{"podcast":{"title":"What It Was Like","slug":"what-it-was-like-5287591","podcast_index_feed_id":5287591,"rss_url":"https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/what-it-was-like","website_url":"https://shows.acast.com/what-it-was-like","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/6200ee776bcd50001215d4e7/1754542339085-1943b983-ef04-49f2-8849-aba9b6ea7621.jpeg","author":"Rachel Tuffery","episode_count":76,"summary":"Conversations with people who have lived through extreme events. Some stories are dark and twisted, others are light and funny. In all cases, we get an intimate portrait of 'what it was like' to be there. Find us on TikTok: @whatitwaslikepodcast Find us on Youtube: @whatitwaslikepodcast Follow us on Instagram: whatitwaslikepodcast Hosted by Julian Morgans This is a Superreal production Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-it-was-like-5287591"},"episode":{"title":"How I Became a Cult Recruiter","slug":"how-i-became-a-cult-recruiter","published_at":"2026-05-15T11:45:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-it-was-like-5287591/how-i-became-a-cult-recruiter","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-it-was-like-5287591","url":"https://shows.acast.com/what-it-was-like/episodes/6a070691efd1f558b08f79b6","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6200ee776bcd50001215d4e7/e/6a070691efd1f558b08f79b6/media.mp3","summary":"In 2019, Mattew Thomas thought he was joining a Bible study group. Instead, he was sucked into Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a secretive Korean cult known for coercive control and bankrupting its members. Over the next four years, Matt lost himself and eventually became a recruiter tasked with drawing others in. Find us on TikTok: @whatitwaslikepodcast Find us on Youtube: @whatitwaslikepodcast Follow us on Instagram: whatitwaslikepodcast This is a Superreal production Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","meta_description":"In 2019, Mattew Thomas thought he was joining a Bible study group. Instead, he was sucked into Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a secretive Korean cult known…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3618,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/what-it-was-like-5287591/episodes/how-i-became-a-cult-recruiter/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-it-was-like-5287591/how-i-became-a-cult-recruiter.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}