Behind the Bastards Part One: The Satanic Panic: America's First QAnon
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Oct 27, 2020 Guest Jake Hanrahan, an expert on Satanic Panic, discusses the history and impact of false accusations, including the Salem witch hunts and contemporary satanic panics. The podcast explores societal attitudes towards child sexual abuse, controversial abuse investigations, troubling beliefs in child protection, false memories, coerced testimonies, and the tragic consequences of misinformation during the Satanic Panic era.
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Demonology Is A Recurring Social Pattern
- Demonology repeats across history: societies repeatedly accuse marginalized groups of child murder and sexualized crimes during moral panics.
- Examples range from 2nd-century Roman mobs vs Christians, medieval blood libel against Jews, to Salem witch hunts and 19th-century anti-Catholic ex-nun tales.
60s–70s Crimes And Media Made Satanic Fear Plausible
- High-profile violent cult crimes and pop culture in the 1960s–70s made occult violence feel plausible to the public.
- Manson murders, Zodiac and Son of Sam plus The Exorcist film stoked fears of ritualistic cults.
Mike Warnke Built A Career On Fabricated Satanic Confessions
- Mike Warnke falsely claimed to be a satanic high priest and wrote Satan's Seller, becoming an evangelical celebrity.
- He appeared on Oprah, Larry King and 20/20 spreading lurid but fabricated tales used to frighten audiences.