Hard Knox with Amanda Knox

How Hyperpersuasion Hijacks Free Will (Rebecca Lemov)

6 snips
Oct 21, 2025
Rebecca Lemov, historian of science and author of *The Instability of Truth*, delves into the complex world of brainwashing and coercive persuasion. She reveals how intelligence fails to shield us from manipulation and highlights the vulnerability created by moments of 'ungrounding.' Lemov discusses the societal stigma that silences survivors and examines how institutions can resemble cults in their dynamics. The conversation encourages self-examination and empathy, emphasizing the need for emotional and intellectual discernment in a world flooded with information.
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INSIGHT

Resistance To The Reality Of Influence

  • People resist the idea of brainwashing because it threatens beliefs in personal free will and moral superiority.
  • Rebecca Lemov found this resistance persistent and even shared by researchers initially.
INSIGHT

Brainwashing As Coercive Persuasion

  • Lemov defines brainwashing broadly as coercive persuasion, not just cartoonish mind-control.
  • She emphasizes people sometimes participate in their own oppression to survive under pressure.
ANECDOTE

Threat Without Touch Produces Confession

  • Rebecca recounts a Thomas Cromwell scene where a man confesses without physical torture from fear alone.
  • The threat and helplessness produced confession and self-sacrifice.
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