Sound of Freedom, Angel Studios, & Tim Ballard

[clueliss]

Stumbled across a whole rabbit hole today watching a recent Jordan and McKay video.   They referenced and recommended a video on this subject from James at Fundie Fridays.  The Fundie Fridays video details the messy Vid Angel, Angel Studios, Mormons behind a lot of this and their funding.  And hey, QAnon is apparently on board with the movie Sound of Freedom.  

Jordan and McKay’s video goes into the background and details of Tim Ballard and Operation Underground Railroad.  
 

I watching these not because of Sound of Freedom but because of Angel Studios production The Chosen that my new boss was babbling about some months ago and now is on Netflix and The CW.  I haven’t watched it yet.  

Both YouTube videos linked behind the spoilers below.

Spoiler

 

Spoiler

 

 

[CTRLZero]

12 hours ago, clueliss said:

Stumbled across a whole rabbit hole today

I’m waving at you from the same rabbit hole!    Its been really interesting learning more of the possibility that Tim Ballard’s group may have actually contributed to more child trafficking.  Money is flowing in the business.  Mormonish podcast and others have done episodes trying to follow the money.  Even when children end up in orphanages, the church apparently gets a cut of the money.  It’s always the money.

[Giraffe]

I first heard about Tim Ballard and The Sound of Freedom while listening to the God Awful Movies podcast. The man sounds like an abusive “I don’t have to prove anything to you” train wreck! Child trafficking is real thing that happens. But when people like Tim claim things like he has he makes an utter mockery of the people who were actually trafficked. It’s very much a movie about white saviors getting off on their own “heroism.”

Edited October 2, 2023 by Giraffe

[noseybutt]

Didn’t female employees just accuse him of sexual harassment?

[Giraffe]

28 minutes ago, noseybutt said:

Didn’t female employees just accuse him of sexual harassment?

Way more than harassment. He’s accused of coercing them into showering with him in order to make their “marriage” look more believable. Which, for one, wtf?!? But also, wtf?! Are there people in the room with them??? Like, how does that even make sense?!

[noseybutt]

8 minutes ago, Giraffe said:

Way more than harassment. He’s accused of coercing them into showering with him in order to make their “marriage” look more believable. Which, for one, wtf?!? But also, wtf?! Are there people in the room with them??? Like, how does that even make sense?!

Oh good grief.

The end trafficking industry has attracted so many con men and predators.

[Giraffe]

4 minutes ago, noseybutt said:

Oh good grief.

The end trafficking industry has attracted so many con men and predators.

Yup! And it’s heartbreaking that supporters haven’t picked up on that yet. Just supporting “godly christian men” who speak out against it and would never commit those atrocities themselves. 🤢

[Hane]

@clueliss, another Fundie Fridays and Jordan and McKay fan here! I also recommend ExMo Lex, Zelph on the Shelf, and Cults to Consciousness.

[zeebaneighba]

Oh No! Ross and Carrie also addressed this. The main review is here, but they also did some follow up at the beginning of this podcast.

[SwimmerBoy29]

My hella Catholic great aunt is also very liberal (s/o to my atheist cousin for steering her away from Fox News) but loves this movie and I’m just trying to give her the benefit of the doubt that she doesn’t know any of this backstory stuff.

[JermajestyDuggar]

38 minutes ago, SwimmerBoy29 said:

My hella Catholic great aunt is also very liberal (s/o to my atheist cousin for steering her away from Fox News) but loves this movie and I’m just trying to give her the benefit of the doubt that she doesn’t know any of this backstory stuff.

I think a lot of people don’t know the real backstory of this guy and just like a movie where kids are saved. 

[Giraffe]

46 minutes ago, SwimmerBoy29 said:

My hella Catholic great aunt is also very liberal (s/o to my atheist cousin for steering her away from Fox News) but loves this movie and I’m just trying to give her the benefit of the doubt that she doesn’t know any of this backstory stuff.

I know the backstory because I’m suspicious of any goody goody movie like this that claims to be a documentary. I spent so many years with people who would say things like “god healed my gut!!!” while leaving out all of the medical stuff they had done in order to reach that point. That’s helped me become way more cynical than is probably typical. I have to be careful not to bash this kind of thing when someone is genuinely innocent to what’s really happening behind the scenes. 

[Howl]

Yeah! A Tim Ballard thread.  Mormon Stories podcast is following up on Tim Ballard, trying to confirm his excommunication from the Church. The "Church" refers to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

This was posted yesterday on the Mormon Stories facebook page: "Yesterday I reached out to one of my LDS bishop contacts to see if Tim Ballard still showed up as an active member in the "Tools for Leaders" web application. Today we will be sharing what they captured (child info redacted). Tim is no longer listed as head of household for his family. We will also provide a few more details about the Tim Ballard story and his excommunication."

