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RICHARD
BEHAR, 1992 LEO J. RYAN award recipient speaks at the
1992 CAN Conference in Los Angeles
Richard
Behar is now an associate
editor of Time Magazine. At the time of this award ceremony,
Time had recently published his cover story "Scientology:
The Cult of Greed" which garnered Behar numerous
journalism awards.
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Transcript:
To say
that this was just another investigative assignment would
be the understatement of my career. (laughter) This acceptance
speech had to be reviewed by a team of TIME lawyers and
executives (laughter, applause)
That
should give you some idea of the kind of group that Scientology
is and the environment of fear that this litigation happy
cult has instilled in the media. It also means I had better
stick to my script. (laughter)
Since
the TIME story was published, I have turned down at least
90 percent of requests for interviews, speaking engagements,
talk show appearances. One big reason is that TIME magazine,
while standing solidly behind the story I wrote, did not want
me to do or say anything that could trigger an unnecessary
lawsuit from the "church". (laughter) which had
us recognized for one for more than a year.
Despite
my relative silence, the church sued anyway last spring. They
seek more than $400 million in a libel action, and understandably,
TIME's leadership has encouraged me not to comment while the
suit is pending. (laughter) So when do I get to talk? (laughter)
Don't
get me wrong. I don't blame TIME magazine at all. Very few
publications had the guts to publish such a story. (applause)
And anything that my magazine can do to avoid or limit runaway
legal costs is to be appreciated.
But I
raise this catch 22 just to show you how successful Scientology
is in chilling the Press and preventing discourse on subjects
that cry out for publication. That deep and persistent fear
of lawsuits prevents many journalists and book publishers
from touching the subject with a ten foot pole.
As for
myself, I was forced this year to curtail my full time reporting
career, in order to prepare for all the litigation. This,
ladies and gentlemen, is the impact of Scientology.
Scientology,
as you know, calls itself a religion and hides behind the
First Amendment right to religious freedom. Yet, somehow they
have taken this to mean that they can exploit, terrorize and
abuse members or critics with relative impunity. In short,
tread on the rights of others. When the Press exercises its
own First Amendment rights to draw attention to the "church",
Scientology responds in ways that should make any American
tremble.
How can
they do it? How can they continue to get away it? When the
LA Times ran their excellent
series on the cult in 1990, its reporters, Joel Sappell
and Robert Welkos claim that they were subjected to endless
harassment........from friends, to a lawsuit to subpoenas
to gain access to their research, even to the use of private
eyes.
When
Charles Stafford of the St. Petersburg Times did his great
series on Scientology, he says he faced similar harassment.
And nobody is a better example of this abuse than Paulette
Cooper, a pioneer reporter on the subject of Scientology in
the 1970's. who was the victim of a church plot called, PC
FREAKOUT. The purpose of the plot, which nearly succeeded
was to get Paulette incarcerated in jail or a mental institution.
They nearly succeeded. Among other things, she was indicted
for making bomb threats against the church an indictment that
was ultimately thrown out when an FBI raid revealed that the
whole plot and scheme was just a setup.
Fortunately
I have not suffered that kind of harassment. But Scientology's
contacts with me have been relentless and very unpleasant.
In one incident, an investigator, working for the cult, used
a sham company in California to illegally obtain a copy of
my personal credit report. Friends, former college classmates,
and neighbors have been contacted by Scientologists and other
agents, inquiring about my relations with the IRS, my health,
and more recently,whether I have ever used drugs. Private
eyes also telephone me as part of a sting operation, making
believe they are a friend or relative of a cult member, in
order to elicit and tape record negative statements from me
regarding Scientology.
Moreover
it was not until last December, seven months after the story
was published, that Scientology's spooks stopped following
me, on an ordinary basis. Not surprisingly on several occasions,
I felt the need to hire a bodyguard.
Let me
give you some additional examples of their tactics. As part
of an assertive campaign of harassment, Scientology had individuals
make telephone calls to me and other TIME personnel working
on the story posing as TIME employees and seeking confidential
information of the publication of the article. Cute, huh?
