Paul Haggis

Scientology 451: Commenters of the Week!

We used the news from Russia this week as an excuse to mix up a shaker of vodka martinis. After quite a few glasses garnished with olives, we got a bit lightheaded, but we never felt the desire to ban L. Ron Hubbard's books. This was a strange week of Scientology news around the world, but we kept ... More >>

Scientology Hip Hop: The Melbourne Day Rap Battle Team! (UPDATED)

We can't get enough of Scientology's rap videos. The latest comes to us from Melbourne, which has been stepping up its game in a big way lately. We recently published mailers from the Melbourne Ideal Org as it celebrated its first anniversary with parties that looked like they were off the hook. Bu ... More >>

Scientology's OT Powers! A Hubbard Holiday Miracle

Scientology watchers, we have a special treat for you this holiday Monday. Recently, one of our readers who is a longtime former Scientologist mailed us a treasure trove: Copies of early Advance! magazines, a complete run from issue 11 in 1971 to issue 56 in 1979. (That's L. Ron Hubbard's photo of ... More >>

Scientology Sunday Funnies: There's a Chill Down Under!

Scientologists don't really have a Sunday service. They like to say that they do, because they crave mainstream acceptance. But unless Xenu rested after six days and L. Ron Hubbard just forgot to mention it, there's no reason for Scientologists to treat Sunday any differently than every other day of ... More >>

Scientology Campout: Commenters of the Week!

It never seems to be a quiet week here in the underground bunker where we keep an eye on all things Scientology related. The cats had barely settled down from our brief trip to Texas when the bat signal on the Antipodean circuits went off, alerting us to an imminent bombshell. But let's not get ahe ... More >>

Scientology on the High Seas: LRH on the "Wogworld!"

In November we started a new feature here on Fridays: the Voice has obtained hundreds of copies of L. Ron Hubbard's previously unpublished "Orders of the Day," which he gave to crew members as he sailed the Mediterranean. Our documents cover the period from late 1968 through 1971, and this time we'r ... More >>

Scientology's Secret Ranch: Where LRH Will Reincarnate?

Last week, we had a bit of fun publishing detailed maps to Scientology's super-secret underground vault locations. The vaults are the project of the Church of Spiritual Technology, a hush-hush entity inside Scientology that owns the trademarks and copyrights to L. Ron Hubbard's works, and that digs ... More >>

Anonymous vs Scientology: Chanology's Quadrennium in NYC

We got a little confused by the International Dateline and what not -- hey, you try converting Sydney time to New York and see if it doesn't leave you dizzy -- so that big story we were promising today won't be here for another 18 hours or so. In the meantime, we have this short video we pieced toge ... More >>

Scientology Dramaturgy: Commenters of the Week!

Things back at the underground bunker are peaceful and calm -- the cats dig the new scratching post, we hear, and they're finally getting some quiet time while we're on the road frantically trying to keep up with Scientology's ongoing implosion. Things started out quietly enough as we began another ... More >>

Scientology on the High Seas: "You Chilluns Will Get Shoes"

NOTE: This is our regularly-scheduled Friday morning feature about L. Ron Hubbard aboard the Apollo. Our second day of reporting from the Debbie Cook hearing begins soon. Please check back for that coverage. In November we started a new feature here on Fridays: the Voice has obtained hundreds of c ... More >>

Scientology's Secret Vaults: A Rare Interview With a Former Member of Hush-Hush "CST"

Over the years, we've talked to a lot of former Scientologists, many of whom worked at the church's secretive desert headquarters in Southern California, "Int Base." They were cut off from their families and the outside world, and became accustomed to living in secrecy. But even these people adopt ... More >>

Scientology Sunday Funnies: The Denver Miracle!

Scientologists don't really have a Sunday service. They like to say that they do, because they crave mainstream acceptance. But unless Xenu rested after six days and L. Ron Hubbard just forgot to mention it, there's no reason for Scientologists to treat Sunday any differently than every other day of ... More >>

Scientology Jurisprudence: Commenters of the Week!

