Taking A BITE Out Of Scientology Part 3 Information Control

 

Information Control

1. Deception: 

   a. Deliberately withhold information 

   b. Distort information to make it more acceptable 

   c. Systematically lie to the cult member 

Scientology really, really scores high here. Almost all the information about it's past and the past of Ron Hubbard is hidden from members. The actual doctrine is released in a very controlled way and over ninety five percent of cult members never see secret upper level doctrine. And much of the doctrine is only revealed to members of specific caste levels for their own functions. The information is routinely distorted so members never realize how much is demanded from them or how they will hurt and deceive others. They get words and ideas twisted with reversals and redefinition so they see evil done for the cult as good and good done against the cult as evil. And they are constantly lied to. The terms engram, reactive mind, dynamics, auditing, and even Dianetics and Scientology themselves have lies in their very definitions. So in using them cult members lie to each other over and over. Lies are the entire foundation of Scientology.
2. Minimize or discourage access to non-cult sources of information, including: 
   a. Internet, TV, radio, books, articles, newspapers, magazines, other media 
   b.Critical information 
   c. Former members 
   d. Keep members busy so they don’t have time to think and investigate 
   e. Control through cell phone with texting, calls, internet tracking 
Scientology again epitomizes cult practices to the extreme.  At first it subtly uses deceit and stereotypes to plant a false history of the media and to make cult members self censor. Online activities are often monitored and rigidly controlled.
In Scientology all critical information is forbidden. Completely. 

Members have to avoid it as much as possible. They are threatened with both expulsion and eternal irrevocable spiritual damnation if they merely look at Facebook posts and like them. Or if they pursue any negative information at all online or through former members. Merely leaving Scientology publicly leaving Scientology is considered a suppressive act and warrants an automatic permanent expulsion with total severing of all relationships to members in good standing. If they don't comply then they too are declared and cut off from all cult members. This sets up huge cascades of entire families being kicked out and losing their friends, jobs, homes and any relatives who stay in the cult. Many people have to pick between a son who leaves the cult and a daughter who stays or half a family that decides to leave the cult and half that stays within. 

Many members who are staff or especially Sea Org members are kept far, far too busy to invest time in looking for the true history of Scientology or Ron Hubbard. They never look at the subjects Hubbard studied or other therapies or schools of philosophy or on the mind. That's entirely intentional. Sea Org members in particular have very extensive surveillance of their online activities and many message boards, Facebook groups and blogs that are critical of Scientology are constantly monitored by the Office Of Special Affairs, aka OSA, the espionage wing of the cult. 
3. Compartmentalize information into Outsider vs. Insider doctrines 
   a. Ensure that information is not freely accessible 
   b.Control information at different levels and missions within group 
   c. Allow only leadership to decide who needs to know what and when 
Scientology has a near total isolation of doctrine into different degrees of access. Many introductory doctrine are very watered down bland versions of much, much more extreme ideas that are gradually revealed and as the cult member progresses the degree of compliance escalates. The meaning is redefined from initial innocent seeming ideas into more fanatical and zealous specific applications. 

Information is difficult to get and separated into information for new members and more experienced ones. Then further for staff and public. Then to staff in and out of OSA. OSA members know lying is required and suborning perjury and manufacturing evidence against enemies to destroy them utterly. They also know that driving enemies to madness or suicide is a routine practice in the cult. Most cult members never see that. 

Sea Org members learn other doctrine that further condemns everyone not in Scientology or the Sea Org. Different parts of the Sea Org have their own doctrine as well. Of course Hubbard reserved the authority over who gets which doctrine for himself. David Miscavige as the new leader has taken absolute power in Scientology for himself and now holds this authority.
4. Encourage spying on other members 
   a. Impose a buddy system to monitor and control member 
   b.Report deviant thoughts, feelings and actions to leadership 
   c. Ensure that individual behavior is monitored by group 
Scientologists are required to constantly spy on each other. Familial relationships or bonds are irrelevant. By convincing the cult members that their highest loyalty must be to the cult and Ron Hubbard it is obvious that this must occur. Also the cult members are convinced the E-meter can detect and find anything hidden in their mind. So they give up privacy and report on each other. In the cult failing to report any of hundreds of acts by another is punishable by their policies. 

A rigid hierarchy with reports being forward up to leaders is in place. Members often are teamed up as twins for courses or auditing as a way to make them monitor and report on one another. The group always evaluates the behavior of members.

Allegedly confidential ethics and counseling folders are actually used to collect intelligence on cult members. The members are told these folders have the protection of a priest penitent privilege like a confession to a priest. Under those circumstances the contents are collected and then shared among others. The ethics section, OSA and higher organizations all may see them and use the information in any way they choose.
5. Extensive use of cult-generated information and propaganda, including: 
   a. Newsletters, magazines, journals, audiotapes, videotapes, YouTube, movies and other media 
   b.Misquoting statements or using them out of context from non-cult sources 

Scientology uses all of the above methods of propaganda. The cult has internal and external videos, magazines, movies, tapes, policies, and other media. They do misquote non-cult sources and take information out of context to make Scientology seem more accepted by outsiders than it truly is.
6. Unethical use of confession 
   a. Information about sins used to disrupt and/or dissolve identity boundaries 
   b. Withholding forgiveness or absolution 
   c. Manipulation of memory, possible false memories
Scientology uses confession in multiple forms to tear down the self confidence of members. The confessionals and overts and witholds write ups are used to destroy the egos of the members. Their entire pasts and values are thrown into doubt by being buried in the emotional discomfort of intense focused attention entirely on their misdeeds and regrets. In this state of diminished confidence and extreme confusion the cult members are vulnerable to suggestion and exploitation.
In Scientology sympathy is strongly discouraged. Members are told to be willing to experience anything and to never seek to be liked or admired. Forgiveness is very, very rare and unfortunately usually insincere.

Regarding creating false memories Scientology likely is more successful and thorough than any other group. In the training routines and auditing a false hypnotic reality is used to induce extreme suggestibility. Members are encouraged to find memories with repetitive questions and extensive doctrine which interprets what they should recall and how recalling it should affect them. They have imagination and recall blurred and mixed. They have hypnotic experiences with euphoria, trance logic and states such as dissociation and care free ecstatic from hypnosis intentionally reframed to deceive them. Then reframed hypnosis is used to alter their memories and recast their entire lives in the concepts of Scientology, particularly for establishing and building the authority of Ron Hubbard over their lives and minds. 

Most methods such as auditing, the training routines and even the basic study technology use very covert methods that require a good grounding in the foundation of hypnosis and cognitive dissonance theory along with particular concepts in social psychology to even examine with an educated opinion. The methods are intentionally well hidden. Some of the methods are more easily revealed. The Truth Rundown mind control method as an example is perhaps one of the most obvious methods of reshaping memories ever created. 

Note: Cult expert Rick Ross recently made the following comment on the origin of the bite model:

Rick Alan Ross  

FYI -- The BITE model is taken from other earlier sources. BITE represents B for behavior as already identified through the academic writings of Singer, Ofshe and others. I is for information as identified by Conway and Siegelman in "Snapping," which they called "Information Disease" (1978). T is for thinking identified by Lifton as thought reform (1961). And finally E is for emotional control, which was identified by Conway and Siegelman in their book "Holy Terror" (1982). I find that acknowledging and using the original material is much better, more precise and useful than spinning it with a new label without proper attribution. It's very important when writing to include footnotes that give proper credit to the originators of ideas and theories by recognizing their hard work and research.