My fascination with Peoples Temple began over two decades ago. Since then I have evolved as a researcher and grown as a human being. The story of Peoples Temple is by design formidably complicated, and understanding Jonestown through the tapes and documents left behind is a massive endeavor that for me has been both captivating and humbling. My journey has contributed to the development of my critical thinking and researching skills and dramatically increased my appreciation for the abstract nature of truth through the nuanced lens of the storyteller.
In the course of producing two very different seasons of my podcast, Transmissions From Jonestown, I made a conscious effort to try to keep an open mind about what I learned. History, much like an unfathomable ocean, conceals its hidden depths beneath the surface. In navigating this historical expanse, skepticism emerges as a valuable compass, but it must always be accompanied by the willingness to look beyond the surface and plunge into the profound mysteries that lie beneath.
It all began with a documentary 23 years ago that introduced me to Peoples Temple and its tragic demise in Jonestown. The sheer magnitude of the calamity, the senseless loss of nearly one thousand lives, left me grappling with a fundamental question: how could a community of idealistic humanitarians, dedicated to the principles of divine socialism, meet such a gruesome end? The contrast was stark. On one side, the noble aspirations of Jonestown’s residents, many of them caretakers of the elderly and children in the community, seeking to build a utopian society based on equality and justice; on the other, the horrifying images of carnage and devastation.
I stumbled upon the infamous Jonestown Death Tape, arguably the most haunting audio recording in history. This macabre recording captures the heart-breaking moments of the incomprehensible event as Jonestown residents consumed the cyanide-laced drink. Jim Jones’ final words to his followers, cloaked in principles and dire warnings, painted a grim narrative. Peoples Temple gunmen had killed Congressman Leo Ryan, and the Guyana Defense Force would soon parachute into Jonestown. He insisted that the children would be captured and tortured. The catastrophic end that the Temple had anticipated for so long, was now upon them.
My curiosity led me to this website and its editor Fielding McGehee. As any visitor to the site soon learns, it is a treasure trove of invaluable resources, including a wealth of documents and tapes salvaged in Jonestown’s aftermath. Beyond the final moments of life in Jonestown, Temple history spanned three decades, and much of it is on this site, and I wanted to see it. The tapes in particular – more than 950 all together – offer pieces of the complex puzzle waiting to be unearthed, analyzed, and preserved for posterity. Among the spectral echoes of that fateful day, there existed tangible remnants of life, like flickering candles in the encroaching darkness.
As I immersed myself further into these documents, a recurring theme emerged: Jim Jones steadfastly maintained the existence of a grand conspiracy, an intricate web of forces, including the American government, tirelessly working from the shadows to dismantle him and his organization. Jones claimed that the Temple had enemies who constantly plotted against them. It was a narrative that seemed to course through the veins of Peoples Temple members, a belief in a looming existential threat that would eventually culminate in their demise.
The recurrent paranoid warnings were so persistent that I was determined to delve more deeply into them and learn the truth behind them.
I found other sources as well, both within and outside the confines of Peoples Temple, echoing the belief in a government conspiracy. The multitude of inconsistencies that surfaced nagged at me as I trailed 20 years behind in the footsteps of investigators who examined the scene in Jonestown in its immediate aftermath.
Perhaps the most disconcerting factor was the absence of a proper investigation. It showed itself most immediately in the presence of the bodies strewn throughout the Jonestown community, laying where they fell for an irreverent four days. Exposed to the unforgiving elements, these remains faced the relentless assault of torrential rain and the scorching tropical sun, adding to the challenges of identification. On site embalming attempts distorted the remains further. The initial body count, fraught with inaccuracies, was just over 400, and then started to climb. By the end of the week, the toll was over 900. Amidst this chaos, the manner of death—whether it resulted from cyanide poisoning through ingestion or injection, essentially distinguishing between suicide and murder—became a subject of controversy. The confusion – the avoidable confusion – was exacerbated when the lone pathologist to examine the scene in Jonestown could not settle on a single number of people he thought were forcibly injected with poison. In an early report, Dr. Leslie Mootoo put the number at 70; speaking at a conference three months later, he said there were 83; sometimes he claimed as many as 200; other estimates ranged between those lower and upper limits.
