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Distrust of authority means conspiracy theories are spreading further, says frank furedi |
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There was a time when conspiracy theories used to be an object of middle-class scorn and humour. They tended to be about alien abduction or the faking of Elvis's death. Or - more sinister - that the Holocaust never happened.
But now more and more otherwise intelligent, university-educated people are embracing conspiracy theories as they become more respectable and mainstream.
Around 30 per cent of the British population believe that Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed were assassinated or were the target of some conspiracy. That's almost as high as the percentage of Americans who suspect that federal officials assisted the 9/11 attackers or took no action to stop it. