Hoodwinked with Dr. Mara Einstein

Epizody

• Getting Out: Cult Recovery, Religious Trauma, and How to Help Someone Leave 03.02.2026 41min

  An ex-Mormon turned religious trauma therapist provides advice about what it takes to leave a cult—whether that person is you or someone you love.
• Influencers, Algorithms, and the Business of Belief 20.01.2026 1h 26min

  From brand partnerships and algorithmic gambling to conspiracy economies and digital radicalization— digital influence is far from accidental.
• Digital media changed the game 06.01.2026 1h 10min

  How did digital technologies go from a tool to a belief system, and how do we get our agency back?
• The ultimate commercial cult 23.12.2025 53min

  A firsthand account of how multi-level marketing operates as a commercial cult—what starts with purchase turns to years of coercive control and ends by creating a crusader.
• What are brand cults? 09.12.2025 55min

  Shopping used to be transactional–you have a product, I give you money. Today, it’s not so simple. Products are brands, and the most successful brands provide communities, identities, or even belief systems. Learn why the psychology behind “cult brands” has quietly moved from the fringes into everyday marketing.
• A new kind of cult 25.11.2025 47min

  How cult tactics slipped into everyday marketing—and why your favorite brands, like Apple and Lululemon, might be shaping more than your shopping habits
• The nitty gritty of cults 11.11.2025 43min

  Ex-NXIVM-cult-member Sarah Edmondson joins Dr. Einstein to provide an insider's perspective on cult tactics.
• What is a cult? 30.10.2025 41min

  What exactly is a cult—and how is it different from religion?In this opening episode, Dr. Mara Einstein sits down with Kathryn Lofton, one of today’s most incisive scholars of religion and culture, to unpack how belief, devotion, and consumer behavior intertwine. From worshiping gods to worshiping brands, Lofton and Einstein explore how modern life blurs the line between the sacred and the sold.Mentions:Oprah: The Gospel of an Icon by Kathryn LoftonConsuming Religion by Kathryn LoftonAmusing Ourselves to Death by Neil PostmanThe Cult of Thinness by Sharlene Nagy Hesse-BiberAbout the guestKathryn Lofton is Lex Hixon Professor of Religious Studies and American Studies, History and Divinity, at Yale University. She is the author of two books, Consuming Religion and Oprah: The Gospel of an Icon. Learn more about Kathryn’s work:  https://religiousstudies.yale.edu/people/kathryn-lofton About the hostDr. Mara Einstein spent a decade in corporate marketing working for some of the world’s biggest brands before turning her focus to exposing the industry’s inner workings. Now a tenured professor of media studies at CUNY, she’s dedicated to helping people understand how marketing shapes what we buy, what we believe, and even who we think we are. With a background spanning business, media, and the arts, Dr. Einstein brings sharp insight and humor to the systems that sell us our identities—and the power we have to push back.Pick up Dr. Einstein’s book Hoodwinked: How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults on Bookshop.org (and beyond): https://bookshop.org/a/116018/9781493086153Website: https://www.drmaraeinstein.com Books: https://www.drmaraeinstein.com/writing Instagram, TikTok, Threads: @drmaraeinsteinYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Drmaraeinstein  CreditsProduction: MultitudeLead Producer & Editor: Bren FrederickMusic: Marc LangerCover art: Cayla Einstein See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
• Welcome to Hoodwinked! 21.10.2025 5min

  What if your favorite brand—or your favorite influencer—used the same playbook as a cult? Hoodwinked with Dr. Mara Einstein unpacks how modern marketing borrows tactics from cults, MLMs, and political movements to win hearts, minds, and wallets. Through conversations with academics, activists, and insiders, Einstein—author of Hoodwinked: How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults—reveals how belief and commerce became inseparable in the digital age. From influencer culture and wellness scams to pyramid schemes and political persuasion, Hoodwinked traces the hidden connections between belief and manipulation. Each episode explores how the same tools that keep followers loyal also keep consumers buying—and how to recognize when inspiration turns into indoctrination.Debuting October 30th, 2025. Produced by Multitude. ____________________________About the hostDr. Mara Einstein spent a decade in corporate marketing working for some of the world’s biggest brands before turning her focus to exposing the industry’s inner workings. Now a tenured professor of media studies at Queens College (CUNY), she’s dedicated to helping people understand how marketing shapes what we buy, believe, and even who we think we are. With a background spanning business, media, and the arts, Dr. Einstein brings sharp insight and humor to the systems that sell us our identities—and the power we have to push back.Pick up Dr. Einstein’s book Hoodwinked: How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults on Bookshop.org and beyond. Website: https://www.drmaraeinstein.com Books: https://www.drmaraeinstein.com/writing Instagram, TikTok, Threads: @drmaraeinsteinYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Drmaraeinstein CreditsProduction: MultitudeLead Producer & Editor: Bren FrederickMusic: Marc LangerCover art: Cayla Einstein  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.