Part 98: The End of a Social Media Movement? The Anti-Scientology Protest in Hollywood Collapses

Published June 12, 2024. Updated June 13, 2024.

Jun 12, 2024

Photograph of anti-Scientology protester Scott Hochstetter, known as the “Defender of Ants” and others gathering at Scientology’s Blue Building complex by author (GoPro Hero 11 Black).

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By Zachary Ellison, Independent Journalist

The collapse of the anti-Scientology protest in Hollywood was fated to happen. What months ago had been a significant number of protesters using live streaming as a mechanism for both messaging and fundraising was now reduced back to just a handful of individuals. Perhaps most symbolic, the spray-painted “Scientology is a Cult” Chevy AstroVan driven by the “Defender of Ants” that for many months had anchored the protest was shattered on a highway somewhere in the Mojave desert. The end of perhaps the most visible symbol of the protest wasn’t live-streamed, and its driver, Scott Hochstetter, was thankfully mostly okay, at least physically. The “occupation” encampment-style protest he launched on June 1 had only lasted a week before it turned to infighting over responsibilities and whether there were “bad actors” who had infiltrated the group.

Having been labeled such a person and cast out of the group, I could only watch on YouTube, much like the rest of the audience. The protest may have been the brainchild of SPTV, with its most prominent member, Aaron Smith-Levin, grappling with the fallout of an alleged domestic violence incident. Smith-Levin has denied the allegations, claiming the incident was exaggerated. Boasting an impressive 242,000 subscribers on YouTube, Smith-Levin, along with Natalie Webster, has offered primary YouTube coverage of the protests under the SPTV banner. Reportedly, he had vowed to support any streamer willing to go out and protest against Scientology with the movement. Hochstetter has identified a major funder of the movement known by his handle “86 GOP” as allegedly being former Upwork and eBay executive David Comer, stating that he appeared at the protest in an Anonymous mask disbursing $100 bills.

Requests for comment to an email address controlled by “86 GOP” yielded a denial that it was Comer behind the funding. A request to his personal LinkedIn account was not responded to before publication. Hochstetter alleged that Comer made threats against Scientology’s top lawyer in Los Angeles and the church itself. The Church of Scientology hates its former members quite obviously. With an entire website under his name being crafted by them, along with videos to denounce him as a terrible person. But does the anti-Scientology movement hate the Church just as much?

Formerly expelled from the church as a “suppressive person (SP) in 2014, Scientology claims that “Smith-Levin has continued ever since with a pattern of antisocial, deceitful, and criminal conduct—including business cons, criminal conspiracy, false reports to law enforcement, harassment, and drunk and disorderly conduct.” To his faithful followers, though, he’s a hero. The quiet backing of a movement fronted by Hochstetter lately, along with activist William Gude and social media influencer Jessica Palmadessa had been a mystery. They have represented the movement in Rolling Stone, helped it reach a greater audience than social media would allow.

The subject of a restraining order from an individual believed to be associated with the Church of Scientology, Gude, recently disclosed in court documents that the protest nets him anywhere from $2,000 to $15,000 per month in revenues from social media content, according to a YouTube report by journalist Dodge Landesman. Gude’s Scientology protest-related YouTube account “Scientology Audit (Streets LA)” has 231,000 subscribers with Palmadessa, known for her Only Fans adult content account as well as humorous prank videos, pulling in 80,400 subscribers. The pair who, along with Hochstetter, have anchored the protest have both fans and detractors, with Palmadessa live streaming in the hallway during the hearing drawing the ire of a court official.

Before leaving Los Angeles, the eccentric Hochstetter, who would often sport a royal red cape, had, along with another protestor, been served with a temporary restraining order by the Los Angeles Police Department to drive them away from the occupation on Fountain Avenue next to the “Blue Building” complex. Gude and Palmadessa have both recently attended campus protests at the University of California, Los Angeles, and the University of Southern California, and they also represent themselves as journalists. Palmadessa’s website describes her journalistic career as one that: “Whether she's uncovering the untold stories of marginalized communities or holding those in power accountable, Palmadessa's writing is always compelling and impactful.” Gude has committed himself lately on X, formerly known as Twitter, to exposing and catching the perpetrators of violence against pro-Palestinian protesters at UCLA. It’s unclear what his next steps are in regards to the declining anti-Scientology protests in Hollywood or his vow to close down La Poubelle.

William Gude as well as Scott Hochstetter were subject to restraining orders from restaurant owner Françoise Koster, whose La Poubelle Bistro & Bar became a center for the protest for many months before its decline. The status of those remains unclear, with an anti-SLAPP motion having been made, and seemingly, at least according to Gude, both cases in court that revolve around a claim of verbal abuse remain unresolved. According to a source with knowledge of the matter, Koster attempted to resolve these with payouts, with Hochstetter declining, but she never followed through on making the promised wire transfers believed to be in excess of $100,000 to drive the protestors away. The supposed agreements, as well as those made with a neighboring restaurant for $60,000 after seeking an even greater sum of $400,000 over the disclosure that LAPD was actively investigating the protesters, were not available. The meetings allegedly took place on May 29 of this year. LAPD has previously declined to comment on their response to the protests.