Scientology
operatives also obtained a copy of or access to the bill of
the hotel room I used in Los Angeles. The bill, of course,
contained telephone numbers of people who I had called during
my stay. That's an investigative reporter's worst nightmare.
I also have information that long after the story was published,
Scientology entities have continued to obtain copies or gain
access to my telephone bills and TIME's telephone bills.
I want
you all to know that I am not standing still while Scientology
engages in such conduct. With TIME's backing and support,
last month I filed a countersuit against the church for harassment
and for violating the federal fair trade reporting act. (cheers,
applause) We will vigorously pursue these claims against the
church. Their tactics can not and will not be tolerated in
a free society. (applause)
Can you
imagine living through months at a time with teams of private
eyes following you from your home to your office and back
again? (laughter) I guess everybody can. (laughter) This is
blatant and obscene harassment and there's not terribly much
you can do about it. Just try and maintain your sanity and
your humor.
For months
prior to publication, Scientology would refuse to speak or
cooperate with me at all. After the story was published, they
seem to want every minute of my time. (laughter)
One day
I was so fed up with these investigators, I charged after
them with a camera clicking and I yelled, "Smile, you
bastards. How does it feel?" I have these great photographs
of these spooks trying to shield their faces. (laughter)
In addition,
I don't think Scientology was aware that I am a great roller
skater. (laughter, applause) One day I donned my skates and
zoomed up Second Avenue against the traffic (laughter) and
there was no way they could keep up with me. (laughter, applause)
Still
another time, I jumped into a taxi in midtown and asked the
driver if he could take me to the TIME and LIFE Building.....but
to please go up and down every side street in a zigzag pattern
because I wanted to know if I was being followed.
Well,
this is New York, and this old crabby cab driver with a cigar
drooping from his mouth, turned around and gave me a New York
look and said, "I'm too old for this shit." (laughter,
applause)
But then,
his foot hit the gas pedal and we went whizzing down that
street as fast as we could and he was laughing and cackling
the whole way. (laughter, applause) Well being followed was
never more fun, at least at that moment.
At one
point, we hired our own camera surveillance to try to find
out what detective agency these spooks worked for..........So
now we had spy vs spy. (laughter)
One Sunday
I had to drive to a colleague's funeral and I had three cars
behind me. Two of them worked for Scientology and the THIRD,
all the way at the rear, was working for us. (laughter)
And then I got this craving for a bagel with cream cheese,
(laughter) so I made a sharp right turn and almost caused
a major pileup, just like the Keystone Kops. (laughter) Well
that is what happens to your life when you report about Scientology.
Scientology certainly is business. They spend millions and
millions in litigation every year against critics and perceived
enemies. They spent more than $3 million attacking us in ads
in USA TODAY with advertising copy that was so far removed
reality that many people were shocked that the newspaper would
even accept their money.
The cult
has accused me publicly of kidnapping....of course and of
being linked to the IRS and to drugmaker, Eli Lily. All of
it pure science fiction. (laughter).
The cult
has also had teams of private eyes visit or contact most of
the sources named in my story and many of these people have
been sued. I cannot begin to tell you how much this upsets
me. I have the resources of a wealthy corporation behind me,
but where can these people turn who are sued.
So why did I write this story? Why do I need the aggravation?
Reporters and others have asked me that question a lot. Well,
after investigating Scientology and examining its forty year
history, I wondered. "How can reporters NOT cover it?"
(applause)
How can
we allow a situation like this in our country not to receive
constant attention? Why isn't the doings of Scientology in
newspapers every single week? The TIME story was one of the
biggest selling issues of 1991 for us and was No. 2 in terms
of total letters received. Despite campaigns by Scientology
to stop them, I have been recognized by my peers with several
important honors, one of which got me a handshake from the
President of the United States last May.
Obviously
people want and need to know about this subject and yet most
of the media continue to keep their heads buried in the sand.
