Karin Pouw
Encyclopedia
Karin Pouw is an American
spokeswoman for the Church of Scientology
, and currently the Director of Public Affairs for Church of Scientology International
. In 2000 the Los Angeles Times
reported that she was a member of the Church of Scientology's Office of Special Affairs
(OSA).
, and the Director of Public Affairs for Church of Scientology International
. In 2000 the Los Angeles Times
reported that she was a member of the Church of Scientology's Office of Special Affairs
(OSA), which she said functions as a "public affairs office". In 1997 she was a public affairs officer for the Church of Scientology. She resides in Los Angeles
, California
.
professor David S. Touretzky
spoke to the press about the Scientology-affiliated organization Applied Scholastics
, Pouw said: "He is discredited in the field that he's trying to comment on. He is a specialist in rat brains." Scientology critic Arnaldo Lerma
told The Washington Post
that he left the Church of Scientology because he fell in love with one of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard
's daughters, but Pouw said Lerma "left the Church because he could not maintain the ethical standards required of Scientologists". She has also questioned why former Scientologist Lawrence Wollersheim's organization Fight Against Coercive Tactics Network
(FACTnet) should have non-profit, tax-exempt status. "Wollersheim has been trying to con the church and the general public for 20 years. We recognized him for what he is and expelled him from the church. Now the law has finally caught up with him," she said after United States Marshals seized computers and documents critical of Scientology from Wollersheim's home after Scientology officials alleged that he was posting copyrighted material to the Internet.
Tony Ortega interviewed Pouw for a 1999 article in the Phoenix New Times
, and wrote that according to Scientology, Jesus
was a false memory implanted into humans as a result of the Xenu
space opera. When Ortega asked Pouw about this theology, she responded: "So what if we believe Jesus is a figment of the imagination?"
Pouw issued a 15-page statement to the press in response to the January 2008 publication of Andrew Morton
's unauthorized biography
of Tom Cruise
, Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography
. Pouw called the book a "bigoted defamatory assault replete with lies". Her statement about the book prompted Jenna Miscavige Hill
, the niece of Scientology's leader David Miscavige
, to publicly criticize Scientology and its practice of disconnection
. Hill's written response was an open letter addressed to Pouw which was posted to the Internet
, in which she stated: "I am absolutely shocked at how vehemently you insist upon not only denying the truths that have been stated about the church in that biography, but then take it a step further and tell outright lies." Hill countered Pouw's denial of Scientology's practice of disconnection, saying: "As you well know, my parents officially left the church when I was 16 in 2000 ... Not only was I not allowed to speak to them, I was not allowed to answer a phone for well over a year, in case it was them calling me." In response, Pouw told the Agence France-Presse
: "The church stands by its statement of 14 January. The church does not respond to newsgroup postings."
Pouw has commented on the recent actions of the group Anonymous
against the Church of Scientology as part of their movement Project Chanology
. During Project Chanology's denial-of-service attack
s on Church of Scientology websites in late January 2008, Pouw asserted to the Los Angeles Times that their websites "have been and are online". "These people are posing extremely serious death threats to our people. We are talking about religious hatred and bigotry," said Pouw in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. She said that Scientology sees the Internet as a useful medium of communication and that it is "concentrating on using the Internet as a resource for promoting its message and mission in this world, not as a ground for litigation". In July 2010 the Church of Scientology International
publicized a "Scientology Newsroom" website tailored for members of the media; Pouw was one of four international representatives for Scientology listed as "Spokespersons".
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
spokeswoman for the Church of Scientology
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...
, and currently the Director of Public Affairs for Church of Scientology International
Church of Scientology International
The Church of Scientology International, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. Within the worldwide network of Scientology corporations and entities, CSI is officially referred to as the "mother church" of the Church of Scientology....