Ballard is out at Operation Underground Railroad; he resigned back in June.  Laudatory articles about Ballard have been Swiffered from the official Church website. There is a lot of discussion/speculation about his possible excommunication -- I don't know how an excommunication is confirmed.  Does the Church make an announcement? 

The Church has also removed his books from Desert Book, which is a big deal.  Again, Salt Lake Tribune:  More bad news for Tim Ballard: LDS Church-owned Deseret Book yanks his books   Scholars welcome their removal, saying his historical works are “more fiction than fact.”  

Tim Ballard is toast, although he'll always have leg-humping fanatical adherents. I haven't seen anything about legal repercussions (law suits) filed by women he abused. 

On 10/1/2023 at 6:34 PM, clueliss said:

And hey, QAnon is apparently on board with the movie Sound of Freedom.  

Of course! QAnon is deep into "children kidnapped to be sexually abused by lib Deep State operatives adrenochrome SOROS! Eleventy!"

[Giraffe]

11 minutes ago, Howl said:

Tim Ballard is toast, although he'll always have leg-humping fanatical adherents.

Oh yeah, there will be plenty of people convinced he was innocent (or “what he did wasn’t that bad”) and only experiencing repercussions of being a Really Godly Man. It’s infuriating!

[BensAllergies]

I have been following Tim Ballard and OUR with great interest. The last two weeks have been an absolute doozy!

First, back in June around when Sound of Freedom came out, Ballard resigned from OUR but it was unknown why. Now we know it’s because several women (former employees) had accused him of “sexual harassment, spiritual manipulation, grooming, and sexual misconduct.” He claims he never had “sexual contact” but contact/assault is not what the women are claiming, so he didn’t really deny their actual accusations of manipulation and harassment.

Spoiler

https://www.deseret.com/utah/2023/9/28/23894444/operation-underground-railroad-tim-ballard-allegations

Second, the Church put out a statement about Ballard to Vice because Vice was reviewing investigative documents and found a claim in them that Tim Ballard had been invoking an apostle’s name like he had put a stamp of approval on how OUR operates. One of the 12 apostles has the same last name Ballard, and while the two men are not related, they became acquainted at some point. The statement was worded strongly, saying that Ballard’s “activity [is] regarded as morally unacceptable” and that the Church has 
“never endorsed, supported or represented OUR, Tim Ballard or any projects associated with them.”

Spoiler

https://www.deseret.com/2023/9/15/23875331/tim-ballard-senate-church-of-jesus-christ

Put 2 + 2 together and it’s possible that Ballard was using the apostle’s name to tell women that sleeping and showering together were morally ok. Apparently he liked to take fake wives with him on missions because it helped with his cover against sex traffickers or something. But then he took the ruse too far.

Third, there are rumors that Ballard has been excommunicated. John Dehlin announced it on Twitter/X and said it came from a very reputable source.
 

There are also a lot of other tidbits that have come out recently, such as former employees saying that on the ground missions stopped years ago but Ballard/OUR continued marketing to donors like they were. Instead, the donor’s money has been given to other organizations who do the actual rescuing and post-rescue work. But Ballard/OUR didn’t see the difference and continued claiming OUR rescue numbers from work done by these other organizations, who were only funded in part by OUR.

ETA: that last part has been known for years but now it is confirmed with the investigation documents Vice reviewed from the FOIA request. Former employees and people who work parallel to OUR have been making these same claims about fudged numbers and exaggerated rescue stories for years.

Spoiler

https://www.vice.com/en/article/k7a3qw/a-famed-anti-sex-trafficking-group-has-a-problem-with-the-truth

 

Edited October 3, 2023 by BensAllergies

[CTRLZero]

I’m just fascinated by the “whiteboard” meeting with the flow chart showing all the pieces of how Tim Ballard hoped to generate and disburse money to his various entities.  Here is a synopsis I found showing the actual whiteboard plus a more easily readable version (from American Crime Journal):

Whiteboard meeting and more - synopsis 

I do wonder if he has been officially excommunicated.  The Church hasn’t said much since the brief statement, as far as I know. 

[clueliss]

Jordan and McKay quoted someone (I missed who, but it could have been Mormon Stories) about Ballard’s excommunication.  They did say it is rather typical for the LDS church to excommunicate someone and never publicly say anything.  They just disappear from records and such.  
 

in this case if Deseret bookstores yanked his book, it’s a rather clear signal.

[BensAllergies]

19 hours ago, CTRLZero said:

I’m just fascinated by the “whiteboard” meeting with the flow chart showing all the pieces of how Tim Ballard hoped to generate and disburse money to his various entities.  Here is a synopsis I found showing the actual whiteboard plus a more easily readable version (from American Crime Journal):

Whiteboard meeting and more - synopsis 

I do wonder if he has been officially excommunicated.  The Church hasn’t said much since the brief statement, as far as I know. 

That is fascinating.

I believe that Paul Hutchinson is the one who was caught on video inappropriately touching a 16yo rescued trafficking victim in Mexico.

