Dr Phil promotes "Satanic Ritual Abuse" conspiracy theory

[Altus]

I don't know if you've ever searched their website, but Tate Publishing has a LOT of "true" stories like this.

On the Facebook page for "And the Angel Rocked Me," the owner says this:



Jon Leiberman also did a show with Judy Byington. It's hard for me to believe that someone connected to the Howard Stern show would give this lunacy positive press but that's apparently what's going on. The interview is on the 8th.. maybe it's worth sending Mr. Leiberman an email and letting him know he's encouraging dangerous lunacy.

Thanks for the info, Orphia!

ETA: Here is Jon Leiberman's contact page.

Ah, I see it's Leiberman, not Stern. Since he does voice-overs, I would guess he is selling this woman an interview package. I used to work at a job where news reporters would do this type of stuff on the side. They'd call you up saying they wanted to profile your company. You'd think, "Hey, great..." until you asked a few more questions and realized they were charging for their cred.

So, Tate hit her for $4,000, now Leiberman is probably going to sock her for another few. How much, Judy? I know you're reading. Kinda silent these days Ms. Byington, Merrill, Weindorf

Maybe I should contact ol' Joe and see what it will cost to promote my memories of the days on the Ark. I have vivid, vivid recollections of those days. The man with the long beard...the staff...talking to us animals. And there was the visit from the aliens. They wanted me. They loved my cranial projection. Noah did not want to give me and my partner up, so he convinced them to take the dinosaurs on their "ship"---Betty and Barney...from the Hills. We never heard from them again. Nobody can prove to me that it did not happen...therefore, it is TRUE!

 

[Dismember]

Kinda silent these days Ms. Byington, Merrill, Weindorf

She's posting in Mikayla's thread.

You don't know any of us, have never talked to any of us and making things up only shows what kind of a person you really are. ......... You don't know or have ever talked to Jenny's sisters, don't know or have ever talked to me, don't know or have ever talked to Jenny, don't have any personal knowledge of any interaction of any of us over the last 20 years. Nothing.

Here's the thing about Judy Byington. While any objective person can see that she's been stretching the truth, she makes her statements in such a way that I can usually see how she can convince herself that she's being more or less truthful. Like this bit with the UAG, for instance. I can see her convincing herself that some phone calls, some emails, and maybe some trips to the UAG drop off her "research" counts as "working as a consultant" and damn anyone who tries to tell her otherwise.

But what she said in those quotes is just pure, unadulterated BS. She knows that Doug and Altus were both there participating in that discussion when Jenny's sister Susan was putting Judy in the hot-seat.

I've just lost whatever tiny bit of sympathy I once had for her.

 

[Altus]

She's posting in Mikayla's thread.

Thanks for the tip!

 

[Orphia Nay]

Just read those comments from the link onwards.

Who is McCarthy, and how did he rip off Judy?

 

[Altus]

Just read those comments from the link onwards.

Who is McCarthy, and how did he rip off Judy?

http://mccarthycreative.com/

A real literary agent does not hook you up with a vanity publisher who charges $4,000. This is almost at the level of poetic justice!

 

[Dismember]

Just read those comments from the link onwards.

Orphia, did you see this? I just now caught it. I can barely get through Mikayla's posts half the time.

_____
Mikayla says: In Orphia Nay's "Review". She/he claims that she/he received an email from the Utah Attorney General's Office stating that, "The Utah AG has not had any consultants on satanic crime since 2006 or any time, and certainly has not used Byington in any capacity including as a consultant, ever." Allow me to emphasize the "or any time". There is access to the Report of the Utah State Task Force on Ritual Abuse (1992) online at the Utah Governor's Commission for Women and Families. It is certainly no secret that the Utah Attorney General's Office has done investigative work on ritual abuse. There is a great deal of (online even) literature regarding the Governor's Task Force on Ritual Abuse. What I am pointing out here is that Orphia is a LIAR!!! You see, no one from the Attorney General's office would say "The Utah AG has not had any consultants on satanic crime... [at] any time" because they HAVE. Judy Byington claimed to be a consultant for Utah Attorney General Special Investigations Section Chief Charles Haussler, not their office.
_______

The entire Amazon DID/SRA crowd is a study in self-deception.

