7. Sex, money, power

The Orgasm Cult

This podcast is now the subject of a legal complaint by Nicole Daedone, Rachel Cherwitz, OneTaste Incorporated, the Institute of OM LLC and OM IP Co.

One Taste was all about the female orgasm – but a lot of men wanted to get involved too, whether to learn how to relate to women better or just in the hope of more sex.

And because Orgasmic Meditation was born in the San Francisco Bay Area, the home of Silicon Valley, it attracted a lot of men who worked in the tech industry, some of whom were extremely wealthy.

Many of the women who got involved in One Taste were younger, and open to trying out something different and new age in the search to explore their sexuality, or sometimes heal from trauma.

These two demographics created some complicated gender dynamics, which One Taste used to develop predatory and exploitative sales tactics.

Former One Taste members tell us about the interplay between sex, money and power within the organisation.

If you’ve been affected by any of the issues raised in this programme, help and advice are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline.

Presenter: Nastaran Tavakoli-Far Producer: Lucy Burns Editor: Penny Murphy