Conspiracy theorists can fall into vicious cycle of alienation and acceptance, pulling them away from society at large and further into the circle of believers.
Dispatches from a moral panic
In 2016, the Turkish government falsely accused me of planning a coup. Five years later, these charges are still upending my life.
Is it ever okay to speculate that Hollywood celebrities are drinking the blood of children?
A conspiracy theory spreading online says the whole internet is now fake. It’s ridiculous, but possibly not that ridiculous?
How Greta Thunberg became the target of a barrage of disinformation and conspiracies.
Why did so many Americans receive strange packages they didn’t think they’d ordered?
Conspiracy theorists keep finding new ways to rebrand themselves.
How The Epoch Times became a pro-Trump propaganda machine in an age of plague and insurrection
The conspiracy theory has been tied to real-life danger—but before it entered the mainstream, one man stumbled upon Q in a game of political predictions.
Why the grandiose promises of multilevel marketing and QAnon conspiracy theories go hand in hand
Paranoia never stopped haunting Brazilian politics. Now, with Jair Bolsonaro in charge, it’s as powerful as ever—and its practitioners have learned a lot from the American internet.
Our paranoid moment has ushered in a run on supplements, survivalist gear, and all manner of prepper accommodations. Welcome to the age of conspiracy capitalism.
What explains the strange, long life of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion?
How the domestic aesthetics of Instagram repackage QAnon for the masses
For years, women on the internet have been writing conspiracy theories about celebrity pregnancies. What sparks them?
Peddle misinformation. Cry “conspiracy” when no one else reports it. Repeat.
The most powerful people and institutions in the South spread paranoia and fear to protect slavery. Their beliefs led the country to war—and continue to haunt our politics to this day.
One America News is the straight truth for Trump fans, and completely surreal for everyone else.
American conspiracy theories are entering a dangerous new phase.