ETA - I see your responses now, Orphia - you're awesome

 

[Orphia Nay]

Yes, Dismember, I just commented at Amazon on that gibberish of Mikayla's.

She seems to think that investigations require consultants. In this case, consultants / experts in something that doesn't exist.

 

[ddt]

There is access to the Report of the Utah State Task Force on Ritual Abuse (1992) online at the Utah Governor's Commission for Women and Families. It is certainly no secret that the Utah Attorney General's Office has done investigative work on ritual abuse. There is a great deal of (online even) literature regarding the Governor's Task Force on Ritual Abuse.

Mikayla refers several times to this report in her posts at Amazon.

You can indeed find the 1992 Report of the Utah State Task Force at several sites, e.g., at Scribd. What she fails to mention is what the report actually said and what the follow-up was.

The 1992 Task Force Report recommended that a special investigative unit would be set up in the AG's office to investigate SRA. That was done: $ 250,000 was allotted, and 2 persons full-time engaged to investigate SRA. These persons looked at all allegations of SRA within Utah that were known, for 2.5 years, and then published their report in 1995, titled "Ritual Crime in the State of Utah". You can find that report, e.g., via the Religious Tolerance site, together with their scathing critique. Good or bad report is even irrelevant; in the end it's the result that counts, and unsurprisingly, the investigators came up with zero, zilch, nada, nothing.

ETA: they found one case of actual abuse by a group, the Zion Society. But no evidence that the abuse was either sexual or ritual, let alone "satanic": the group was Christian.
After the report was published, a woman going under the pseudonym of Rachel Hopkins came forward. She was abused by her parents, and claimed ritual abuse. Her parents confessed to the abuse, but never to the "ritual" aspect of it.

 

[Orphia Nay]

Well said, my penguin friend!

 

[Dismember]

Byington and Hill on the Dr. Phil show

Dr. Phil show for Friday, January 11th, 2013:

...... Then, Jenny is a 56-year-old mother of three who says she suffers from dissociative identity disorder, formally known as multiple personality disorder. She says she has 22 “alters,” who she calls “parts of me.” Jenny reveals the traumatic childhood experiences that she believes caused her to take on multiple personalities. And, Jenny’s son, Robert, 30, shares what life was like growing up with Jenny. Then, Jenny’s therapist, Judy, who wrote the book, 22 Faces, based on Jenny’s journals and their sessions together, joins the show to defend herself against accusations that she may be exploiting her patient. Go inside the world of real-life families rocked by mental illness in this all-new Dr. Phil!

 

[Orphia Nay]

Dr. Phil show for Friday, January 11th, 2013:

...... Then, Jenny is a 56-year-old mother of three who says she suffers from dissociative identity disorder, formally known as multiple personality disorder. She says she has 22 “alters,” who she calls “parts of me.” Jenny reveals the traumatic childhood experiences that she believes caused her to take on multiple personalities. And, Jenny’s son, Robert, 30, shares what life was like growing up with Jenny. Then, Jenny’s therapist, Judy, who wrote the book, 22 Faces, based on Jenny’s journals and their sessions together, joins the show to defend herself against accusations that she may be exploiting her patient. Go inside the world of real-life families rocked by mental illness in this all-new Dr. Phil!

Oh wow.

I detect a smidgen of skepticism there (highlighted), but I don't hold out much hope.

ETA, thanks for breaking the news, Dismember!

 

[Roma]

Oh wow.

I detect a smidgen of skepticism there (highlighted), but I don't hold out much hope.

ETA, thanks for breaking the news, Dismember!

Okay I'm holding out hope too. It doesn't look like a blanket endorsemnet anyway and there will be a word or two about exploitation, I guess so anyway.