But the basic problem remained: the crime scene at Jonestown, as Guyana Assistant Police Commissioner Skip Roberts described it, was never subjected to a comprehensive forensic examination. In its absence, theories began to circulate, suggesting that the handling of the bodies in Jonestown had been deliberately mishandled, potentially as a means to obscure crucial evidence.
Among the records recovered from Jonestown are scores of documents – scattered throughout the FBI release of materials under the Freedom of Information Act – created by Richard Tropp. Sometimes called Peoples Temple’s propaganda minister, Tropp was a teacher and administrator tasked not only with running Jonestown’s school, but researching and writing a book about Jim Jones and the conspiracy against Peoples Temple.
The conspiracy section of Tropp’s book reads like a cloak-and-dagger mystery, replete with enigmatic characters, clandestine operations, and a web of hidden agendas. The attacks and harassment of Peoples Temple in California later come into greater focus in Guyana, where CIA agents staff the US Embassy and where American journalists chartered aircraft to fly over the Jonestown community and file false police reports. The story climaxes with a double-dealing spy, complete with an eye patch, allegedly plotting with mercenaries to kidnap residents and later exposing the plot to Jonestown leaders. Throughout his narrative, the line between truth and fiction blurs, as layers of deceit unfold.
Dick Tropp makes his final appearance on November 18th. After arguing with Jim Jones, pleading for an alternative to suicide, he retired – possibly to the radio room, near which his remains were found – and wrote a letter describing Jonestown during its final moments and the community’s unity behind their decision to die. He calls upon the reader to gather all available evidence and ensure that the story of Peoples Temple be told in all its glorious dimensions.
To Whomever Finds This Note
Collect all the tapes, all the writing, all the history. The story of this movement, this action, must be examined over and over. It must be understood in all of its incredible dimensions. Words fail. We have pledged our lives to this great cause. [Two words crossed out] We are proud to have something to die for. We do not fear death. We hope that the world will someday realize [cross-out] the ideals of brotherhood, justice and equality that Jim Jones has lived and died for. We have all chosen to die for this cause. We know there is no way that we can avoid misinterpretation. But [cross-out] Jim Jones and this movement were born too soon. The world was not ready to let us live.
Over time, I have realized Dick Tropp was right: The world would likely misinterpret whatever message or legacy that Jones intended to leave behind. Often lost in trying to decipher what happened in Jonestown, we tend to overlook the questions of why it happened. What truly astonished and disheartened me was the indifference, or perhaps ignorance, exhibited by the investigators and officials in both Guyana and in the United States. Or perhaps it was more of a callous disregard, an apparent absence of empathy, in the face of such a monumental historical event. Agencies that might have prevented the assassination of Leo Ryan and the subsequent massacre were more interested in defending their actions (or lack of) than investigating the deaths of nearly one thousand people.
By 2003, Jonestown seemed to have been reduced to the cautionary phrase, “Don’t drink the Kool-Aid.” I couldn’t help but wonder if the indifference/callousness/lack of empathy which had endured the intervening 25 years was a reflection of a broader sentiment among a society unwilling to face the darker chapters of our history. What would be the consequences of apathy? Could Jonestown happen again?
I committed myself to creating within myself a deeper understanding of the time and place in which Jim Jones created the Temple and the consciousness Temple members shared as their collective reality. Once again, an open mind was key to understanding the 1970s and society’s changing attitudes towards race, equality and leftist movements. Learning about America’s Cold War with Russia, in particular America’s paranoia about communism, I understood why Jones might have felt that the FBI or CIA was spying on his church or threatened by his particular – and sometimes incoherent – mix of religion and politics as a concept he called “apostolic socialism.” He had long since identified himself as a communist, and the Temple was openly socialist. They were affiliated with leftist politics in the Bay Area and publicly supported activists like Dennis Banks, Angela Davis and Huey P. Newton. The Temple had highly publicized political connections to such California political leaders as gay San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk, Mayor George Moscone, Assemblyman Willie Brown, Lt. Gov. Mervyn Dymally, and Gov. Jerry Brown. These political activities – and the avowed Marxist principles behind them – had consequences. As Temple leader Carolyn Moore Layton wrote to her parents in December 1977:
Of course you know, Mom and Dad, that we are Marxists and you have to take that into consideration when associating with us. The media has advertised us in the most grotesque and unreal manner — due to this conspiracy which is indeed real, though I know you are not conspiracy minded and tend to pooh-pooh the idea. I saw myself the Interpol report which a high officer in government allowed a number of us to read firsthand. They are accusing us of the most absurd things — trafficking in weapons and currencies.
