The Real Reason You Don't Hear About Michelle Duggar Anymore

The following article includes allegations of domestic abuse and sexual assault.

Michelle Duggar, once a prominent figure as the matriarch of the large Duggar family on TLC's "19 Kids and Counting," has notably faded from the public eye. The primary reason for her diminished presence revolves around the distressing revelations surrounding her family, which gained notoriety after the release of the 2023 docuseries "Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets" on Amazon.

Moreover, Duggar has been implicated in the controversial parenting practices endorsed by the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP), the Duggars' affiliated church. Their alleged use of corporal punishment has cast a shadow over Duggar's role as a mother. The abusive practices within their church have further marred Duggar's public image. Ex-members have spoken out about the institute's guidelines, saying in the docuseries, "[Y]ou're spanked until you stop crying, which could be hours" (via People). Here are the unsettling details that have redirected the spotlight away from Duggar, reshaping the narrative around the once-prominent TLC mainstay.

Josh Duggar, the eldest son of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, was arrested in May 2021 on child pornography charges and is currently serving a 12-year sentence in a Texas federal prison. While this revelation was shocking for many "19 Kids and Counting" fans, it may not have been as surprising for those close to Josh.

In the docuseries "Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets," close family friends of the Duggars, Jim and Bobye Holt, revealed disturbing conversations. Allegedly, Josh had sexually abused several of his sisters. "He had apparently been doing it since he was 12, but we found out about it when he was 15," Jim Holt said (via People). Jim continued, saying, "Michelle said, 'We weren't gonna have them tell you guys at all. We were gonna have Josh confess to Kaleigh once they were married.'" The Holts were extremely disturbed by these words, shocked that their friends would "use [their] daughter as like, a carrot, to get him to behave the right way" (via People).

Josh Duggar has publicly acknowledged his actions, stating that he "acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret" (via Time). Psychologists have noted that only about 10% of child molesters are pedophiles and that these actions are often a result of rage stemming from unprocessed trauma, often religious in nature.

In a bid to salvage the wreckage of their reality show, "19 Kids and Counting," Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar orchestrated a controversial move, compelling their daughters to publicly defend Josh Duggar in the wake of allegations that he molested his sisters. The moment unfolded on "The Kelly File" just a few weeks after the allegations came out. Jim Bob, aided by publicist Chad Gallagher, orchestrated the appearance, wherein Jill Duggar and her younger sister Jessa shared details of the incidents. In the 2015 interview, Jill told Megyn Kelly, "In our case, it's very mild compared to what happened to some. ... I'm sad because this is my older brother, who I love — a lot ... I had to make that choice to forgive him, you know, and it wasn't something that somebody forced."

Jill expressed regretting the media appearance in the docuseries "Shiny Happy People" (via the The Washington Post), admitting, "In hindsight, I wouldn't have done the Megyn Kelly stuff." She also added, "If I hadn't felt obligated to, one, do it for the sake of the show and, two, do it for the sake of my parents, I wouldn't have done it." This unsettling episode sheds light on the lengths the Duggar parents went to maintain their public image amid a troubling family crisis.

Allegations of child abuse within the Duggar family from both Jim Bob and Michelle have come to light, raising concerns about their parenting methods. In Michelle's book, "The Duggars: 20 and Counting!," she discusses a controversial technique known as "blanket training," which critics argue is a form of abuse. Blanket training happens when a baby as young as 6 months old is placed on a blanket with a beloved item just out of reach. When the child attempts to reach for it, the parent hits them. Former IBLP follower Lara Smith expressed her distress, stating in the documentary "Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets" (via The Washington Post), "When I was watching the Duggars, the attitudes of the children are what I noticed right off the bat. My heart broke for them because they were so calm and they were so peaceful and well-behaved, and I knew what it took to get there."

Additionally, the Duggars reportedly endorse a form of discipline they term "encouragement," which appears to involve physical abuse. Amy King, a cousin of the Duggars, recounted in the documentary that her cousins were allegedly abused (via The Washington Post), saying, "[I]t was in the sweetest tone ever of like, 'Do you need encouragement? I think you need encouragement.'"

In the aftermath of the cancellation of their reality show "19 Kids and Counting," a significant fracture occurred within the Duggar family, leading to estrangement between Michelle Duggar and several of her children. Among those who distanced themselves is Jill Duggar, who, along with her husband Derick Dillard, has been vocal about the mistreatment they experienced within the family. "This season of life, we have to prioritize our mental [and] emotional health and all that," Jill said in a 2021 YouTube video. Jill and Dillard detailed feeling "taken advantage of" by Jim Bob in the Amazon docuseries "Shiny Happy People" (via In Touch).

Jinger Duggar and her husband Jeremy Vuolo are another estranged pair. In a 2021 deposition, Vuolo, when asked whether there was "emotional distance" between them and the Duggars, said, "[P]erhaps. I think, though, diagnosing that would be difficult. I think as you grow and have your own family, kids, and life — you know, you go from, like, seeing everyone every day to talking to everyone every day to, you know," according to The Sun.

Cousin Amy Duggar King, expressing her concern for her child's safety, highlighted the family's failure to protect their daughters from internal predators, saying in a TikTok video, "Not only do I not respect you anymore, but I also don't want to give you a right to get to know my child. Because I will protect my child at all costs."

Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar have faced criticism for not compensating their children for their labor on their popular television series "19 Kids and Counting." Despite promises that they would pay the children when they turned 18, many have not seen a cent. One notable instance involves Jill Duggar, who insisted on privacy in the delivery room during the birth of her first child. TLC negotiated a compromise that involved Jill and her husband, Derick Dillard, filming content themselves on "diary cams." Later, the couple requested payment from TLC to cover the out-of-pocket costs incurred, only to be informed that Jim Bob had already been paid the labor costs.

In the docuseries "Shiny Happy People" (via Time), Jill revealed, "Yes, we were taken advantage of. For seven and half years of my adult life, I never got paid." This revelation has sparked discussions about the exploitation of the Duggar women, who are often the focal point of the series but were apparently excluded from financial compensation. Sociology professor Danielle Lindemann, who lent her expertise to the docuseries, said, "The Duggar women are doing the labor, literally doing the labor, but they're being shut out of who has the money and who has the power" (via The Washington Post). The unpaid labor the Duggar women endured exposes their exploitation and shows the problematic gender dynamics at play within the IBLP church.

Former members of the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP) believe that the Duggar family's reality show "19 Kids and Counting" served as a form of propaganda for their fundamentalist Christian church. The IBLP, described as cult-like by ex-members, promotes strict Christian teachings that include beliefs in patriarchy, modesty, and large families.

In "Shiny Happy People," Amazon's docuseries about the Duggars, Tia Levings, a former congregant of the IBLP, expressed her belief that the Duggars' TV show played a significant role in promoting the organization's ideology. "They believe that they're populating the army that will help us," she stated (via Time). "The Duggars' TV show was the engine for letting this thrive. The shiny happy images are the sugar, and we're all high on it." 

Pastor and journalist Josh Pease, who was also interviewed for the docuseries, said, "For Scientology, the gateway for most people was Tom Cruise. In a lot of ways that's exactly what the Duggars were for [church founder] Bill Gothard" (via Time). According to Pease, one of the goals of the IBLP church was "to position the best and the brightest of the Christian homeschool movement to assume positions of power and influence in the government and the law." Former Congressman Madison Cawthorn is a member of the church. The revelation of the Duggars' relationship with IBLP has led to increased scrutiny and public skepticism surrounding the family and their television show.

Allegations of abusive and cult-like behavior have surfaced against the Institute in Basic Life Principles, the church associated with Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. Former members have described a culture within IBLP that promoted fear-based tactics and harsh physical punishment for even minor infractions, and one ex-member interviewed in the docuseries "Shiny Happy People" said, "Everything about [the church] sets you up to be the perfect victim" (via People).

The accusations go beyond physical punishment, with reports of inappropriate behavior by the church's leader, Bill Gothard. Former members claimed that girls under 18 were chosen to ride in Gothard's van. One of these women said in the docuseries (via People), "He would always have a girl next to him. There was always petting to heavy petting." Speaking of the culture of silence in the church, she continued, "We never talked about it. I knew it was weird, but I didn't know it was wrong."

The ex-IBLP members emphasized that the church culture conditioned individuals to accept abuse as normal. They described a disturbing dynamic, one former member saying in the docuseries (via People), "When you're told to not resist when your parents are hitting you as a child because it's for your own good... it's absolutely designed to groom victims to be ready for more predators later on." These accusations contribute to the broader scrutiny of the Duggar family's association with IBLP.

Michelle Duggar's homeschooling methods, a central theme in the controversial reality show "19 Kids and Counting," have come under scrutiny. In the docuseries "Shiny Happy People," some of the Duggar children made clear that their schooling was inadequate, leading to questions about Michelle's approach. Homeschooling was strongly advocated by Bill Gothard, the leader of the Duggars' church. The Wisdom Booklets, a curriculum component within the IBLP, were criticized by former members as lacking proper education and described by one former church member in the docuseries as "complete utter made-up nonsense" and "poorly sourced" (via People). IBLP's homeschooling curriculum was established in 1984 and claimed to center on "the Word of God," specifically Jesus' "Sermon on the Mount."

The director of the docuseries "Shiny Happy People," Olivia Crist, told TV Insider, "There is a right way to homeschool, and there's a wrong way to homeschool. The wrong way, as we've seen from the show and a lot of other pieces that are popping up now, involves a lot of abuse." Derick Dillard, Jill Duggar's husband, told the Los Angeles Times that "none" of Jill's siblings "really had much education past the seventh grade." This was mostly due to their TLC show, Dillard continued, adding, "It was like, 'Well, if the show requires most of the filming hours during the weekday, then school is not really that important.'"

Amy Duggar King, a cousin of the Duggar family, has spoken out against Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, speaking about how unhappy she was about her aunt and uncle's response to the Amazon docuseries "Shiny Happy People." In a preemptive statement on their website ahead of the documentary's release, the Duggar parents said, "The recent 'documentary' that talks about our family is sad because in it we see the media and those with ill intentions hurting people we love." The statement ended, "Through both the triumphs and the trials we have clung to our faith all the more and discovered that through the love and grace of Jesus, we find strength, comfort, and purpose."

Duggar King contested their narrative, pointing out to ET Canada, "they could have been humble, and they could have said, 'We're sorry for the victims.' And they could have done that, but instead, they didn't. They didn't." She continued, telling ET, "[I]t was very gaslighting, and it doesn't show any support for the actual victims," making her disappointment in her aunt and uncle clear. The term gaslighting suggests an attempt to manipulate others into questioning their reality or feelings, creating a sense of doubt or confusion.