: oh, you are probably talking to Chris T... yeah, he has 24/7 personal body guards 6:37pm → common: knuckles protects me always...and others.   6:37pm → new listener guy: @chris you don't know how determined these people are! 6:38pm → chris: *nothing* gets past the penguins, man... the grounds are a blood bath 6:38pm → common: perfect chris!   6:39pm → JakeGould: Anyone who tells you they will give you freedom by you following them is just a controller looking to control you. I learned that the hard way via a bad T-Mobile plan I got snookered into. 6:39pm → Stepchild: ! 6:40pm → Ken From Hyde Park: For better or worse, most of what I know about Scientology is from what I saw on a South Park episode.   6:40pm → new listener guy: Once your in you never get out! The only way is to die! 6:41pm → Stepchild: Everything I know came from The Hafler Trio 6:41pm → chris: i didn't say there weren't down sides, nlg   6:42pm → JakeGould: “Once your in you never get out! The only way is to die!” You too? “Friends and Family” plan? 6:42pm → common: holy shit stepchild! some very important things from them came to my life!   6:42pm → new listener guy: I'll bet you anything Lois Lerner is a Scientologists   6:45pm → LES: They are tax exempt?   6:45pm → new listener guy: I had a YouTube account and I made some comments against the dianetics videos! And then next day my account was suspended   6:45pm → V Priceless: Another secret society   6:47pm → P-90: I've known a few genuine Scientologists, their thoughts never seemed to have any mass 6:47pm → tomasz.: counterpoint: his odious MRA motivational speaker in "Magnolia" 6:48pm → tomasz.: i meant PUA, obviously, welp   6:48pm → new listener guy: Tom cruises mission is to ruin every movie he's been in! Like will smith   6:48pm → JakeGould: tomasz.: “Respect the cock?”   6:50pm → new listener guy: Small number of people BUT they are all in top level positions 6:53pm → Stepchild: No, they aren't 6:53pm → common: ah, humans are quite insane. myself included. 6:53pm → Stepchild: Bingo   6:54pm → Listener Robert: Now see, THIS is the kind of Aerial View that attracted me to the program years ago, & that I hope to hear more of in the future. Thanks, Mr. T.   6:54pm → new listener guy: Don't underestimate them!   6:55pm → V Priceless: Religion is insane 6:55pm → common: agreed, vp   6:56pm → new listener guy: Last time I was in a church they threw me out for wearing the wrong clothes 6:56pm → Skurky: Oh the Catholics would always tell us "Virgin Mary" you just didn't know what that meant for 15 years because of the evil evil sex.   6:56pm → JakeGould: @VPriceless: Orthodoxy is insane. The need for people to be told they have individual freedom is insane. The hatred towards the self that breeds this B.S. is something I will never understand.   6:57pm → Marcel M: Awesome show Chris!!!! 6:57pm → tomasz.: this has been a great show guys 6:58pm → common: yea, thanks chris! 6:58pm → steve: yes great interview thx chris t 6:58pm → Stepchild: Fabulous show Chris! 6:59pm → Caryn: Nice show, Chris!   6:59pm → V Priceless: Good discussion all! Thanks CT   6:59pm → P-90: Thanks Chris and Tony! 7:00pm → dale: let's delve into the cult of weight watchers next week.   7:00pm → LES: ChrisT does it again. Best talk. Important show tonight. Do another part soon.   9:32am → tw: I could have listened to 3 hours of this. Fascinating discussion. Comment! Name Email ✖ Re To songs (C) 2024 WFMU. Generated by KenzoDB, written 2000-2024 by Ken Garson To Comments!