Cynthia S. Kisser

THE SUNDAY OKLAHOMAN

Sunday, September 27, 1992

NEWSPAPER MANIPULATED

TO THE EDITOR:

I recently received a copy of a letter to he editor, written by Stacy R. Ballard, which appeared in THE OKLAHOMAN on Aug.16.

The letter contained false and misleading information about both the Cult Awareness Network, of which I am the executive director, and about my own background.

Ballard falsely writes that I have worked "as a topless dancer for a month at the Blue Note Lounge in Tucson, Arizona". I have never been a topless dancer and I have never worked at the Blue Note Lounge.

This past July, I sued the Church of Scientology International, its president, Heber Jentzsch and a number of other individuals and organizations tied to groups I consider destructive cults for making defamatory statements against me, including the false allegations about my being a topless dancer, and for conspiring together to give such statements the widest possible currency.

I also sued a newspaper in Chicago, the Chicago Crusader, for publishing an article containing this false allegation about me, as well as false allegations that CAN has "kidnapping-for-hire services" and other such nonsense similar to Ballard's assertions, that CAN engages in criminal activities. The Crusader retracted the article in its entirety and issued the following statement on July 18 of this year, "Our July 20, 1991 issue on page 14 contained an article entitled 'Cult Awareness Network kidnapping network revealed' . We hereby retract the allegations contained in said article as regards any and all persons depicted therein".

THE OKLAHOMAN has unwittingly been manipulated into being used for propaganda purposes. As a responsible paper, I am sure you did not want to play into this coordinated harassment attempt. I regret I was not contacted before Ballard's letter was printed. I strongly feel that your paper should notify the subject of any letter you intend to print which contain charges of an inflammatory nature that alleges criminal or immoral activity so that the subject's letter could appear concurrently and so THE OKLAHOMAN will not be used as an unwilling tool of others.

Cynthia Kisser, executive director Cult Awareness Network

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