The underground bunker might need some new paneling after the way we were bouncing off the walls this week. I mean seriously, how are we going to keep up with all of this Scientology news? It's like this is turning into a real job or something. We started off the week with our regular feature, Sund ... More >>

Debbie Cook's Motion Denied: Scientology's Restraining Order Remains in Place Until Thursday Hearing

As we reported yesterday, Debbie Cook, who is being sued by the Church of Scientology for speaking out to her fellow church members in a New Year's Eve e-mail, filed a motion to dissolve a temporary restraining order so broad, it prevented her from hiring an attorney (she hired one anyway) or talkin ... More >>

Scientology Cartoon Tops Reddit: We Talk to its Creator, Abbey Neslen, 18

A "rage comic" created by an 18-year-old college sophomore in Bozeman, Montana has grabbed the attention of Reddit users tonight. At more than 100,000 views, the cartoon, titled "What the Church of Scientology did to my family" is a quick success, and has generated more than 900 comments at this po ... More >>

The 5 Worst Things Judges Have Said About Scientology

How many times do judges have to say this stuff?​Monday evening, we learned that Debbie Cook, who dared to question the health of her religion, is being sued by the Church of Scientology. That night, Joe Childs and Tom Tobin of the Tampa Bay Times broke news of the lawsuit, which alleges that ... More >>

Indiana Senate Votes to Teach Scientology in Schools

UPDATE: We now have an interview with Vi Simpson, the woman who put Scientology (and other religions) into a Creationism bill in order to neutralize it. Yesterday, Indiana's state senate voted 28-22 to adopt yet another creationism-in-the-schools bill, which have been routinely found unconstitution ... More >>

Vi Simpson: The Woman Who Punked The Radical Republicans in the Indiana State Senate and Their Creationist Bill

After interviewing Vi Simpson, the Indiana State Senate Minority Leader, I'm wondering why the hell I haven't already seen this woman on national television or in the mainstream press. I hope you see what I mean after you hear what she had to say about the way she crippled the latest Creationism-in ... More >>

Scientology Sunday Funnies: May the Force Be With You! (UPDATED)

Scientologists don't really have a Sunday service. They like to say that they do, because they crave mainstream acceptance. But unless Xenu rested after six days and L. Ron Hubbard just forgot to mention it, there's no reason for Scientologists to treat Sunday any differently than every other day of ... More >>

Scientology on the High Seas: Wild Breakthroughs on OT 8!

​In November we started a new feature here on Fridays: the Voice has obtained hundreds of copies of L. Ron Hubbard's previously unpublished "Orders of the Day," which he gave to crew members as he sailed the Mediterranean. Our documents cover the period from late 1968 through 1971, and this ti ... More >>

Scientology: L. Ron Hubbard Still Surfing the Galaxy

Twenty-six years ago today, L. Ron Hubbard decided to leave his body after using it for 74 years. A young David Miscavige, a Sea Org member who behind the scenes had been clearing the way to become Hubbard's successor as leader of the Scientology movement, announced Hubbard's death to his followers ... More >>

Scientology Network TV Ads: More Precious Reactions!

Scientology's aggressive network TV ad campaign continued last night with another 2-minute commercial that aired on Fox's American Idol right after the New York Giants defeated the San Francisco 49ers to win the NFC championship and earn a spot in the Super Bowl. Poughkeepsie's Michael Farrell was ... More >>

Scientology Sunday Funnies: The "Thrill" of Fundraising!

​Scientologists don't really have a Sunday service. They like to say that they do, because they crave mainstream acceptance. But unless Xenu rested after six days and L. Ron Hubbard just forgot to mention it, there's no reason for Scientologists to treat Sunday any differently than every other ... More >>

Scientology Video of the Year: The Vote Is In!

We're going to start off our end-of-year celebrations this week by revealing which video you selected as the best of 2011. My thanks to our readers who participated in the poll. We had many interesting videos to choose from this year; some were new, others were rediscovered, and every one made an i ... More >>

Scientology Sunday Funnies: Merry Christmas 2011!

"Santa, were you an implant too?"​Scientology doesn't really have a Sunday service. They like to say that they do, because they crave mainstream acceptance. But unless Xenu rested after six days and L. Ron Hubbard just forgot to mention it, there's no reason for Scientologists to treat Sunday ... More >>

Scientology Infusion: Commenters of the Week!

"This Will guy is so cool! I can't wait to tell Dave."​We're still taking your votes for Scientology Story of the Year, and in general, things here in the underground bunker are frenetic as we prepare for year-end festivities. We also managed to keep the beat going this week with some interest ... More >>

Martin Bashir Compares Newt Gingrich to Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard, and more in our Thursday Stats Roundup!

It's that time of the week, when Scientology workers scramble to get their statistics turned in. And with the Thursday 2pm deadline looming, we like to do the same, rounding up the church's stats for the past week. First up, a little political humor... Yesterday, Martin Bashir did a bit of editor ... More >>

Jason Lee, Twitter Newbie, Goes After Dude with 6 Followers For Asking About Scientology

​ A day after joining Twitter, actor Jason Lee didn't take kindly to a fan, Sean Coleman, griping about his being a member of the Church of Scientology. So Jason took a swipe at Coleman, who has all of 6 followers.

Scientology Leader David Miscavige Digs Israel; BONUS: Black People are Cool! (UPDATED)

​The Voice was leaked a copy of Scientology's latest gala -- its October meeting of the International Association of Scientologists -- which took place in the UK, near L. Ron Hubbard's legendary home, Saint Hill Manor. At three hours long, it's an interminable amount of time to watch diminuti ... More >>

Scientology Subluxation: Commenters of the Week!

"Am I doing it right, Mr. Fairman?"​Another Saturday morning here in the underground bunker finds us once again picking up the pieces after another hectic week. Let's review, shall we? After starting off the week with another edition of Sunday Funnies, that evening we published our lengthy in ... More >>

Scientology's Shame: Lisa McPherson, 16 Years After Her Death

​On December 5, 1995, a 36-year-old woman perished while several people were taking her to a hospital in Florida. Within a few years, the mysterious and strange circumstances around the death of Lisa McPherson -- who had been a Scientologist since the age of 18 -- had the Church of Scientolog ... More >>

Scientology Sinking Like a Cruise Ship: Time for Thursday Stats!

Each Thursday at 2 pm, Scientology workers madly dash to finish up their work before turning in their weekly statistics. We like to do the same thing here at the Voice, and on Thursday afternoons add up the wins and losses for the church around the world. We took last week off in order to highli ... More >>

Scientology Celebrities Who Partied on the Freewinds While Valeska Paris Was Held on the Ship Against Her Will

We've been reporting all week on the stunning story of Valeska Paris, the Swiss-born woman who now lives in Australia and who says that from 1996 to 2007, beginning when she was only 18 years old, she was held on Scientology's private cruise ship, the Freewinds, as a virtual prisoner. Valeska alleg ... More >>

Scientology Held Woman Aboard the Freewinds for 12 Years Against Her Will: Aussie TV

NEW: See our lengthy interview with Valeska Paris, with much more information about her background, her time aboard the Freewinds, and her memories of Tom Cruise's infamous 2004 birthday aboard the ship. Australian journalist Steve Cannane of the ABC program Lateline e-mailed us early this morning ... More >>

Paulette Cooper, Scientology's Original and Worst Nightmare: A Thanksgiving Tribute by the Village Voice

[UPDATE: Think Scientology spying and harassment is a thing of the past? Check out our new story about how the church even spies on its most prominent member, Tom Cruise.] I couldn't think of a better way to give thanks this year than to pay homage to the woman who was there first, paid the highest ... More >>

Scientology Storms Out of Court in France, Getting Hammered in Florida: It's Time for Thursday Stats!

Mark Bunker sent over to us another tease from his upcoming Scientology documentary, Knowledge Report, and this one is a real treat. We've written here several times that few former Scientologists ever endured as much legal persecution and really unbelievable levels of harassment as Gerry Armstro ... More >>

Scientology Watching Gets Fancy!

