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She Silenced Whistleblowers of Abus*ve Evangelical Academy, Then Became One (Why She Flipped)

Cults to Consciousness

52,878 views

Featured in the Shiny Happy People 2 doc-series, Cindy was deep in evangelical nationalism when she was hired as head of PR to silence whistleblowers from the Honor Academy at Teen Mania. She was told they were simply disgruntled chiIdren who were lying to defame the massive enterprise. Years later, she would realize, not only were the alumni telling the truth, but the upper management knew about the tort*re the chiIdren went through and did nothing to stop it, or change their practices for the following group. In fact, it was all part of the system to break the will of the interns and mold them into warriors for Jesus so they could penetrate all facets of society and create a Christian nation. Once Cindy’s eyes were opened, she took all their insider financial information to a news station to blast the story to the world.

Email Cindy: CindyMallette@gmail.com

Watch the interview with Mica Ringo: Why Fanatical Worldwide MINISTRIES Was Ter...

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Chapter Marks

00:00:00 Intro
00:04:35 Teen Mania, explained
00:07:12 90s Evangelical youth culture, and how Cindy got involved with Teen Mania
00:16:53 Cindy gets called to help with Ministries PR crisis
00:24:41 From silencing whistleblowers, to becoming one
00:45:53 "Recovering Alumni" Blog that led to the demise of Teen Mania
00:49:44 "ESOAL" (Emotionally Stretching Opportunity of a Lifetime), explained
00:54:06 How Cindy ended up leaving Teen Mania
01:07:26 How Cindy exposed Teen Mania
01:19:00 Final thoughts, Linda Listen
01:21:57 What Cindy is looking forward to with the Shiny Happy People Documentary release

*Disclaimer: Thanks for joining us at Cults to Consciousness. This storytelling podcast is meant to be for entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for medical advice. We may discuss triggering topics and we ask that you make your personal mental health a priority. Lastly, the opinions of our guests do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host.*

20 Comments

@lisanunlist9510 1 year ago

Never trust a politician who tells you how to worship, or a pastor who tells you how to VOTE.

@lydia8779 1 year ago

I’m so impressed with people who accept new information and change what they do based on it. Much support to the guest! ❤❤❤

@thexphial 1 year ago

Cindy, I really appreciate you coming forth as someone who went into the situation as an adult and have since changed your mind. I grew up in East Texas as a Southern Baptist, and I know intimately the world you were invested in. I am proud of you for your growth and your willingness to share your experience.

@NicoleUrbach 1 year ago

This was an incredible interview. Thank you so much. I was not raised in this kind of Christianity, but i have been paying attention to it since high school in the 90s. And now here we are in 2025 with high control Christianity squeezing the neck of our country.

@vaniprod 1 year ago

Everytime Cindy said "because I was a good girl", I felt so seen! Being labeled a troublemaker and jezebel was simply a response to my asking questions or wanting a more nuanced explanation for why I was told to believe certain things.

@aviellanunez5995 1 year ago

I use to work at Trinity broadcasting Network in my early 20s and Aquire the Fire was something I'd watch every week while I was working. I wanted to go to Teen Mania so bad but knew I couldn't afford it. Years later here I am with eyes wide open realizing the pentecostal church I was so heavily involved in for about 20 years was a high demand cult. This channel and all your interviews are helping me to unlearn so many toxic, cultistsh ways of thinking.

@rigorride 1 year ago

Cindy is very well spoken and has a very compelling story. She brings me joy because she's broken free a toxic cult and is living a much more authentic life.

@I_am_not_your_sister 1 year ago

It takes courage to admit when you've been misled and take action to correct it- so proud of her- can't wait to see this interview

@mikaelamoyher5156 1 year ago

Thank you for sharing your story. I cant wait to be able to finally share mine on this platform 🙌 I submitted a request. The only way to stop abuse and to call out those who did us and others harm is to speak out and to not stay silent

@lydia8779 1 year ago

I was picked on by a bunch of evangelical Christians in high school for being a catholic/atheist/or maybe Jew— they couldn’t figure out the way in which I was going to hell, and I refused to give them information.
As an adult, I converted to Judaism, which has been a joyful, wonderful experience.
Yesterday, my Jewish congregation met with a charismatic Christian church group through a county program. It was healing to me to talk with a woman from their group, and I hope we can remain friends.
(The judgy Christians in HS were white, the church we met with yesterday is majority black, but I’m so thankful for the calm, healing conversation)

@PandoraSpring 6 months ago

Amazing interview! I love how Cindy’s mindset has shifted to one of tolerance and love. I wish some of my conservative family members would evolve their beliefs. They never mix with people of different faiths but instead exist in an echo chamber of conservative/Christian Nationalism.

@carolynsilvers9999 1 year ago

I was raised the same way… and it took years to untangle the indoctrination and misinformation… I’m grateful she has to courage to share.

@currentuser3852 1 year ago (edited)

The day I found a voting guide on my windshield after Sunday service was the day I left the church. Horrified. This was in the 1990s. I haven’t missed it. Well done, Cindy. You helped a lot of people!

@monicaarnett2527 7 months ago

I stumbled upon this channel a little over a month ago and have been bingeing taking in the different experiences with similar traumas. Today several parts of the story stopped me in my tracks. I’ve always joked I grew up “cult-ish” and didn’t have the language for high control groups. As an evangelical southern baptist preacher’s kid (who was also a PK) I found this to be the most relatable. There were so many parallels to my own upbringing with the denomination and programs discussed. I just wanted to say thank you for sharing your story and for validating my experience as being one of complex control.

@sandybowers5085 1 year ago

Great interview! So grateful I got my family out of IBLP. This video was so eye opening 👍🏼💯

@katwitanruna 1 year ago

Break the silence. Break the cycle.

@namaste2706 1 year ago

The emotional honesty and transparency of this podcast is encouraging. Well done, ladies!

@e.d.3729 1 year ago

I was moved to tears by this. Thank you Cindy. So few people are capable of change. Or so it appears to me. So it is such an uplift to see someone intrinsically brave -- not performatively brave -- but TRULY brave.

@BlackMeWidow 5 months ago

One of the most influential interviews for me: Kudos Cindy for your showing up for others and speaking out, even though you had nothing to gain from it. Love your heart AND your brain and really wish you all the very best!!!!!

@mscptizzy 1 year ago

7:47 I remember my catechism school teacher (Catholic) tried to tell us this story and I asked "how do we know what really happened?" The teacher seemed so stunned that I asked the question. But in my head I thought "if everyone is dead who can tell us what really happened and what convo was had???!" She was not happy so I decided I needed to shut up 😂