Utah AG Sean Reyes has also been heavily involved, although he is starting to distance himself by walking back the statement he made about endorsing Ballard for the US Senate.

The Church won’t say anything which I think is shameful because many, many members have been hoodwinked by Ballard and his associates. If they do it will likely focus on the sexual misconduct and not on the shady dealings in money.

[CTRLZero]

1 hour ago, BensAllergies said:

If they do it will likely focus on the sexual misconduct and not on the shady dealings in money.

This is a good observation.  Tim Ballard’s organization, while on a subject that tugged heartstrings (child trafficking), may have had the underlying motivation of driving more money to the LDS church.  He termed it “sizzle” - using a charitable cause no one wanted to say “no” to for purposes of gaining donations and potential converts.  Here is a quote from the American Crime Journal link above:

Ballard’s use of the word “sizzle” was taken to mean that the non-profits would attract donors by way of “dynamic humanitarian missions“- such as “rescuing child sex slaves”

I read that Tim Ballard’s ambitions were likely twofold:  political (Senate) and rising in the church hierarchy.  I’m guessing both options are now off the table, but you never know… 

[Howl]

On 10/4/2023 at 6:49 AM, CTRLZero said:

I read that Tim Ballard’s ambitions were likely twofold:  political (Senate) and rising in the church hierarchy.  I’m guessing both options are now off the table, but you never know… 

Yeah, I think there is too much baggage now for a Senate run;  if he's truly been excommunicated, it's all over. 

This  Ministry Watch article has a lot of detail about Ballard's exits from OUR and partner organization the Nazarene Fund (where he was CEO) and Mercury One.  These sister entities  are both Glen Beck organizations.  

There are links to reporting on investigations and sketchy fundraising surrounding OUR and Ballard, which has also been discussed in posts upthread.  

From the Ministry Watch article: 

Vice reported that Ballard has been raising funds for a new nonprofit called the Spear Fund that he introduced on the Fox News show “Jesse Watters Primetime” this week. A Spear Fund website requests donations but doesn’t say what the group plans to do beyond “education, action, redemption, spirituality, and peace.”

Not surprising because guys like Ballard are ALL ABOUT THE GRIFT and the CASH FLOW!  Once those sweet sweet dollars start flowing in, you've got to keep it coming. 

[Columbia]

On 10/5/2023 at 2:20 PM, Howl said:

From the Ministry Watch article: 

Vice reported that Ballard has been raising funds for a new nonprofit called the Spear Fund that he introduced on the Fox News show “Jesse Watters Primetime” this week. A Spear Fund website requests donations but doesn’t say what the group plans to do beyond “education, action, redemption, spirituality, and peace.”

Not surprising because guys like Ballard are ALL ABOUT THE GRIFT and the CASH FLOW!  Once those sweet sweet dollars start flowing in, you've got to keep it coming. 

It looks like he just started a new OUR.

He's one of their "advisors" along with a married couple. No bios about any of the executive team, including the CEO, Todd Tueller, a former founding member of OUR. There's also zero information about which anti-trafficking organizations The Spear Fund is funding. Presumably this is just another front for his ritzy Cancun vacations with pretty women, however he does have a press release making sure everyone knows he's a good Mormon, despite what his church thinks about him.

[BensAllergies]

On Monday, five women sued Ballard. The lawsuit alleges that he told them that what they were doing was morally ok because the apostle Ballard said so. He also used a psychic to claim that he and a woman were married in a previous life (Mormons don’t believe in reincarnation so I presume this means in the preexistence where spirits lived before being born and gaining bodies here on earth).

Spoiler

https://apnews.com/article/7a84b58452f2b5c89436769ab64700b7

 

[CTRLZero]

10 minutes ago, BensAllergies said:

On Monday, five women sued Ballard

Mormonish podcast and Radio Free Mormon podcast both read through the allegations contained in the lawsuits.  There are also attached exhibits telling each woman’s allegations, but I haven’t found the complete complaint on line yet.  I’m sure it’s out there.  The allegations are bad.  I kept thinking, this is Doug Phillips cosplay on steroids.  Ugh, patriarchy.

I’d like to learn more about the child rescue and orphanage/adoption aspect of this organization.  It seems so shady. 

[Howl]

On 10/3/2023 at 8:34 AM, Howl said:

The Church has also removed his books from Desert Book...

Just caught my typo:  DeserET Book (not Desert Book). 

To see what Mormons read:  deseretbook.com

[noseybutt]

6 hours ago, BensAllergies said:

On Monday, five women sued Ballard. The lawsuit alleges that he told them that what they were doing was morally ok because the apostle Ballard said so. He also used a psychic to claim that he and a woman were married in a previous life (Mormons don’t believe in reincarnation so I presume this means in the preexistence where spirits lived before being born and gaining bodies here on earth).

  Reveal hidden contents

https://apnews.com/article/7a84b58452f2b5c89436769ab64700b7

 

Well that says so much about age of consent.