​New York City's local Project Chanology brigade -- the branch of Anonymous that messes with Scientology -- has kept up its nearly four-year mission by turning protests into fun and comedic events. In the summer, we wrote about NYC anons turning 46th Street into a beach party -- including 300 ... More >>

Scientology's Sales Pitch: "Pure and Simple Blackmail"

Today sees another explosive installment in Tom Tobin and Joe Child's latest investigative project examining Scientology at the St. Petersburg Times. The previous day, the SP Times duo had introduced us to Hy Levy, a fomerly successful "registrar" who brought in hundreds of thousands of dollars t ... More >>

Tom Cruise and Stacy Francis Singing Together on Scientology's Ship Freewinds

If you've been following along with the drama around X Factor contestant Stacy Francis, you know that her entire past has come under inspection as her fans and detractors have attempted to sift truth from legend. In particular, we have noted that Francis has been quiet about her long membership in ... More >>

Scientology Investigation of South Park the Last Straw for Katie Holmes: Aussie Magazine Report

​An Australian gossip magazine is reporting something about Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise which is probably about as reliable as most of the stuff written about Tom and Katie by similar tabloids here in the U.S. So why would we care what a supermarket tab from the other side of the world is say ... More >>

Mark Chauppetta, Private Eye Who Worked for Scientology at the time of the South Park Investigation: "I'm a Fucking Mercenary"

Mark Chauppetta, comparing notes with a certain presidential candidate​Just got off the phone with Mark Chauppetta, a private investigator who has done work for the Church of Scientology, sifting through the trash of the church's perceived enemies. Chauppetta worked for Scientology for severa ... More >>

Lloyd Kaufman on Scientology and South Park: Eric Sherman Did Ask Me about Trey Parker and Matt Stone

Kaufman​Just got off the phone with Troma Studios founder Lloyd Kaufman, who says he's been getting a lot of calls since we reported this weekend that he is mentioned in Scientology documents which detail a retaliatory investigation of South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. In 2005, ... More >>

Scientology Responds in Typical Fashion to South Park Investigation Documents

Karin Pouw loves the word "apostate"​As we've been reporting the last couple of days, a man who was once the second-highest ranking executive in Scientology, Marty Rathbun, has made public several documents showing that in 2006, the church attempted to dig up dirt on South Park creators Trey P ... More >>

Scientology Targeted South Park's Parker and Stone in Investigation

Stone (left) and Parker​Another interesting revelation at Marty Rathbun's blog this morning: Rathbun released what he said was an internal Scientology document which suggests that the church targeted Trey Parker and Matt Stone for a classic OSA investigation in retaliation for the infamous Sou ... More >>

Scientology Petition Meets Its Goal: Will Obama Wiggle Out of It? (UPDATED)

Looking for a loophole?​Just three days ago, we pointed out that a White House petition regarding Scientology had a long way to go to meet its Monday deadline of 5,000 signatures. But a big surge in signatures pushed the petition past 5,000 last night. And now, the Obama administration will ... More >>

Scientology's SF Leaker Talks: We Ask Amy Scobee to Interpret

Lauren Smiley has been publishing a terrific series this week at our sister paper, SF Weekly. Smiley first reported on September 8 that the very active Anonymous chapter there, Chanology SF, had received e-mails from someone inside Scientology's "org" who went by the handle "ethicstrouble." Ethic ... More >>

Biggi Reichert: Does Scientology Have Another Lisa McPherson On Its Hands?

Biggi Reichert: What happened to her before her 2006 suicide?​When I talked to Marty Rathbun after his return from Germany recently, he mentioned that one of the things he and Ursula Caberta hoped would come from their new friendship was cooperation on a mysterious death involving a German Sci ... More >>

Scientology Overseas: More Bad News in Australia, Israel, and the UK

Chris Guider, the latest Scientology executive to leave and say that David Miscavige gets slappy​Reporter Steve Cannane e-mailed this morning to alert us to a story on Lateline, a program on Australia's ABC network. The piece describes the defection of yet another Scientology executive who say ... More >>

Anderson Cooper's Epic Scientology Smackdown, Part 1

Marty unloads on DM​Tonight, Anderson Cooper sat down with Marty Rathbun, formerly the second-highest ranking member of Scientology, for an interview. Marty, as usual, comes off as calm, cool, and credible as hell. But Cooper's big piece can be summarized thusly:

Quantum of Solace: Most Successful Bond Ever?