. In 2000 the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
reported that she was a member of the Church of Scientology's Office of Special Affairs
Office of Special Affairs
The Office of Special Affairs or OSA is a department of the Church of Scientology. According to the Church, the OSA is responsible for directing legal affairs, public relations, pursuing investigations, publicizing the Church's "social betterment works," and "oversee[ing its] social reform programs"...
(OSA).
Scientology official
Pouw is a spokeswoman for the Church of ScientologyChurch of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...
, and the Director of Public Affairs for Church of Scientology International
Church of Scientology International
The Church of Scientology International, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. Within the worldwide network of Scientology corporations and entities, CSI is officially referred to as the "mother church" of the Church of Scientology....
. In 2000 the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
reported that she was a member of the Church of Scientology's Office of Special Affairs
Office of Special Affairs
The Office of Special Affairs or OSA is a department of the Church of Scientology. According to the Church, the OSA is responsible for directing legal affairs, public relations, pursuing investigations, publicizing the Church's "social betterment works," and "oversee[ing its] social reform programs"...
(OSA), which she said functions as a "public affairs office". In 1997 she was a public affairs officer for the Church of Scientology. She resides in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Representative to media
Pouw has spoken out against activists and former Scientologists who publicly criticize Scientology. When Carnegie Mellon UniversityCarnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
professor David S. Touretzky
David S. Touretzky
David S. Touretzky is a research professor in the Computer Science Department and the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition at Carnegie Mellon University. He received a BA in Computer Science at Rutgers University in 1978, and earned a Master's degree and a Ph.D. in Computer Science at Carnegie...
spoke to the press about the Scientology-affiliated organization Applied Scholastics
Applied Scholastics
Applied Scholastics is a non-profit corporation founded in 1972 to promote the use of study techniques created by L. Ron Hubbard, a science fiction author and the founder of the Church of Scientology...
, Pouw said: "He is discredited in the field that he's trying to comment on. He is a specialist in rat brains." Scientology critic Arnaldo Lerma
Arnaldo Lerma
Arnaldo Pagliarini Lerma is an American writer and activist, a former Scientologist, and critic of Scientology, who has appeared in television, media and radio interviews...
told The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
that he left the Church of Scientology because he fell in love with one of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...
's daughters, but Pouw said Lerma "left the Church because he could not maintain the ethical standards required of Scientologists". She has also questioned why former Scientologist Lawrence Wollersheim's organization Fight Against Coercive Tactics Network
Fight Against Coercive Tactics Network
Fight Against Coercive Tactics Network, also known as FACTNet, co-founded by Robert Penny and Lawrence Wollersheim, is a Colorado-based organization committed to educating and facilitating communication about destructive mind control...
(FACTnet) should have non-profit, tax-exempt status. "Wollersheim has been trying to con the church and the general public for 20 years. We recognized him for what he is and expelled him from the church. Now the law has finally caught up with him," she said after United States Marshals seized computers and documents critical of Scientology from Wollersheim's home after Scientology officials alleged that he was posting copyrighted material to the Internet.
Tony Ortega interviewed Pouw for a 1999 article in the Phoenix New Times
Phoenix New Times
The Phoenix New Times is a free, weekly Phoenix, Arizona newspaper, put out every Thursday. It is the founding publication of the New Times Media , but The Village Voice is now the flagship publication of that company....
, and wrote that according to Scientology, Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
was a false memory implanted into humans as a result of the Xenu
Xenu
Xenu ,also spelled Xemu, was, according to the founder of Scientology L. Ron Hubbard, the dictator of the "Galactic Confederacy" who, 75 million years ago, brought billions of his people to Earth in a DC-8-like spacecraft, stacked them around volcanoes and killed them using hydrogen bombs...
space opera. When Ortega asked Pouw about this theology, she responded: "So what if we believe Jesus is a figment of the imagination?"
Pouw issued a 15-page statement to the press in response to the January 2008 publication of Andrew Morton
Andrew Morton (writer)
Andrew David Morton is a former British Fleet Street journalist, a notable writer and biographer.Before moving into a career in journalism, he attended grammar school, then studied history at the University of Sussex....
