Brainwashing, Mind Control, and Hyper-Persuasion with Harvard Professor, Rebecca Lemov

Smart People Podcast

Smart People Industries

Business, Education, Society & Culture

4.6 • 736 Ratings

🗓️ 26 March 2025

⏱️ 33 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What if brainwashing isn’t just a Cold War relic, but something we’re all quietly experiencing every day? In this episode, Harvard professor and author Rebecca Lemov joins us to unpack the hidden mechanics of mind control—from historical POW camps to the subtle pull of your social media feed. We talk about the concept of “ungrounding,” how it sets the stage for behavior change, and why no one is immune—not even you. Rebecca also shares a deeply personal story that reshaped her understanding of influence, control, and identity. This isn’t fearmongering—it’s a powerful invitation to look more closely at how your reality is shaped. Eye-opening, timely, and surprisingly relatable. Tune in—you’ll walk away questioning more than you expected. Rebecca's book, The Instability of Truth: Brainwashing, Mind Control, and Hyper-Persuasion, is available now! Find out more about Rebecca at histsci.fas.harvard.edu/people/rebecca-lemov. Support the Show - Become a Patron! Help us grow and become a Patron today: https://www.patreon.com/smartpeoplepodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is Smart People Podcast, a podcast for Smart People, where we talk to smart people, but not necessarily done by smart people.
0:14.8	Hello, welcome to Smart People podcast conversations and satisfy your curious mind.
0:19.5	Chris Ampeer, thanks for tuning in.
0:21.6	If you have ever scrolled through social media and felt strangely off afterwards, or
0:28.0	maybe you looked at somebody else's beliefs or their posts, and you've thought, how did
0:33.8	they end up there?
0:35.5	Then this episode is for you.
0:40.6	Today I'm joined by Harvard professor and author Rebecca Limoff to talk about something that sounds like it belongs to history books or
0:47.5	sci-fi movies. And that is brainwashing. But as you're going to hear, it's far from outdated.
0:53.8	In fact, it's far from outdated.
0:56.1	In fact, it's more present than ever.
1:01.6	It's woven into everything from social media algorithms to the ways we change ourselves willingly in search of meaning, purpose, or belonging.
1:06.6	Rebecca brings 25 years of research and deeply personal experience to a conversation that
1:11.9	moves beyond the Cold War fear mongering.
1:16.0	We're talking about what it means to be ungrounded, those subtle, often invisible moments,
1:22.2	when your sense of reality starts to shift without you even realizing it.
1:27.3	From P.O.W. Camp camps to Instagram feeds, from personal relationships to national polarization,
1:33.5	this is about how minds are shaped and reshaped every single day.
1:40.2	As I mentioned, we are talking to Rebecca Limoff on her new book, The Instability of Truth,
1:47.4	brainwashing, mind control, and hyper persuasion.
1:51.9	Excited to get into this for you.
1:53.7	If you find it interesting, make sure you follow a podcast and tell a friend.
	...

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