The secret plan to produce a Scientology social media star
Over the years, we’ve noted how different the Scientology “org” in London has seemed from others. For some time, at least, the staff there seemed much savvier about social media and even produced some notable stars, such as Charlie Wakley, and we featured him numerous times because of it. Now, Alex Barnes-Ross reveals that there was definitely a plan in London by the young staff there to stand out in this special way, and that it was largely his idea — and he has the documents to prove it! What a great new revelation about the workings of Scientology from ‘Apostate Alex’…
Picture this. It’s 2013, I’m 18 years old and I’d been posted as the new Director of Public Book Sales at the Church of Scientology in London. Staff had been at Flag training on a ‘new evolution’ and there was a sense of excitement in the Org… something huge was about to happen that was going to change everything not just for us, but for human kind.
The Golden Age of Tech II was just around the corner and the world was about to be given the gift of the Super Power and Cause Resurgence — two rundowns, I had been told, that were developed by L. Ron Hubbard decades ago but had never been made available to the public before.
This new ‘Golden Age’ was going to shake up the way Scientology was delivered across the world, making it quicker and easier for people to ascend the Bridge to Total Freedom and ultimately, ‘Clear the planet.’
But it’s no good making it easier to go up the Bridge if you’ve got no public to deliver services to. The Org was empty… and it was my job to get new people in. “Books make booms”, I was told. In HCO PL 28 May 1972 ‘Important Boom Data’, L. Ron Hubbard writes “Book Ads and sales are the keys to org survival.” and in another policy letter titled ’Book Income’, he says “More than the org income, the sale of books, all other steps being in place, will bring us a Scientology world.”
There was no question in my mind that selling books was the single most important thing for Scientology: and as the person in charge of book sales, the pressure was on. We were about to be given a bunch of new technology, so we better make sure there are people in the building ready to receive it. I better not fuck this up.
Hitting the streets with ‘stress test booths’ and body routing people into the Test Centre on Tottenham Court Road was producing a handful of book sales every week, but I saw an opportunity to reach millions of people with just a few clicks of a button: social media.
‘If selling books is the most important thing in Scientology, why aren’t we using the biggest platform available to do it?’ I asked my senior. At the time, the Office of Special Affairs controlled Scientology’s online presence at an international level and so starting up an account to promote Dianetics at a local level here in London would simply not be given approval. ‘But that simply isn’t working.. Social media has generated zero book sales for London and I think I can change that’, I said.
Going rogue is not something you are allowed to do in Scientology, and we knew we would be in a lot of trouble if we started official London Org accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter without prior approval… but, my senior told me, ‘stopping a successful bookselling action is a suppressive act, and it’s better to ask for forgiveness than permission.’ So it was decided: lets do it, but we have to make sure it works. Because when OSA find out and order us to stop, we would have the defence that it was producing book sales and therefore has to continue.
Very few people knew about our plan and we tried to keep it under wraps to minimise the chance of OSA finding out before we had the chance to give it a shot. At first, my seniors expressed concerns that social media was full of SPs and people spreading lies about Scientology.. which I explained was even more reason why we need to do this. ‘If we post LRH quotes and real life success stories from London Org, we’ll be giving the world relatable, true information about what Scientology actually is.. we’d be confronting and shattering suppression and clearing up any misconceptions by simply sharing the TRUTH.’
It wasn’t easy, but I managed to convince my seniors this was the best thing since sliced bread and hey, lets not forget L. Ron Hubbard died before social media was even invented, so there’s not a single policy letter that says we can’t use it to sell books.
I made accounts for Scientology London on all the major social media platforms and set about creating a content calendar that would include quotes from LRH books, success stories and links to YouTube videos on Scientology’s official channel. I made a case that engagement should be tracked as a weekly statistic, with likes comments and shares counting as ‘reaches’ and asked trusted staff members to interact to help the algorithm every time we posted something.
I even went about devising a plan to combat negative reviews left on Google Maps and Amazon; whereby I asked staff members to write positive reviews that we would post every week from a different account to avoid suspicion. In just a few weeks, the negative comments would be buried and Scientology London’s online image would be transformed.
We set up a new ‘line’ whereby I was copied in to the weekly Dianetics Seminar reports being sent to Saint Hill so that I could see the success stories and find quotes to post online. I made sure we took photos of every seminar, event and stress test booth so we had visual content and I encouraged Field Staff Members (FSMs) to help us with our plan.
By the time OSA found out, I’d managed to compile a list of examples where people had bought a book, come in for a personality test or enquired via email after seeing our posts on social media and they weren’t happy about it, but they let us carry on so long as it was successful in getting new people in.
I suggested we could use our platform to show people what Scientology is really like.. how ‘fun’ it was to go out on the streets of London selling books and how ‘cool’ it was to be on staff with our swanky uniforms and slicked back hair. My senior, Charlie Wakley, soon became a social media star in Scientology – and subsequently here on the Bunker.
We were teenagers with big ambitions and filled with enthusiasm. Although we never managed to achieve the goal of transforming Scientology’s public image, book sales did increase and commendations started coming in from management about the great work we were doing in London.
But not once did I stop to think about the bigger picture. Yes, we were now selling 50 or 100 books a week (where before it was 10 or 20)… but even that wasn’t enough to Clear the planet.
— Alex Barnes-Ross
Scientology buys stake in tiny Los Angeles TV station
A few years ago, we heard from readers in the Tampa area who were stunned to find that a small local TV broadcast station was turning over whole segments of the day to programming from Scientology TV, the propaganda channel that David Miscavige premiered on DirecTV in 2018.
Despite paying huge amounts to have the DirecTV platform so that Scientology TV dreck showed up in hotel rooms across the land, Dave for some reason also wanted a tiny over-the-air presence in Tampa, no doubt so he could boast about the channel’s “reach” across a wide spectrum, or something.
We suspect something as underwhelming is also behind a new development, that Dave has apparently bought another time-sharing position on another tiny broadcast channel, this time in Los Angeles.
Until we see something to convince us otherwise, we are not going to get too excited about a miniscule new outlet for the usual awful fare Dave is putting out on Scientology TV. Have you actually tried to watch that stuff? Bleccch.
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Source Code: Actual things founder L. Ron Hubbard said on this date in history
Avast, Ye Mateys: Snapshots from Scientology’s years at sea
Overheard in the Freezone: Indie Hubbardism, one thought at a time
Past is Prologue: From this week in history at alt.religion.scientology
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From my interaction with Alex, it is not surprising that he was bold and inventive in an organization that frowns on change and innovation. In Scientology individual initiative in frowned upon and yet the organization expanded the most when a experienced smart person like Jefferson Hawkins took control of Marketing Dianetics with TV commercials that changed the perception of Dianetics and Scientology through out the world.
What was Jefferson’s reward? He was thrown in THE HOLE by a very jealous little twerp by the name of David Miscavige. Scientology is a dictatorship that cannot tolerate change or variations from its policies. As a result it continues to shrink as it perpetrates more crimes, lies and human rights abuses. Alex is an example of brilliance coupled with purpose. He took his talent help expand Scientology. And his reward was nonexistent. Now he brilliantly exposes Hubbard’s dogmatic organization. I applaud him.
Alex, I'm glad that your initiative took you away from the criminal organisation known as the "church" of $cientology. Glad you're sharing these stories.