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David Miscavige (born 1960) is Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology Center, an organization that controls the copyrighted material authored by the late Church of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, as well as the trademarked names and symbols of Dianetics and Scientology. As RTC Chairman (he is known among Scientologists simply as "C.O.B."), Miscavige is officially described as "the highest ecclesiastical official of the Scientology religion," a position he assumed when Hubbard died in 1986. Although Religious Technology Center is a separate corporation from the Church of Scientology, Miscavige is widely reported to be the effective leader of the Church and all of the affiliated Scientology enterprises.

Born into a Roman Catholic family from Philadelphia, Miscavige suffered from childhood ailments, including allergies, which were reputedly cured by Dianetic auditing. Impressed by these results, his family moved to the world headquarters of Scientology, Saint Hill Manor in England. Miscavige became one of the youngest full-time Scientology auditors.

He left high school to join the Church of Scientology's Sea Org, where, when still a teenager, he became one of L. Ron Hubbard's personal assistants, working on the production of Scientology training films.

After Hubbard's 1986 stroke Miscavige became active in expanding the religion's celebrity clout. He played a role in the rise of the Celebrity Centre International. He also tried to increase profile for the group by working with professionals in public relations. These efforts have caused critics to deem him a cunning and ruthless purveyor of "spin." The criticism has subsided somewhat thanks to a mixture of time and "defensive" litigation by the Church of Scientology.

Miscavige was interviewed at length by Ted Koppel of ABC television in 1992. In the interview he spoke of the mental health field feeling threatened by Scientology and picking a fight with it. Exempting that interview he has rarely spoken to the press. Miscavige is, however, often a speaker at major Scientology openings, award ceremonies and related events.

External links

• David Miscavige Bio Page
• An Index of David Miscavige sites
• David Miscavige at Church opening
• A blog on David Miscavige
• "The man behind Scientology", St. Petersburg Times, October 1998.
• Contains harsh criticism of David Miscavige

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