The Curious Introvert
A weekly podcast covering societal taboos & cultural blind spots. Join host Meredith Hackwith Edwards as she deep dives with curiosity & nuance into philosophy, society & culture with expert guests.
Episodes frequently feature philosophers, researchers, historians & journalists.
The Curious Introvert
Ep. 342: The Cult That Sold Orgasms
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What is orgasmic meditation? Where is the line between cutting-edge wellness & cult behavior? Is the word “cult” too divisive to be helpful?
Ellen Huet is an award-winning investigative journalist who writes for Bloomberg News and Bloomberg Businessweek. Gher investigative piece on OneTaste lead to the FBI investigation & eventually arrest of Nicole Daedone and Rachel Cherwitz. She also wrote EMPIRE OF ORGASM, chronicling how the sex self-help group twisted sexual abuse into personal growth.
In this episode we explore the new image of modern-day cults, the timeline of OneTaste & its leader & who is most vulnerable to cult recruitment.
If you liked this episode, you’ll also like episode 305: ARE POLITICAL PARTIES JUST CULTS?!
Guest:
https://www.ellenhuet.com/about
https://www.instagram.com/ehuet/
Sponsors:
https://www.jordanharbinger.com/starterpacks/
https://www.historicpensacola.org/about-us/
00:00 — Sex, Cults & Startups
01:16 — Wrong Beat, Right Story
01:55 — The 15-Minute Practice
03:51 — Wellness Has a Price Tag
06:18 — Quit Your Job, Move In
08:00 — Consent Gets Complicated
13:01 — Bodies on the Line
15:48 — Victimhood Is Forbidden
17:51 — Free Meetup, Expensive Trap
21:22 — Searching for Something Deeper
23:09 — Gwyneth Approved It
26:00 — Break the Debt Seal
28:06 — Modern Cults Look Normal
31:03 — Chatbots and Spiral Thinking
33:32 — Red Flags to Watch
36:18 — Nicole's Complicated Childhood
41:54 — She Took the Practice
43:26 — San Francisco Let It Slide
45:29 — The Warehouse Experiment
47:44 — WiFi Password: NotACult
50:11 — The Woman Behind Nicole
51:45 — Selling Her Own Vision
53:33 — The Story Nobody Had Told
56:49 — Guilty, Then Sentenced
57:58 — Bored, Lonely, Missing It
01:02:07 — Seeking a Presidential Pardon
01:02:53 — Why People Believe Things
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