Television’s #1 home for true crime programming, Investigation Discovery (ID), and leading entertainment news brand, PEOPLE, announced today the premiere of PEOPLE MAGAZINE INVESTIGATES: CULTS. Returning for its sophomore season, PEOPLE MAGAZINE INVESTIGATES: CULTS delves into the twisted world of cults, exploring just how destructive and dangerous they can be to members and their families. The six-episode new season of PEOPLE MAGAZINE INVESTIGATES: CULTS is produced by Lucky 8 and premieres Monday, June 3 at 9/8c on Investigation Discovery.
Anchored by the reporting of PEOPLE’s esteemed true crime editorial team, each episode follows one infamous cult from its creation, as power-hungry cult leaders use manipulation, sex and fear mongering to control and dominate their followers into blind loyalty. From “Children of God” to the Manson family, PEOPLE’s award-winning journalists are in the field exposing the abusive rituals and brutal conditions that exist within these organizations. The team speaks exclusively to survivors who narrowly escaped and are attempting to rebuild their lives outside the confines of these rigid and criminal organizations.
“The stories told from those who have escaped from these cults are incredibly harrowing – truly, stranger than fiction – which is why they both captivate and so intrigue our viewers,” said Henry Schleiff, Group President of Investigation Discovery, Travel Channel, American Heroes Channel and Destination America. “ID continues our extremely successful partnership with PEOPLE for this new season, as they bring their expert reporting to our viewers on these secret societies that so often seek to dominate and control their innocent followers.”
“PEOPLE’s captivating true crime reporting continues to fascinate audiences with real stories that could happen anywhere in America,” said Dan Wakeford, Editor in Chief, PEOPLE. “ID is the perfect partner for these stories, which not only investigate the crimes, but also pay tribute to the victims.”
In the premiere episode of PEOPLE MAGAZINE INVESTIGATES: CULTS, David Berg begins preaching an all-embracing gospel in the late 1960s. He quickly gains followers, including actor River Phoenix’s family, creating communes around the world forming the “Children of God”. However, Father David’s free love message gradually becomes sinister, as devotees are taught to give their bodies to whomever desires them. Adults must engage in religious prostitution, and children are required to have and observe sex starting at a very young age. Members of the cult are also subjected to violence in prison camps across the globe, where they are banned from having any communication with the outside world. Then, in 2005, Ricky Rodriguez, raised as the cult’s Prince, kills his former nanny and sexual abuser, and then himself – in an attempt to finally bring down the cult for good. Now, PEOPLE’s true crime team sits down exclusively with Christina Babin and Jemima Farris, survivors of “Children of God”, to hear their stories first-hand as they reveal their personal experiences of what happened under David Berg’s helm.
PEOPLE MAGAZINE INVESTIGATES: CULTS is produced for Investigation Discovery by Lucky 8, with Greg Henry, Kim Woodard, Isaac Holub and Dahlia Damaghi as executive producers and Dan Messina as supervising producer. For PEOPLE, Dan Wakeford and Alicia Dennis are executive producers. For Investigation Discovery, Liz Massie is senior executive producer, Sara Kozak is senior vice president of production, Kevin Bennett is general manager, and Henry Schleiff is Group President.
ABOUT INVESTIGATION DISCOVERY
Investigation Discovery (ID) is the leading crime and justice network on television, delivering the highest-quality programming to approximately 85 million U.S. households. From harrowing crimes to in-depth investigations and heart-breaking mysteries behind these “real people, real stories”, the always revealing network challenges our understanding of culture, society and the human condition. The #1 network for women in all of cable, ID’s programming is available in both high definition (HD) and standard definition (SD), as well as anytime and anywhere through the network’s TV Everywhere offering, IDGo. For exclusive web content and bonus material, fans can follow ID on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook or check out the network’s true crime blog, CrimeFeed.
Investigation Discovery is part of Discovery, Inc. (Nasdaq: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), a global leader in real life entertainment, serving a passionate audience of superfans around the world with content that inspires, informs and entertains. Available in 220 countries and territories and 50 languages, Discovery delivers over 8,000 hours of original programming each year and has category leadership across deeply loved content genres around the world. For additional information about ID, please visit InvestigationDiscovery.com
About PEOPLE
Meredith Corporation’s PEOPLE revolutionized personality journalism when it launched as a weekly in 1974 with a mission to celebrate extraordinary people doing ordinary things and ordinary people doing extraordinary things. Ubiquitous and still at the center of pop culture more than 40 years later, the PEOPLE brand is accessible across all media and platforms (print, digital, video, OTT, mobile, social) bringing more than 100 million consumers a unique mix of breaking entertainment news, exclusive photos, video, unparalleled access to the red carpet, celebrities, and in-depth reporting on the most compelling newsmakers of our time. An essential component of PEOPLE’s editorial vision remains human interest stories, which touch and often mirror the lives of our passionate audience. ComScore ranks the PEOPLE/Entertainment Weekly Digital Network No. 1 in the entertainment news category. And now, the PeopleTVapp offers a free, advertiser-supported OTT streaming video service. PEOPLE is an award-winning 24/7 news organization headquartered in NYC with reporters worldwide. For more information visit PEOPLE.com and follow @people on Twitter and Instagram, @peoplemag on Facebook, and the PEOPLE channel on YouTube and on Snapchat’s Discover.
About LUCKY 8
Lucky 8 is a full-service unscripted production company based in New York City. Led by industry veterans Greg Henry, Kim Woodard, Isaac Holub and George Kralovansky, the company has produced hits in nearly every unscripted genre, from formatted reality and docuseries, to true-crime, food, comedy, science and more. Lucky 8 series and specials include People Magazine Investigates: Cults, Dark Waters: Murder in the Deep and Killer Unknown for ID; A&E’s groundbreaking 60 Days In; The Laws of Jaws for Discovery’s Shark Week; “Obsessed with the Perfect Booty” and “Obsessed with Looking Like a Snapchat Filter” for MTV’s True Life/Now; Deadly Power with Lauren Sivan and The Disappearance of… Phoenix Coldon for Oxygen; and HISTORY’s upcoming The Food That Build America. Lucky 8 also produced the feature documentaries Bronx Obama, which premiered on Showtime in 2014, and Standing Up, which premiered in 2017 at DOC NYC. For more information, visit www.lucky8.tv