It's claimed that LAPD worked to broker the settlements in order to end the protests, which have cost many millions in costs due to the related swatting incidents, with both LAPD and LAFD providing a nightly stream of content. In court, per Landesman’s report, Gude’s part of the proceeds were invested back into the protest to support it, including for things like bail money and new cell phones. LAPD’s investigation into the protest reportedly remains ongoing. The status of it is unclear, and allegedly Koster now wants the agreement with Gude revoked after he confronted a protestor who Koster had sought to turn against the group. The protest against La Poubelle and Koster centered around her support for convicted rapist Scientology actor Danny Masterson and involved multiple alleged incidents where patrons from Koster’s establishment as well as relatives attacked protestors. Smith-Levin's, whose dislike for Koster is well known, was perhaps the greatest driving force of the protest.

I only met him once, despite both he and his new girlfriend, Jenna Miscavige, making multiple trips to visit protestors. Miscavige is the niece of Church of Scientology leader David Miscavige, who hasn’t been interviewed since Ted Koppel did it on Nightline in 1992. In a world of tightly controlled images, the showdown in Hollywood, indeed the war, as Los Angeles Times journalist Noah Goldberg described it, may be winding down or simply entering a new phase. It’s unlikely those aligned against it, from Smith-Levin to Palmadessa and Gude, are likely to stop the “movement” against the Church, even as Hochstetter has made statements indicating that he will not return. Goldberg wrote in February about the attacks, quoting Smith-Levin, “Scientology has been sending people out to physically intimidate the protesters,” describing him as a “Florida-based former scientist who has attended some of the recent protests in Los Angeles.”

For his part, Miscavige has denied that the Church of Scientology uses such tactics, even as victims of Masterson, the prosecutor, and two LAPD detectives involved in the case have alleged that they were harassed. “Let me explain something to you. The most disingenuous thing is that you have those people. Now let’s not give the American public the wrong impression that these are people pulled in from around the world and they decided to talk against Scientology,” Miscavige stated to Koppel in 1992. Scientology has long sought to discredit its critics, who claim that it’s a scam and a cult that just takes your money in order to level up within its hierarchy. Ex-Scientologist Tory Christman had told me at the protest that she “wanted her million dollars back from the cult.” Christman, who has served as an elder figure for the protest, was previously involved in efforts led by the hacker collective Anonymous known as Project Chanology. In a public post on YouTube, Christman denied knowledge of Comer’s involvement, writing, “I never saw 86 GOP until 2 weeks ago.”

The games in Hollywood that have been happening are nothing new, and if there is a war, the question of whether it’s over or not is hard to know sometimes. One thing is for sure, though: the SPTV-backed protest raised some serious hackles from both Scientologists and restaurant goers alike, taken back by its wildness. Hochstetter, before launching the occupation, posted a quote on YouTube from Church of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard:

“The purpose of a suit is to harass and discourage rather than win. The law can be used very easily to harass, and enough harassment on somebody who is simply on the thin edge anyway will generally be sufficient to cause his professional decrease. If possible, of course, ruin him utterly.”

Money and Scientology are a dirty combination. One thing is for sure, though: even if the church is steady in its determination to undermine all possible obstacles, how you go about taking on the group matters. Responsibility for the swatting efforts remains unknown, but seemingly it is taking place from all sides, and according to the same source, the swatting that I’ve experienced in retaliation for reporting has been ordered to stop. The protests have been damaging to Koster’s business, health, and reputation, but they haven’t forced any further closure of La Poubelle since the single night last winter when the protest spiked. I watched her through a crack in the blue tent for outdoor dining, crying to the LAPD about its occurrence.

In speaking with the protester she sought to turn against the group, Koster claimed to have approached the case with a pure heart and deflected allegations that she had ordered an attack. Reportedly, this is also now under investigation and may enter into evidence in coming restraining order proceedings, provided Gude, Hochstetter, and the other protestor decide to contest them in order to be able to gather again next to the locations. Following the occupation at Scientology’s “Blue Building,” the church, like other businesses in Los Angeles, placed large dirt planters on the sidewalk to obstruct the protestors. Similarly, a trip to La Poubelle revealed a large telephone poll in the street behind a black Cadillac Escalade believed to belong to Koster, in addition to her well-known gray Tesla without license plates. Clearly, things were amiss still in Hollywood, even without a more significant protest taking place.

