Full Description
Provides a comprehensive guide to the history and current shape of conspiracy theories in American life, including the findings of research seeking to understand their origins, type, function, and widespread appeal.
This all-in-one resource provides an accessible overview of conspiracy theories past and present in all their many forms. Taking an even-handed, scholarly approach, the book outlines the longer history of conspiracy theories, starting with Ancient Greece and Rome and continuing the story up to the present day, including analysis of 9/11, anti-vaccine, COVID, and QAnon theories. It surveys an array of current books and articles to try to understand why people believe in and act on outlandish and evidence-free conspiracy theories.
Notably, this resource also outlines the problems created by untrue conspiracy theories in terms of their negative impact on public debate, trust in others, and efforts to nurture an informed and educated citizenry. Instead, many conspiracy claims have become sources of misinformation, cynicism, and polarization. This book will benefit anyone who seeks a pathway through our current "epistemic crisis" in which the lines between fact and fiction—and between truth and falsehood—have become blurred.
Contents
Preface
Chapter 1: Background and History
Understanding Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy Theories in Ancient Times
Conspiracy Theories in the Medieval Era
The Early Modern Era
Machiavelli and the Conspiracy Mindset
Religious Tensions Provide Fertile Ground for Conspiracies
Puritans and Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy Theories Arrive in the New World
A New Outlook in Colonial America
Conspiracy Theories and the American Revolution
Conspiracy Theories in the French Revolution
The Illuminati Conspiracy Theory
The Illuminati Conspiracy Theory in the United States
Anti-Masonic Conspiracy Theories in the United States
Conspiracy Theories in the U.S. Civil War Era
Gilded Age Conspiracies and Conspiracy Theories
The New Immigrants and Anti-Semitic Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy Theories in Science, Technology, and Medicine
Conspiracy Theories in the Mid-Twentieth Century
The JFK Assassination Conspiracy Theory Phenomenon
Toward the New Millennium
Contemporary Anti-Government Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy Theories Since 2000
Chapter 2: Problems, Controversies, Solutions
Problems
- Defining a Concept and Describing a Practice
Hofstadter's Framework
Expanding the Framework
Conspiracy Theories as Stigmatized Knowledge
Understanding the Audience for Conspiracy Theories
- Misinformation and Disinformation
Rules of Evidence and Logic
Conspiracy Theories in the Digital Age
- Public Nuisance and Public Harm
Ideas Can Be Dangerous
The "Plandemic" Epidemic
The Sandy Hook Conspiracy Theory
- Weakening Credibility of Experts
The Need for Experts
9/11 Conspiracy Theories and the 9/11 Commission Report
COVID-19 Conspiracy Theories and Public Health Experts
Controversies
Origins of QAnon
QAnon and Donald Trump
The January 6 Insurrection
The Right-Wing Media
The Anti-Government Militia Movement
Christian Nationalism
Truth, Belief, Reality
Solutions
The Marketplace of Ideas
Debunking Conspiracy Theories
Tracking and Exposing Conspiracy Theories
Legal Action Against Conspiracy Theorists
Mental Health Intervention
Deplatforming Conspiracy Theory Spreaders
Educating the Next Generation in Media Literacy
Research on Conspiracy Theories
How Conspiracy Theorists Make Their Arguments
Predictors and Determinants of Conspiracy Belief
The Importance of Information Environments
Effects of Conspiracy Theory Adherence
References
Chapter 3: Perspectives
Conspiracy Theories and Myth-Making
Christopher R. Fee
Thinking Socially About Conspiracy Theories
Jeffrey S. Debies-Carl
Evangelical Christian Culture and Conspiratorial Tendencies
Jared S. Burkholder
Conspiracy Theories in Turkey
Andrew Wickersham
How to Spot Fake Health News
Bill Sullivan
Veterans and Conspiracy Theories
Michael T. Gambone
The Warped Epistemology of Conspiracy Theories
Maarten Boudry
Chapter 4: Profiles
Augustin Barruel (1741-1820)
John Robison (1739-1805)
Lebbeus Armstrong (1175-1860)
Thomas R. Whitney (1807-1858)
John Smith Dye (c.1821-1881)
Henry Ford (1863-1947)
John Thomas Flynn (1882-1964)
Donald Edward Keyhoe (1897-1988)
Dan Smoot (1913-2003)
Richard Condon (1915-1996)
Mark Lane (1927-2016)
Robert H. W. Welch, Jr. (1899-1985)
Milton William Cooper (1943-2001)
Louis Farrakhan (1933- )
Pat Robertson (1930-2023)
Alex Jones (1974- )
David Vaughan Icke (1952- )
Ian R. Crane (1956-2021)
Chapter 5: Data and Documents
Documents
Document 5.1 - Misinformation, Conspiracy Theories, and 'Infodemics' (2020)
Document 5.2 - Fanning the Flames: Disinformation and Extremism in The Media (2021)
Document 5.3 - Links Between Conspiracy Theories and White Supremacist Violence (2022)
Document 5.4 - Calling for a National Day of Reason (2023)
Document 5.5 - How Conspiratorial Thinking is Undermining Democracy (2023)
Chapter 6: Resources
Chapter 7: Chronology
Glossary
About the Author
Index