 

[xterra]

Oh wow.

I detect a smidgen of skepticism there (highlighted), but I don't hold out much hope.

ETA, thanks for breaking the news, Dismember!

That is probably caution rather than skepticism: "The views expressed do not reflect those of this station or the sponsor."

I would be nice if someone would post a transcript or point us to an online copy of the show. (I don't have a TV.)

ETA The "defending herself against accusations" phrase probably means someone on Phil's staff is reading either this thread or some of the other places where Orphiia, Doug, et. al. have been posting.

 

[Dismember]

That is probably caution rather than skepticism: "The views expressed do not reflect those of this station or the sponsor."

That was my thought as well, xterra. Maybe it won't be an obvious glowing endorsement, but I doubt he'll give her the roasting she so richly deserves.

Xterra, IIRC you were considering sending an email to the UAG - did you go through with that? I sent an email on December 12th and I haven't gotten any reply. I thought I might at least get a generic "thank you for emailing us" message.

 

[xterra]

Xterra, IIRC you were considering sending an email to the UAG - did you go through with that? I sent an email on December 12th and I haven't gotten any reply. I thought I might at least get a generic "thank you for emailing us" message.

No I didn't. I didn't think it would do any good. The lack of response to your email seems to be confirmation of my opinion.

There appears to be too much ambiguity about Haussler's position, and too much doubt about whether Mark Shurtleff himself would be willing to make a statement, which is what I think would be required. Such an appeal requires an unequivocal. irrefutable argument and statement of fact.*

in addition, the dismissal by the Department of Professional Licensing of the complaints against Byington weakens any such argument.

I have been reading some, but not by any means all, of the various other blogs or reviews of Byington's book. What I see there leads me to believe that unfortunately there is much heat and not much light -- not for want of trying on the realists' side. But when every argument is sidetracked into "See? They are satanists," and then posts are voted down, it looks like a squabble over nothing.

However, if anyone can help me come up with a reasonably successful strategy for making the point that the UAG himself should issue an official clarifying statement, I will consider sending it from my academic email account. What I won't do is put my academic reputation (such as it is) at risk.



*Even then, I think Byington would try to put her own spin on such a statement: "The UAG knows I really am a consultant but can't say so because if it were known I would lose credibilty."

 

[Orphia Nay]

No I didn't. I didn't think it would do any good. The lack of response to your email seems to be confirmation of my opinion.

There appears to be too much ambiguity about Haussler's position, and too much doubt about whether Mark Shurtleff himself would be willing to make a statement, which is what I think would be required. Such an appeal requires an unequivocal. irrefutable argument and statement of fact.*

in addition, the dismissal by the Department of Professional Licensing of the complaints against Byington weakens any such argument.

I have been reading some, but not by any means all, of the various other blogs or reviews of Byington's book. What I see there leads me to believe that unfortunately there is much heat and not much light -- not for want of trying on the realists' side. But when every argument is sidetracked into "See? They are satanists," and then posts are voted down, it looks like a squabble over nothing.

However, if anyone can help me come up with a reasonably successful strategy for making the point that the UAG himself should issue an official clarifying statement, I will consider sending it from my academic email account. What I won't do is put my academic reputation (such as it is) at risk.

I'd wait and see what happens on Dr Phil. If she mentions working for the Utah AG's office, that would be useful in the letter. Even if she doesn't, there might be increased publicity for her and her site (which claims she works for them) which might influence what you can put in your letter to them.

I've set up a Google Alert to notify me of new mentions of Judy Byington on the web, so hopefully I won't miss any influential sites discussing her.

*Even then, I think Byington would try to put her own spin on such a statement: "The UAG knows I really am a consultant but can't say so because if it were known I would lose credibilty."

Our counter-argument to that is much stronger - that she must be lying if she mentions it because she's destroying her own credibility and revealing "top secret" information.

 

[Dismember]

Our counter-argument to that is much stronger - that she must be lying if she mentions it because she's destroying her own credibility and revealing "top secret" information.