Did the leaders of the anti-Scientology movement sell out partially? Or was it just a quick buck? Even so, could you blame them even if Koster proved an untrustworthy business partner? After so many months with both Gude and Palmadessa avoiding the establishment out of legal and safety concerns, would the protest continue at the Blue Building or La Poubelle? Even as some remain likely to continue gathering, the arrest of one protestor at the start of the occupation for allegedly shoving an LAPD officer lent a drabness to the movement with its aliases and intrigue. Does anybody really do anything for free? I can’t be sure of the truth without additional evidence, but certainly the allegation of payoffs being orchestrated by LAPD Detective Patrick Aluotto in clandestine meetings, during which I was apparently suggested as a possible swatting suspect on the basis of my identity being stolen to make the calls.

Personally, I didn’t get rich from this even as I made an expensive upgrade from an old gold iPhone 8 to a sleek black iPhone 15 Pro with the backing of the movement covering the cost in part. It’s hard to know what legal jeopardy I or anyone else might be in, but clearly, from the sounds of it, the LAPD is very interested in making cases against the protestors, and the FBI might not be far behind in seeking to press a racketeering claim. This obviously would have a chilling effect on free speech and the freedom to assemble, even as the protest has rightfully earned its critics. Nothing is ever perfect, but for a short time, the anti-Scientology protest in Hollywood had some magic to it, with confrontations taking place on Franklin Avenue and a regular parade of lights and sirens across Hollywood. I’m hopeful that I won’t be swatted anymore while livestreaming, even if it reveals your location—something almost inherent if you livestream on the ground reporting.

Truthfully, having guns pointed at you and being handcuffed isn’t much fun. I’m still trying to figure out exactly who had this happen to me and when, both before and after my departure from the scene. Journalism is a dangerous business, even as so many cackle at its meaningfulness, but the question of the truth, much less justice, can be a complicated business. Gude and Palmadessa have both previously denied having sought any payoff in response to my reporting attacking the idea that this publication is anything more than “fan fiction.” Gude maintained that it was Koster who had sought a $400,000 loan to keep her business afloat, even as he joked with Hochstetter on the sidewalk about “birdies” telling them things. One thing is for sure, though: the idea of taking down the Church of Scientology is nothing new or easily accomplished.

The protests, whatever your opinion, have proven disruptive for Scientology, even as they’ve battled with the protestors and media over the narrative. For such a short period of time, the live streaming community was able to command a nightly national and even international audience, which is impressive. Gude recently hosted a German documentary film crew. Germany is unique in having actually refused to recognize Scientology as a religion, a position that has drawn criticism from the U.S. government in the past. Whether Scientology is a dangerous cult or something that people have a right to join as a religion, it will undoubtedly remain a fight even if the Hollywood protest winds down after nearly 10 months of increasing activity in the streets.

Did SPTV openly and covertly back a revolt with social media influencers against the group? Would they be wrong to do so? I can’t say, but I think it’s a discussion worth having in the interest of journalism, and not just if you’re into taking down cults. Some have posited that the protests are actually strengthening the resolve of the Scientologists in their beliefs. The questions about what goes on in both the Church of Scientology and the opposition to it are likely to remain, and it’s unclear how and in what format the protest will continue. Clearly, the Church of Scientology won’t just go away, even as its critics revile it as being responsible for abuses internally and attacks on those who oppose it. Many assume that the Church of Scientology’s Office of Special Affairs (OSA), formerly the Guardian’s Office, has had a role in weakening the anti-Scientology movement beyond its own disorders. No one can say as of now if that’s true or not, but clearly Scientology couldn’t be happier to see the disarray, including a number of SPTV associate creators, according to Smith-Levin, being demonetized for failing to provide “unique” content for simulcasting protests and discussions.

La Poubelle Bistro & Bar had taken to playing “Hotel California” by the Eagles endlessly to get the live streams flagged by YouTube for using copyrighted music. The revolutionary use of streaming technology by the anti-Scientology protest provides a blueprint for other movements. If all it takes to confront an organization like Scientology is a smartphone, battery pack, and gimbal, or a stick to steady your broadcast, then it provides a low-cost tool for influencing the public discourse. Many tens of thousands have flooded to these creators. Even as they navigate the complicated environment of the streaming world, the question of who benefits from its usage and how it affects first responders and taxpayers from the proliferation of swatting incidents won’t go away easily. The protests may have been relatively small, but for their scale, the influence generated has been outsized, and that’s a success in itself to be appreciated.

Links:

The Real Elephant In The Room

How 86 GOP tried to influence #occupyblue

Aaron Smith-Levin Security Footage of LA incident May/19/23

Aaron Smith-Levin: A Trail of Violence, Deception and Lies

How TikTok Accidentally Created a Scientology Heartthrob

Court Report; Streets LA Restraining Order Case, Day 3, Latest Update

Jessica Palmadessa Website

David Miscavige Nightline Interview

William Gude Tweet RE: TRO Cases

‘There’s a war going on’: L.A. anti-Scientology protests bring arrests, attack allegations

Scientology tried to ‘derail’ star’s rape trial by harassing prosecutor, suit says; church calls claim ‘false’