Rebecca Lemov
Rebecca Lemov (The Instability of Truth: Brainwashing, Mind Control, and Hyper-Persuasion) is a historian of science, author, and professor at Harvard. Rebecca joins the Armchair Expert to discuss the meet cute with her husband at the cafe where she was struggling to write her dissertation, how she fell under a romantic spell with anthropology as well as opioids, and the relationship between addiction and brainwashing. Rebecca and Dax talk about how Patty Hearst used brainwashing as a defense for her actions, why it's such an effective mind control tactic to strip someone of their name, and how Korean War soldiers’ health and wellness bounce back after trauma hid evidence of their suffering. Rebecca explains normalization of the brutal torture training of troops, that cult leaders intuitively act out a guidebook of hierarchical dynamics of desire and power, and Facebook’s experiment on emotional contagion as an example of soft brainwashing.
Rebecca Lemov: @rebeccalemov
Armchair Expert: @armchairexppod
Dax Shepard: @daxshepard
Hosted by: Dax Shepard
Associate Producer: Emma Lawrence
Video Edit by: Todd Hughlett & Anthony Pacheco
Audio Edit by: Monica Padman & Emma Lawrence
Mixed & Mastered by: Daniel Good