They are afraid and they don't need the aggravation.
I have
read and reread hundreds upon hundreds of letters that TIME
has received from victims or families of victims. These letters
also remind me of why I wrote the story. So many of these
people are too afraid or ashamed to come forward or even have
their names used. Let me share some excerpts from a few letters.
This
is from a woman in New York City: "Most Scientologists
have the fantasy that life with Hubbard would be the most
ecstatic experience anyone could ever have. Well I can tell
you that it's anything but.
"Discipline
was very harsh and anyone objecting in any way was punished
by being put on the Rehabilitative Project Force which was
essentially a prison where members were subjected to confessionals
and having to do the dirtiest jobs and other humiliations,
such as not being allowed to speak and having to eat scraps.
I know because I was put in the RPF twice.
"Of
course, celebrities, such as Kirstie Alley and John Travolta
are NEVER subjected to such treatment. It's time the celebrities
in Scientology start facing up to how the other half lives."
(applause)
Another
letter is from a former member in Colorado: "The pressure
increases with the prices. Your article might seem biased
to newcomers who only see friendly and sincere people.
"The
runway into this trap is a social milieu which gradually seduces
good people into believing, among themselves, on self deceptions.
So they come to believe themselves an elite, in unique possession
of all the right answers. The deeper a person goes, the more
he participates in his own exploitation and that of others.
"If
those of us, who have been there, would speak out in spite
of shame and fear, people might be spared enormous pain and
waste."
Here's
what a Brooklyn man writes: "I hope the article saves
some people from the suffering I went through. I spent all
my savings. I worked morning until midnight for Scientology,
seven days a week. If you didn't show up for work on time,
they sent guards to your room to get you.
"I
escaped and had to change my phone number at home. I had a
complete nervous breakdown by the time I got home."
Another
from Michigan writes: "The church had brainwashed me
into turning over nearly every dollar I had and talked me
into borrowing $10,000 and still wanted more. I am currently
out over $30,000 and I am going through the court system to
get this money back.
"If
it were not for a persistent friend, who research the group
and showed me the facts behind this cult, that convinced me
to leave, I would very likely have ended up like Noah."
And that's
a reference to Noah Lottick, who was featured in the TIME
story and committed suicide. And his parents, Ed and Sally,
are here tonight. (applause)
Finally,
here's my favorite letter. It has moved me the most. It's
from a young man in Utah: "While reading about Behar's
award, a chill came all over my body. I thought to myself,
'This man helped save my life'.
"I
had gotten out of Scientology physically in November of 1990.
The TIME story made it possible for me to get the kind of
help I needed mentally. If I hadn't found the information
about CAN and from CAN, it most likely would have ended in
suicide." (applause)
I tell
you when I receive letters like these, it gives me the strength
and the power to face a group like Scientology.
I want
to thank the Cult Awareness Network for honoring me tonight
with the prestigious Leo J. Ryan award. I stand here before
you in absolute awe of the fact that Congressman Ryan, Patricia's
father, gave his life in an attempt to rescue victims from
another dangerous cult. Looking at the politicians who serve
in our Congress today, should make everyone realize what a
rare man Leo Ryan was. I greatly admire him.
I also
greatly admire CAN and the work that this organization does
to help victims despite relentless attempts by Scientology
to destroy it. The people at CAN are truly the unsung heroes.
I often wonder if CAN were to ever go out of business, where
would the victims go for help.
In closing,
I would like to accept this award on behalf of those victims,
as well as the other journalists who have been harassed by
this global menace.
My thanks
also to my family and especially my wife, Sarah, for encouraging
me and for helping me to keep my sense of humor alive at those
times when things got very, very bizarre. She is a remarkable
woman to put up with all this abuse.
Finally
I want to thank my editors and lawyers at TIME, who firmly
believed in the importance of this story and who stand solidly
behind it today despite all efforts by the L. Ron Hubbard
disinformation machine. My story was accurate and we will
prove it in court, if that day ever comes. (applause, standing
ovation)
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