We'd hardly even need a counter argument.

If the UAG put out an official statement that Judy Byington is not a consultant and she insisted on claiming otherwise, I'd bet most people would dismiss her as a crackpot and her supporters as gullible fools or liars, without any help from us.

I didn't say anything in my email to the UAG about making an official statement, but I do wish I'd have mentioned that she was scheduled to be on the Dr. Phil show. I would think that since Judy is getting some significant publicity now, the last thing they'll want to be associated with is an unhinged woman who's openly trying to launch another satanic panic. In that respect, the more people willing to write in and ask about her affiliations, the better, because it may convince them that a public statement is necessary. I'm just speculating, though.

It's worth repeating that Byington has yet to update her Dr. Phil page - could she be waiting until after the show airs? And as Altus mentioned, the "coming events" calendar has been removed completely.

 

[Dismember]

Here's an excerpt of the excellent one-star review posted by "Garnet."

....In fact, none of that part of the book makes any sense. Jenny herself only said her Satanic mind-control master was the "Old Man," and it is the author of the book who, for some reason, states that he was the infamous Dr Green or Dr Greenbaum, kingpin of the super-secret and uber-powerful Satanic conspiracy and who apparently was a teenage Jew in the Nazi camps when he was taught his torture and mind-control abilities that he has been putting to use for Satanists ever since. How a man who was a teenager at the end of WW2 and so would be only in his late 30's by the early 1960's could be seen as an "Old Man" is one question. ....

..... The author also shows a sublime ignorance (or should be be, indifference) of history in declaiming that Hitler was mentored by Crowley, a statement that has no basis in reality and that can easily researched and proved to be a baseless rumor. Another piece of ludicrous history is found in her comments that the Qenites Tribe were Satanists. Again, research shows them to be a tribe that was friendly with the Israelites and that Moses himself married into them. There is even speculation by scholars that the name Yahweh came from this tribe. Over and over again, the author displays a pitiful lack of rational thought and even the most basic research skills. .....

 

[cosmicaug]

Here's an excerpt of the excellent one-star review posted by "Garnet."

Someone wrote in that review's comment section purporting to be one of Jenny Hill's sons, Jason Steffen:

Jenny Hill's son Jason here. Another one of her sons, Robert (my brother), will be on the Dr. Phil show this Friday the 11th of January to discuss this "book". I can verify that Jenny, my Mom, has not received any money from this book and from what I understand, isn't going to. She is currently living on disability and she suffers from mental illness. It is very difficult pinpointing exactly what she suffers from because she lies quite often, possibly as a symptom of her mental illness. She has at various times claimed that she has had schizophrenia, cancer affecting her thinking, bipolar disorder, and of course DID or multiple personality disorder. We all of course love her and try to help her the best way that we can, but this book is causing lots of problems for her, as she has been hospitalized for anxiety/depression twice in the last month. Judy has in the past encouraged Jenny to sue her son Robert for making a documentary about her. She also took Jenny to some very expensive houses and told her that she could live that life style if only she signed her life rights away. Judy has invaded my mother's and our family's privacy and we all united against her and her "book". I cannot say for sure if my mother has had DID. I also can't say for sure if she has had "false memory syndrome". I do know that she is mentally ill and is being taken advantage of.

Sincerely her son,
Jason

 

[cosmicaug]

From that same comment section:

Before Robert's film was even made I had signed over my film and literary rights to Jenny's story to a New York literary agent who was already in the process of presenting them to publishing companies. If he and I were to spend time and money publishing Jenny's story we needed to be assured that we would be the only ones granted the legal rights to her story. Thus, Jenny and I entered into a contract where I would have sole proprietship of her story. This is done all the time in the industry and protects the author, the protagonist, the literary agent and the story.

Hasn't she said elsewhere or implied that this was not the arrangement when Jenny's sister's comments in a screen capture from some website's comment section about this have been brought up or am I imagining this?