In March 1979, nearly four months after the tragedy Temple public relations specialist and Jonestown survivor Mike Prokes called a press conference in a motel room in Modesto, California promising bombshell headlines. He stated that he believed that the “death tape” recovered in Jonestown would never be released to the public because it would embarrass the United States and prove that harassment by various government entities eventually drove the Temple to its tragic end. As he wrote in his accompanying note:
What I’m saying is that the reason so many people died and took their children’s lives is because they believed their community – that they had built with their own hands – was under siege by the United States government, which I agree was the case.
Prokes claimed that he had been recruited by the FBI to spy on Jim Jones, but that he found himself in agreement with the Temple’s principles and relinquished his role as an informant to become a devoted follower. After concluding his statement, Prokes excused himself, went into the motel room’s bathroom, and shot himself. (One brutal irony in the aftermath of Prokes’ suicide – or was it just a coincidence – was that The New York Times published the text of the Death Tape less than a week later.)
Was there in fact a conspiracy against Peoples Temple? The group certainly seemed to think so, and in an effort to uncover documentation of it, the Temple hired renowned lawyer and noted conspiracy theorist, Mark Lane, in the summer of 1978. Both in correspondence and on tape, Lane pledged to unleash a multi-million-dollar legal juggernaut – combined with a media blitz – against the United States government, citing relentless harassment as justification.
In the course of the campaign, Lane joined forces with screenwriter Don Freed and private investigator Joe Mazor. Mazor was the man who had initially worked with the Concerned Relatives group to expose living conditions in Jonestown, and who jumped sides when he saw that the jungle community was not as the oppositional group had portrayed it. Mazor also claimed that he had evidence that could prove Tim Stoen – a former trusted aide to Jim Jones and now the director of the Concerned Relatives legal campaign – had stolen money from the Temple when he defected. Lane set up a meeting with Mazor to reveal this evidence, which Mazor was enthusiastic to do. He went to Jonestown, met with Jones, and agreed to lend his talents in uncovering the conspiracy.
Perhaps Mazor’s most valuable revelation during his visit to Jonestown was his confession of his participation in the Six-Day Siege in September 1977. This crisis unfolded during a series of legal meetings tied to a custody battle, when Jonestown came under attack, complete with an attempted assassination of Jim Jones and gunfire from unseen jungle soldiers. For six days, Jonestown residents stood guard, armed with cutlasses and farming implements, forming a protective horseshoe around the pavilion. This pivotal moment galvanized the Jonestown community to defend their hard-fought sanctuary with an unyielding commitment to safeguard what they had built.
According to Mazor, he had accompanied paid mercenaries, armed with rifles and even a bazooka, and concealed themselves around Jonestown’s perimeter. Their plan was to disable the radio tower, abduct as many children as they could, and shoot any adults who resisted. It was in the course of this siege that Mazor and the soldiers observed that the settlement, contrary to their expectations, was a peaceful egalitarian community. As a consequence – and unknown to Jones at the time – Mazor was the one to call off the mission.
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For the most part, the Temple’s beliefs in the conspiracies against it died on November 18, along with everything else. Arising like a phoenix from the ashes, however, have been the conspiracies about Peoples Temple. Among the most persistent speculations has been that Jones himself may have operated as a covert asset for the Central Intelligence Agency. Rumors have also circulated of Jonestown serving as a clandestine theater for a shadowy government experiment, akin to the notorious MK-Ultra program. Others hold that it was a government testing ground for the release of AIDS, or that everyone was killed by a neutron bomb, or that Jonestown served as a drug plantation, or that its women serviced officials of the Guyana government in a prostitution ring. Perhaps most intriguing – because of the position of the man who held it – was the conviction of Joe Holsinger, Rep. Ryan’s administrative assistant, that the CIA had played a role in the assassination of his boss and in the deaths that followed. Following a hearing before a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee during which he testified that the CIA had conducted a covert operation in Guyana, and that Jonestown was part of it, he gave an interview to a reporter:
Holsinger: I received a lot of documentation, which I’ll provide you here today, that indicates the strong possibility that Jonestown and the People’s Temple, was in reality, a mass mind control experiment conducted by the CIA as a follow-up to something called MKULTRA which they conducted from the early 50s through 1974. They used to use the VA hospitals and state hospitals. They used the federal and state penitentiaries for their experiment.
