The Mind Is Burning with Jonathan Hirsch
IndoctriNation
IndoctriNation
4.8 • 566 Ratings
🗓️ 11 June 2025
⏱️ 67 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this thought-provoking episode, Rachel welcomes back Jonathan Hirsch, an award-winning podcast producer and founder of Neon Hum Media, to discuss his powerful journey growing up in a cult led by Franklin Jones. Jonathan shares his experiences of navigating the complexities of being raised in a high-control environment, and the emotional turmoil that comes with caring for a parent who was both a figure of authority and a source of conflict.
As Jonathan reflects on his childhood, he delves into the challenges of reconciling his upbringing with his current role as a father. He candidly discusses the lack of emotional connection he experienced with his parents and how that influenced his understanding of parenting. Jonathan's insights reveal the struggle many children of cults face when trying to find their own identity and parenting style in the absence of healthy role models.
Throughout the conversation, Rachel and Jonathan explore themes of moral injury, the quest for healing, and the importance of recognizing the impact of trauma on familial relationships. Jonathan's new memoir, The Mind is Burning: Losing My Father to a Cult and Dementia, provides a deeper look into his journey and the lessons he's learned along the way. This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in the complexities of cult dynamics and the lasting effects on those who grow up within them.
Find out more about Jonathan and his work here:
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https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Mind-Is-Burning/Jonathan-Hirsch/9781797190464
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to indoctrination, a weekly conversation series about protecting yourself from systems of control. |
| 0:11.2 | I'm your host, Rachel Bernstein. |
| 0:13.5 | Hello, everyone. Today on the show, we have a returning guest, Jonathan Hirsch. He was raised in a cult that was run by a man named Franklin |
| 0:25.4 | Jones, who went by other names, one of which was Dauphrey John. He's an award-winning podcast producer |
| 0:33.2 | and executive and host, and Jonathan is the founder of Neon Hum Media, |
| 0:40.5 | a partner company with Sony Music Entertainment. |
| 0:43.7 | He has worked on over 100 shows with a dozen number one podcasts, |
| 0:48.6 | including Bagman with Rachel Maddo, |
| 0:51.7 | Datelines The Thing About Pam with Keith Morrison, |
| 0:56.3 | very scary people with Donnie Wahlberg, |
| 0:59.3 | and murder on the towpath with Soledad O'Brien. |
| 1:03.5 | He's the creator of the original series Smokscreen, |
| 1:06.9 | now in its seventh season, |
| 1:08.9 | which includes the investigativeigator podcast documentary, |
| 1:12.8 | fake priest and the documentary I Am Rama, the sellout, deadly cure, |
| 1:18.8 | and most recently the hit series, Betrayal on the Bayou. |
| 1:22.9 | He's a Peabody nominated producer and the recipient of the Green Eye Shade Edward R. Murrow and DuPont |
| 1:30.6 | Awards for his reporting and for his production. He's here to talk about his own experience |
| 1:38.5 | of having a father who became ill, who he needed to take care of, who is the person who had raised him |
| 1:47.4 | in this cult, and the idea of there being this real conflict, emotional, and otherwise, |
| 1:56.3 | when you need to be the caretaker of a person who you have very conflicted feelings about. |
| 2:05.3 | Here's Jonathan now. |
... |
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