{
  "id": 7075819,
  "title": "SMOKERS’ CORNER: ESCAPING THE CULT",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/13/smokers-corner-escaping-the-cult",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-13T02:03:32.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Dawn",
    "slug": "dawn",
    "url": "https://www.dawn.com/news/2029533/smokers-corner-escaping-the-cult"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "For the past ten years, political discourse has shifted towards emotionally charged, personality-driven governance. Scholars like Steven Hassan and Ruth Ben-Ghiat have used terms typically associated with fringe cults to describe this modern form of leadership. This analysis provides insight into the workings of certain contemporary political factions. Rachel Leingang, in a recent article for The Guardian, pointed out the rise of support groups aiming to help individuals leave populistic movements such as 'Maga' (Make America Great Again). Leingang likened the process of leaving these groups to overcoming an addiction or escaping a tight-knit cult environment. These movements are characterized by unwavering devotion to a savior figure, social seclusion, and an all-encompassing sense of identity. Prominent examples include Donald Trump's MAGA movement in the United States, India's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) under Narendra Modi, and Pakistan's Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) led by Imran Khan, along with similar groups in Argentina and Brazil. At the heart of these 'cult-like' movements is a charismatic leader. German sociologist Max Weber noted that charismatic authority thrives when followers attribute extraordinary, almost supernatural traits to their leader. Modern populist leaders leverage digital echo chambers and the politics of unwavering loyalty. As Chilean political scientist Cristóbal R. Kaltwasser and German historian Jan-Werner Müller argue, modern populism and 'political cults' share a common element: a vision of an untainted, virtuous populace versus a corrupt establishment. Leaders in these movements are portrayed as the ultimate saviors, destined to vanquish this corrupt establishment. In the United States, Trump positioned himself as a non-conventional outsider who would 'drain the swamp.' Modi in India presented a humble chai-wala-turned-incorruptible chowkidar, representing national pride. Khan built PTI around a powerful cult of personality, portraying himself as a morally superior, truthful and trustworthy figure, challenging the entrenched political elite. In all these cases, the movement and the leader are inseparable. The party platform loses importance compared to the unwavering loyalty to the leader, resulting in a binary worldview. Political opponents are not seen as fellow citizens with different viewpoints, but as existential threats or moral adversaries. Former MAGA members describe feeling intense fear and rage when faced with opposition to the leader, perceiving it as malicious plots by 'deep state' forces. Modi's supporters frequently label any criticism of their leader as anti-nationalism or treason, equating his authority with the nation itself. Khan's PTI frames its efforts to free Khan from prison as a sacred duty, and Khan himself frames his political career as an eternal cosmic battle between truth and falsehood. By viewing political engagement through spiritual and existential lenses, any criticism of the leader is equated with moral betrayal. When Khan was removed through a vote of no-confidence in 2022, his followers readily accepted the narrative of a foreign-backed conspiracy, rejecting official explanations and embracing blind loyalty to the leader's account. The designation of these right-wing populist movements as 'cults' is further solidified by the sense of social enclosure and intense belonging they offer. Canadian political theorist Laura K. Field notes that the community-building aspect of these movements is often overlooked. Members find purpose, validation, and a pre-packaged social identity within the group. However, this complete integration comes at a cost: social isolation. While traditional cults achieve this through physical seclusion, modern digital platforms create virtual enclosures using personalized content algorithms. These algorithms, designed to maximize engagement, amplify moral outrage, anger, and conspiracy theories. Over time, they construct 'filter bubbles' that isolate members in an alternative reality, shielding them from dissenting facts while feeding them radicalizing content. This psychological enclosure is intensified by 'identity-protective cognition,' as described by American legal scholar Dan Kahan. When individuals tie their self-worth directly to a group's ideology, accepting factual corrections feels like a personal threat. To avoid this discomfort, followers engage in motivated reasoning, dismissing objective evidence while clinging to their ideological beliefs.",
  "summary": "In the last decade or so, global politics began moving towards highly emotive, personality-driven territory. American scholars such as Steven Hassan, in his research on authoritarian control and cult dynamics, and Ruth Ben-Ghiat, in her work on ‘strongman’ politics, have described this form of governance using terminology traditionally reserved for fringe cults. This comparison serves as an…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}