Journalist: Do you think that Jim Jones was actively involved with the CIA?
Holsinger: I do now.
Going through these records, I found myself confronted not only with the haunting details of a collective descent into darkness but also with the compelling question of whether the threat Jones spoke of was genuine or the product of a deteriorating mind. It is a question that continues to linger, a testament to the complexity of the Jonestown narrative and the enduring mysteries that shroud this chapter of history. I turned my attention to the tapes, the most tangible relics that Peoples Temple had left behind. Fielding McGehee, editor of the Jonestown Institute, offered me the opportunity to digitize a portion of the tape archive. I vividly recall the moment I opened that first box of tapes, each plastic cassette a symbol of possibility, a potential key to unlocking the mystery of Jonestown. In my naiveté, I harbored the misguided belief that these recordings would unveil the unvarnished truth. Little did I know, the tapes would hold their own secrets, and that the line between truth and deception would remain as elusive as ever.
As I listened to the tapes fragments of a timeline depicting life in Jonestown emerged. The atmosphere of fervent idealism captured in Jonestown’s home movies, had withered into one of crisis. The once-commanding voice of Jim Jones, now tainted by the specter of drug-induced haze, seemed to lose its grasp on reality, as he delved into a disconcerting narrative of poisoning plots and assassination attempts. The people of Jonestown, once ardent and resilient, appeared worn down and weary. With each recording, the situation within Jonestown spiraled further into desperation, reaching a crescendo of paranoia that climaxed with Ryan’s ill-fated visit.
While my heart ached for the people of Jonestown, an idea began to crystallize, to share what I was hearing on the tapes in an audio documentary, an inventive approach to revealing the Temple’s history using the very tapes that had borne witness to its unraveling. I set out to convey the haunting reality of Jonestown through sound, setting in motion a profound exploration of history and humanity that would challenge the very core of my understanding of the human condition.
I wanted to invite the listener into my headspace, to experience my evolving perspective, as I grappled with the intricacies and nuances of Peoples Temple. I made the deliberate choice to offer a comprehensive view of my findings, which encompassed not only established facts but also controversial theories and alternative perspectives put forth by anonymous contributors. I knew that in order to maintain objectivity, I would have to approach the narrative of my program as if it were a documentary, and to narrate it dispassionately.
The decision to adopt this approach was not without its emotional undercurrents. It stemmed from a realization that the sheer emotional weight of the content could potentially overwhelm me, causing my voice to tremble and falter as I became increasingly immersed in the Jonestown tragedy. History beckoned, I believed, but it demanded a stiff upper lip, a commitment to presenting the story with composure and impartiality.
I was not infallible as a narrator. I was self-taught, learning the art of podcasting from crafting content to production and publication. In the early stages, I encountered challenges such as mispronunciations and a speaking style that some considered overly mechanical. Despite these early blunders, I remained resolute in my dedication to honor the memory of the Jonestown dead by sharing the story as I had come to understand it. This journey of research and reflection also led to a profound transformation within me. I grew as a researcher, expanding my capacity for compassion, and recognizing the subtle layers of this tragedy. To infuse the emotional essence that I, as a narrator, had to suppress, I introduced a musical score to my series. These melodies became a conduit for the emotions that my narration had to withhold.
After years of exhaustive study, and three years dedicated to independent podcast production, I published the first nine episodes of Transmissions from Jonestown. Yet despite my extensive research and what appeared to be a comprehensive exploration of the foundational story – along with what I believed to be probing inquiries at the time – a sense of dissatisfaction took root inside me. It became increasingly clear to me that I had yet to venture into the heart of the matter: I had not yet interviewed former members or gathered firsthand accounts of the events. I grew to appreciate that many of the questions plaguing me and my listeners could find answers only in the narratives of those who had lived through the ordeal. As more listeners engaged with my show and suggested new avenues of research, it became woefully apparent that the three episodes of my show that focused on conspiracy theories had somehow upstaged the other six about the history of Peoples Temple and life in Jonestown. I reflected on the balance between comprehensive exploration of Jonestown’s narrative, and maintaining a sense of credibility and objectivity in my storytelling. I recognized the need for a measured and respectful approach to continue unraveling Jonestown mysteries. My journey had only just begun, and it was clear that there were still countless layers to uncover and voices to be heard.