's unauthorized biography
Biography
A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...
of Tom Cruise
Tom Cruise
Thomas Cruise Mapother IV , better known as Tom Cruise, is an American film actor and producer. He has been nominated for three Academy Awards and he has won three Golden Globe Awards....
, Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography
Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography
Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography is a biography of actor Tom Cruise, written by Andrew Morton. The book was published in the United States in hardcover format on January 15, 2008 by St. Martin's Press, with a first printing of 400,000 copies, and an audio format on five CDs by Macmillan Audio...
. Pouw called the book a "bigoted defamatory assault replete with lies". Her statement about the book prompted Jenna Miscavige Hill
Jenna Miscavige Hill
Jenna Miscavige Hill is a former Scientologist who, after leaving the Church of Scientology in 2005, has become one of its most prominent critics. She is the daughter of Ron Miscavige, Jr. and the niece of current church leader David Miscavige....
, the niece of Scientology's leader David Miscavige
David Miscavige
David Miscavige is the leader of the Church of Scientology and affiliated organizations. His title is Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology Center , a corporation that controls the trademarked names and symbols of Dianetics and Scientology. Miscavige was an assistant to Hubbard while a...
, to publicly criticize Scientology and its practice of disconnection
Disconnection
Disconnection, when used in Scientology, is a term used to describe the severance of all ties between a Scientologist and a friend, colleague, or family member deemed to be antagonistic towards Scientology. The practice of disconnection is a form of shunning. Among Scientologists, disconnection is...
. Hill's written response was an open letter addressed to Pouw which was posted to the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
, in which she stated: "I am absolutely shocked at how vehemently you insist upon not only denying the truths that have been stated about the church in that biography, but then take it a step further and tell outright lies." Hill countered Pouw's denial of Scientology's practice of disconnection, saying: "As you well know, my parents officially left the church when I was 16 in 2000 ... Not only was I not allowed to speak to them, I was not allowed to answer a phone for well over a year, in case it was them calling me." In response, Pouw told the Agence France-Presse
Agence France-Presse
Agence France-Presse is a French news agency, the oldest one in the world, and one of the three largest with Associated Press and Reuters. It is also the largest French news agency. Currently, its CEO is Emmanuel Hoog and its news director Philippe Massonnet...
: "The church stands by its statement of 14 January. The church does not respond to newsgroup postings."
Pouw has commented on the recent actions of the group Anonymous
Anonymous (group)
Anonymous is an international hacking group, spread through the Internet, initiating active civil disobedience, while attempting to maintain anonymity. Originating in 2003 on the imageboard 4chan, the term refers to the concept of many online community users simultaneously existing as an anarchic,...
against the Church of Scientology as part of their movement Project Chanology
Project Chanology
Project Chanology is a protest movement against the practices of the Church of Scientology by members of Anonymous, a leaderless Internet-based group that defines itself as ubiquitous...
. During Project Chanology's denial-of-service attack
Denial-of-service attack
A denial-of-service attack or distributed denial-of-service attack is an attempt to make a computer resource unavailable to its intended users...
s on Church of Scientology websites in late January 2008, Pouw asserted to the Los Angeles Times that their websites "have been and are online". "These people are posing extremely serious death threats to our people. We are talking about religious hatred and bigotry," said Pouw in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. She said that Scientology sees the Internet as a useful medium of communication and that it is "concentrating on using the Internet as a resource for promoting its message and mission in this world, not as a ground for litigation". In July 2010 the Church of Scientology International
Church of Scientology International
The Church of Scientology International, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. Within the worldwide network of Scientology corporations and entities, CSI is officially referred to as the "mother church" of the Church of Scientology....
publicized a "Scientology Newsroom" website tailored for members of the media; Pouw was one of four international representatives for Scientology listed as "Spokespersons".