35: Séance Science (w/Susannah Crockford)
Today we discuss three Q-adjacent channellers: JZ Knight, Lorie Ladd, Elizabeth April, and also Paul Selig. Matthew plays angel’s advocate and interviews Professor Susannah Crockford about her anthropological fieldwork amongst the New Agers and channelers of Sedona. TL;DR: “There’s never a single answer for anything.”
34: Insurrectionist Influencers (w/RP Eddy)
Derek interviews RP Eddy, CEO of strategy and geopolitical intelligence firm, Ergo. Eddy previously served as Director at the White House National Security Council under Bill Clinton, Chief of Staff to US Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, and Senior Policy Officer to UN Secretary Kofi Annan. He shares his thoughts about the current state of national security.
33: Manipulating the Hero’s Journey
We look at how certain influencers confuse heroism for megalomania and forget that heroes and their societies are interdependent. Derek and Julian measure some of the usual suspects against Joseph Campbell’s ruler while Matthew asks questions about what makes a theory vulnerable to distortion.
32: Both Sides Pt 2: Healing & Sense-making in the New Year (w/Charles Eisenstein)
This episode is centered on Part 2 of Matthew’s discussion with Charles Eisenstein — a bellwether for the possibility that wellness and spirituality culture can communicate clearly about conspirituality.
31: Bro Science: Anti-Vaxxers (w/Jonathan Berman)
Julian and Derek sift through the piles of vaccine and health propaganda spread by Robert F Kennedy, Jr and Zach Bush on a recent Instagram Live. Derek interviews Jonathan Berman, author of Anti-Vaxxers: How to Challenge a Misinformed Movement, about trying to build a bridge.
30: Are There Really Two Sides? (w/Charles Eisenstein)
Matthew interviews Charles Eisenstein, whose essay “The Coronation” has cast a long shadow on our ongoing critique of how New Age and spiritual spaces interact with public health.
29: Bro Science (w/Dr Dan Wilson)
We listen to some top “Bro scientists” to see how bro-ness reduces, minimizes, and mocks science. We listen to pearls of bro-dom from JP Sears, Kyle Kingsbury, Aubrey Marcus, Sayer Ji, Toronto’s very own BBQAnon, Adam Skelly, and Zach Bush, doctor to the bros. Dr Dan “Debunk the Funk” Wilson joins to weigh in.
28: Resurrection of Jordan Peterson (w/Jeff Brown)
We dive into Jordan Peterson’s imaginarium. We won’t totally discount his button-down commonsensical advice, but we will explore how it has lent intellectual support to the alt-right. Julian interviews dissociation debunker Jeff Brown, who champions “enrealment,” and has a heartfelt critique of what he calls the “new cage” movement.
27: Finding Meaning (and Laughs) in Crisis (w/Alex Auder)
Matthew interviews friend of the pod, the fabulous Alex Auder, about what it means to satirize free-birth influencer @bauhauswife, who’s putting the fash back into fashion.
26: Return of the Repressed, Or The Drugs Paula White is Not On (w/Brian Muraresku)
In a rich interview with author of The Immortality Key, Brian Muraresku, Derek explores the ancient psychedelia of Christianity, both forgotten and repressed, and hopes for its return, as it would probably make Paula White and Kenneth Copeland chill TF out.
25: Waking Up from Cancel Culture (w/Clementine Morrigan & Jay from F*cking Cancelled)
Matthew asks Clementine Morrigan and Jay from F*cking Cancelled about the work that the digital Left can do to foster solidarity, loyalty, and freedom.
24: Body Politic Recovery (w/Tada Hozumi)
Matthew crystal-balls the precarious future of post-COVID yoga, and interviews cultural somaticist Tada Hozumi on why Andrew Yang offered attachment politics, decolonizing wellness, and WTF is going on at The Embodiment Conference.
23: Election Resilience (w/Hala Khouri, Lissa Rankin, & Tara Stiles)
This week, we take some time to explore thoughts and feelings about this menacing week, and how we’re contemplating and committing to the long haul through our work, relationships, and self-care. We’re joined by special guests Hala Khouri, Tara Stiles, and Lissa Rankin, who all offer their wisdom.
22: Racism & Fraud in New Age Publishing (w/Rebekah Borucki & Dr Jay Mohan)
Author and publisher Rebekah Borucki joins the Conspirituality team as our first co-host for this episode. She’s got a story to tell: the culture of her publisher, Hay House, was so resistant to taking a position on the racist attitudes of some of their leading cash-cow authors that she ditched her contract and her job with the company as a diversity mentor.
21: Om-ed and Dangerous: Militant Wellness (w/Sarah Hightower)
Derek reviews Japan’s AUM cult as a prelude to Julian’s riveting interview with AUM expert Sarah Hightower. Julian reports on the Northrupian intersection between militia movements and alt-health ideas of “sovereignty.” Matthew discusses violence in ISKCON as the Hare Krishnas parade mask-free through Glastonbury.
20: The Second Wave: Pastel Q Goes Undercover (w/Ben Lee)
Derek explores the importance of creativity in the time of quarantine, leading into his interview with musician and former cult member, Ben Lee. The entire crew also discusses Yoga Journal following the lead of the NY Times and Rolling Stone by reporting (and then bearing the backlash) on yoga community leaders taking a stand against QAnon—and getting trolled by Q devotees in the process.
19: Hurtling Into the Q-Hole (w/Mike Rains)
We interview Mike Rains, one of the brave moderators of the 25K member subreddit QAnonCasualties, who has a lot to say about what the Q-hole feels like when it rips up hearts and homes.
18: From Psych Meds to Red Pills (w/Jules Evans)
Matthew discusses his recent feature investigation on conspirituality power couple, Dr. Kelly Brogan and Sayer Ji. Then Derek digs into the podcast origin story with an interview of Jules Evans, who helped “conspirituality” become an almost-household term.
17: The Politics of QAnon Spirituality (w/Seane Corn & Jared Yates Sexton)
Seane Corn joins us to discuss what to do when QAnon rhetoric and hashtags co-opts lurches through yoga communities. Our second guest, cult researcher and historian Jared Yates Sexton joins us to talk about his new book, American Rule.
16: So You Want to Save the Earth? (w/John Roulac)
Farming activist John Roulac is incensed at how conspirituality is ripping up progressive foodie movements. In a recent article, he called out his old friends and associates (like Mikki Willis and Christiane Northrup) for what he calls their “body-snatching” beliefs.