The pivotal moment when I reached out to former members of Peoples Temple completely altered my perspective. Their accounts not only clarified and demystified confusing aspects of Peoples Temple, they offered a deeper insight into the intricate web of manipulation that underpinned the tragedy of Jonestown. It was a revelation that brought into sharp focus the complex interplay of belief, control, and the human psyche, deepening my understanding of the harrowing events that had unfolded in the Guyana jungle.
One of the things I learned from Jonestown survivors was that conspiracy had been an integral component of the Temple’s dogmatic belief system all along. Jim Jones had skillfully wielded conspiracies and unseen enemies as a potent tool, both to unite his followers and to instill fear within them. The specter of imagined threats became a driving force within the Temple, shaping its trajectory and influencing the lives of its members in ways that defied conventional understanding.
Probably the most compelling illustration of this was the revelation that the Six Day Siege of September 1977 was a hoax: There had been no mercenaries, no private investigators, no outside forces in the jungle tormenting Jonestown. Rather, it was Jones’ own security guard (and adopted son) who, under Jones’ orders, fired upon the settlement from the cover of the jungle. This crisis had been meticulously manufactured. That meant, of course, that Joe Mazor had lied when he spoke of his role in the siege. In a double-cross of the Concerned Relatives designed to gain favor with Jones, the private investigator had embellished details of a widely-circulated lie unwittingly propagated through Temple attorney Charles Garry. This revelation was a stark reminder of the insidious power of deception.
I also learned that you can’t always assume what you hear on the tapes is literal or authentic. It became increasingly apparent that Jim Jones, even in his final moments, maintained a tight grip on the narrative. He left behind only what he deemed fit for posterity, wielding the edit button like a maestro, orchestrating the fragments of his legacy. In other words, Jones left behind what he wanted us to find. As his former son-in-law Michael Cartmell bluntly told me, Jones was a habitual liar, employing falsehoods not for necessity but as a means to assert control over the narrative. This revelation was echoed by Stephan Jones, who spoke of his father’s relentless efforts in shaping how others perceived him.
As a clearer image of Jones emerged, I came to realize that, alongside his chameleon-like adaptability in being “all things to all people,” he had cleverly seeded clues throughout the tapes, the writings of Dick Tropp, and the expertise of public relations virtuoso Mike Prokes. It dawned on me that these were breadcrumbs deliberately left behind, an enigmatic legacy, intended for future generations of researchers, like myself, to unravel the conspiracy that had shrouded Peoples Temple for decades. Jones was managing our perception of him from the grave. While the revelation shattered my preconceived notions, it also forced me to reevaluate the true value of the firsthand experiences shared by former Temple members. More genuine than any conspiracy theory or 40-year-old tape, these narratives offered profound insights into how Temple members viewed the world.
To be sure, many of the Temple’s devoted followers genuinely embraced the concept of divine socialism, convinced that they alone held the key to an ultimate truth, while the rest of the world languished under the influence of capitalist brainwashing. In church sermons in California, and in Peoples Rallies in Jonestown, Jones reiterated time and again that socialism was the only path to liberation, both of the body and of the mind. The result was that free will and critical thinking were systematically dismantled, replaced by an illusion of shared secrecy that bound his followers to him.
In addition, Jones’ obsession with the CIA, coupled with his penchant for fantasizing about the Soviet Union, wove an intricate tapestry of intrigue and mystique around his persona. It was a persona that thrived on the cultivation of a mysterious past and a sense of enigma. Jones left behind a trail of clues, both deliberate and inadvertent, that would fuel numerous theories about his true intentions. In fact, many theories that Jones worked for or with the CIA, intriguingly, originated with former Temple members, individuals desperately trying to make sense of the unfathomable events that had unfolded before their eyes. Their perspectives added yet another layer of complexity to the mysteries of Jonestown.
This knowledge led me to conclude, we have transcended the confines of a conventional tragedy. The study of Jonestown is a chilling exploration of the manipulation of the human mind, a cautionary tale that underscores the fragility of free will in the face of charismatic authority. It is a chapter in history that continues to resonate with profound implications for our understanding of the human psyche and the enduring allure of mind control.
