9/11 was an inside job. The Holocaust is a myth promoted to serve Jewish interests. The shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School were a false flag operation. Climate change is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese government. These are all conspiracy theories. A glance online or at bestseller lists reveals how popular some of them are. Even if there is plenty of evidence to disprove them, people persist in propagating them. Why? Philosopher Quassim Cassam explains how conspiracy theories are different from ordinary theories about conspiracies. He argues that conspiracy theories are forms of propaganda and their function is to promote a political agenda. Although conspiracy theories are sometimes defended on the grounds that they uncover evidence of bad behaviour by political leaders, they do much more harm than good, with some resulting in the deaths of large numbers of people. There can be no clearer indication that something has gone wrong with our intellectual and political culture than the fact that conspiracy theories have become mainstream. When they are dangerous, we cannot afford to ignore them. At the same time, refuting them by rational argument is difficult because conspiracy theorists discount or reject evidence that disproves their theories. As conspiracy theories are so often smokescreens for political ends, we need to come up with political as well as intellectual responses if we are to have any hope of defeating them.
Оглавление
Quassim Cassam. Conspiracy Theories
Contents
Guide
Pages
Series Title
Conspiracy Theories
Copyright page
Preface
1 The (Real) Point of Conspiracy Theories
Notes
2 Why Are Conspiracy Theories So Popular?
Notes
3 The Problem with Conspiracy Theories
Notes
4 How to Respond to Conspiracy Theories
Notes
Further Reading
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Introducing Polity’s new series:little books that make you THINK.
Since the publication of my Aeon article, my take on conspiracy theories has changed. I have come around to the view that they need to be understood first and foremost in political terms, and that the intellectual character of conspiracy theorists is a side issue. For example, even if there is something wrong with the thinking behind conspiracy theories about the Holocaust, that is hardly the main issue with such theories and the people who promote them. The fundamental issues here are political and, indeed, ethical.
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This book is about the politics of conspiracy theories. My claim is that they are basically a form of political propaganda and that the response to them also needs to be political. Although I’m a philosopher, it seems to me that many philosophers who write about conspiracy theories miss their real point. I have tried to put that right here.
I know from previous experience that criticising conspiracy theories and conspiracy theorists is a tricky business. The reaction to my Aeon article was explosive and I don’t suppose that what I say in this book will be any more palatable to conspiracy theorists and their apologists. I hope I am better prepared this time. To write about conspiracy theories you need a thick skin, unless you are actually promoting a conspiracy theory.
