Um, praise Xenu? The Church of Scientology announced that it will launch its own TV network Monday.
Scientology Media Productions will now be available on DirectTV’s channel 360, Scientology.tv, Apple TV, Roku, FireTV, iTunes, and Google Play—although no one is quite sure yet what the programming will actually look like.
https://twitter.com/ScientologyTV/status/972818313658052608
Scientology describes itself as a religion that was founded in the 1950s by L. Ron Hubbard, in which followers believe each human has a reactive mind that responds to life’s traumas, clouding the analytic mind and keeping people from experiencing reality. Members of the religion submit to a process called auditing to find the sources of this trauma, reliving those experiences in an attempt to neutralize them and reassert the primacy of the analytic mind, working toward a spiritual state called “clear.”
In the past decade, numerous tell-all documentaries—like Leah Remini’s docuseries Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath and Alex Gibney’s 2015 HBO documentary Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, based on the 2013 Lawrence Wright book—have surfaced that show a more troubling perspective of the church.
The TV network will be the church’s biggest PR move yet to tackle the ongoing media narrative that exposes Scientology as a toxic, money-sucking cult. Many of its followers have shared their excitement about the new network, which they believe will “finally reveal the truth.”
Other folks on Twitter are not so wild about the idea of a TV network dedicated to the church and compare it to networks like NRA TV.
So there’s NRA TV, Church of Scientology TV, FoxNews, grifting televangelists, and Sinclair Broadcasting. This is why America is a cesspool for absolute horseshit. Religion is bullshit!
— Ryan J. Kaz 🗳️🟦👨🏼💻 (@RealRyanJKaz) March 12, 2018
If I see a freakin Scientology app on my Apple TV tomorrow I’m burning the whole damn thing… #nottodaysatan https://t.co/U7NUKUAJ6K
— WanderingMa’at (@WanderingMaat) March 12, 2018
Scientology set to launch its own TV network. Finally, Fox News will have competition in attracting idiots.
— Lee Mays (@OriginalLeeMays) March 11, 2018
If you’ve seen a big #Scientology event, with David Miscavige spouting fake statistics set to pretty pictures, then you already know what #ScientologyTV is going to look like when it premieres tonight. https://t.co/DKlw9lwT8B
— Tony Ortega (@TonyOrtega94) March 12, 2018
.@DIRECTV You airing @ScientologyTV makes me seriously considering finding a new cable/satellite service.
— @gkl1961.bsky.social (@GKL1961) March 12, 2018
The countdown clock on its app and website hints that web content for the network will be available starting at 8pm EST.