In the course of my interviews with Jonestown survivors, I gleaned profound insights into the significance of an individual’s perspective and their positioning within the hierarchical structure of the community, beginning with a basic understanding: Jonestown was a prison to some and home sweet home to others.
An anecdote illustrates the importance of this perspective. Tape Q644, recorded during a White Night in February 1978, revolves around a hypothetical scenario involving a potential attack on Jonestown. The conversation delves into the macabre, suggesting that Jonestown residents resort to cannibalism, with Jones apparently reminding them of a prior instance in which they had killed and eaten an intruder.
My conversations with people who were present during this event offer a striking dichotomy in terms of emotional response. One survivor vividly recalls overwhelming fear and disgust, while another recalls the episode with a rather unsettling nonchalance, believing that Jones’ intent was facetious and theatrical.
Jim Jones entrusted his most damning secrets to his staff, a select inner circle of about a dozen loyal individuals. This trusted cadre played an important role gathering information about Temple members, orchestrating elaborate healings and paranormal performances, as well as managing the Temple’s finances. The power of these secrets was not lost on anyone, for if a staff member were to defect, the knowledge they possessed had the potential to bring Jones and the Temple to its knees. Jones skillfully ensured the complicity of his staff in his various crimes, binding them tightly to his web of deception and manipulation.
Members of the Concerned Relatives group were building a case against Jones in an attempt to release their family members they believed were being held against their will in Jonestown. They too held back crucial information from the authorities, details that could have led to Jones’ arrest or provided the essential evidence necessary to prosecute the Temple. Their reluctance stemmed from the grim realization that divulging these facts would not only implicate themselves, but also their family members inside the Temple. The blank sheets of paper, signed by Temple members as part of a loyalty test, cast an ominous shadow over their collective psyche. These seemingly innocuous sheets symbolized a sinister pact, a chilling reminder that in the twisted realm of Jones’ influence, they would willingly accept guilt for any real or imagined transgression he could conjure.
Jim Jones used deceit to discredit anyone who dared to expose his transgressions. He had the ability to make the truth sound so unbelievable, that if someone complained or went to the authorities often they would be discredited. This was the case with Deborah Blakey. Following her defection in May 1978, she warned the State Department that Jonestown had practiced mass suicide. Jones responded with a campaign to undermine her credibility with ruthless determination. He used her signature and testimony from her family members still trapped in Jonestown to compromise her credibility by accusing her of stealing money. Tragically, this loss of faith in Deborah and other members of the Concerned Relatives group may have played a role in shaping the State Department’s attitudes about the potential for violence in Jonestown.
Ironically it was Jones’ web of deception that initially attracted the attention of Congressman Leo Ryan and prompted his investigation. In the fall of 1976, when Temple member Bob Houston was crushed beneath a train during his night shift at the Southern Pacific Railroad yard, it not only shocked his family, it created a problem for Peoples Temple. Jones had promised his followers that if they worked hard for the cause and were loyal, they would have protection from accidents such as this. Bob had exemplified that loyalty and adherence to socialist principle, demonstrating it by adopting several children, juggling multiple jobs, and selflessly channeling the lion’s share of his time and earnings into the service of the Temple. To account for this apparent failure of protection, a rumor circulated that Bob was contemplating defection in the moments before his death. Even more chilling, however, were the insinuations that Jones himself might have orchestrated Bob’s death, either through otherworldly paranormal means or by employing a Temple hitman. These unsettling whispers made their way to Bob’s grieving father, Sam Houston, who had been Leo Ryan’s college roommate and close friend. Ryan promised his old friend he would investigate the rumors about Jonestown and ensure the safety of Bob’s two daughters – and Sam’s granddaughters – Judy and Patty Houston, who were still in the Temple. From this auspicious beginning, Ryan began collecting other stories of relatives held in Jonestown against their will. Ironically, most of the images from Ryan’s camera recovered at the Port Kaituma airstrip were of the Houston family – Judy, Patty, and their mother Phyllis – who all died in Jonestown.
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For me, the story of Peoples Temple is not merely a historical footnote. It is a compelling narrative that challenges our understanding of the human psyche, the allure of charismatic leaders, and the blurred lines between truth and perception. After my kaleidoscopic journey that led me to discover the wondrous realm of coincidence and the connectivity of all things – and the initial rush of dopamine from each epiphany began to subside -–I gained the ability to see the Temple from the inside out. Eventually the enigmatic facade of Jim Jones, once shrouded in mystery, began to unravel. He was demystified, stripped of his own apocryphal mythology. What I had once perceived as the mysterious inner workings of a CIA spy, I now recognized as the delusions of a malignant narcissist, desperately clinging to the spotlight and ensnared within the convoluted labyrinth of his own making.
Feeling renewed and encouraged by my new vantage point, I embarked on the production of the second season of Transmissions from Jonestown. This time, I adopted an entirely fresh approach, driven by my conviction that incorporating a multitude of perspectives was paramount to unraveling the complex tapestry of Jonestown’s history. For five years I focused my efforts collecting oral histories and interviews from Jonestown survivors, investigators, journalists and former members. Their voices and experiences would become the backbone of this new chapter, as my focus shifted to the Temple’s origin story and the creation of the Temple’s hierarchy. I explored the world of Jim Jones’ paranormal ministry and traced the path that led the congregation to California as they prepared for nuclear war fallout. I stepped behind the scenes and into the fascinating story of the Peoples Temple’s gospel funk album, He’s Able. In a surprising departure from the somber tones of our Jonestown exploration, this musical journey takes center stage for an entire episode, offering an almost two-hour look at the making of an album that defies categorization.
I wanted to do more than narrate history. Rather, I aspired to transport the listener into the very mindset of a newly initiated Temple member, one undergoing the process of indoctrination. In this immersive experience, I sought to illustrate that there is no singular truth. Instead, truth emerges as a unique perspective from the storyteller’s vantage point. This journey has taught me to question everything, to excavate beneath the surface in the relentless pursuit of what was hidden beneath, to keep an open mind to all possibilities and search for the simplest answer before diving down deep rabbit holes. It’s a lesson in humility, one that requires accepting that even those in positions of immense power and authority – including government investigators like the FBI and our safeguarding entities abroad like the State Department – are capable of making huge mistakes or simply lack competence. I hoped to provoke introspection, to encourage my audience to examine their own biases and consider the possibility that under different circumstances, they too might have found themselves drawn into a group like Peoples Temple. It’s a powerful reminder that the human capacity for belief and vulnerability is a thread that runs through the fabric of our collective history, prompting us to reflect on our own choices and judgments.
On a deeply personal level, I still find myself driven by an unspoken commitment—to honor the memory of all those who perished in Jonestown. It’s a solemn promise to never let their stories be forgotten, to ensure that their voices are heard, even from beyond the grave. The emotional weight of Jonestown may forever remain a heavy burden to bear. Yet I am unwavering in my commitment to explore every facet of what transpired there. My goal is to shed light on the darkest corners of this tragedy and to disseminate awareness, ensuring that the world never forgets the horrors that unfolded within that Guyanese jungle. We must ensure that the lessons learned from Jonestown serve as a stark reminder of the dangers of blind allegiance and manipulation, so that history never repeats itself in such a devastating manner.
So much of this story has yet to be told. The third and final season of Transmissions from Jonestown will be the culmination of years of research and interviews. In this concluding chapter, we will venture into the heart of Jonestown’s daily life, offering an unprecedented perspective through the eyes of the children who survived. Their voices, often unheard, will be the guiding narrative as we unravel the remaining mysteries and intricacies of this complex story.
My metamorphosis as a researcher is not a solitary endeavor. It is an interplay of my experiences with the resilient survivors and the invaluable insights of former Temple members. Their narratives, shaped by their lived experiences, have lent a visceral dimension to the story. It is through their voices and unwavering commitment that I have been able to explore the recesses of Jonestown’s enigma. The Jonestown Institute, with its vast resources and dedication to preserving the history of this tragic chapter, has been my guiding star. The unwavering support of individuals like Fielding McGehee and Rebecca Moore both to myself and the research community has been instrumental to every important work on the subject. It has provided the foundation upon which my research has thrived. Without the Institute’s steadfast commitment to uncovering the truth, my quest to explore the depths of Jonestown would have remained an insurmountable dream.
Stay tuned…
(Shannon Howard is a researcher, audio documentarian and collector of oral histories. Her long format documentary podcast Transmissions from Jonestown. In addition to writing articles for the jonestown report – which may be found here – Shannon has digitized and transcribed many tapes from the Peoples Temple audio archive. She may be reached at radiojonestown@gmail.com.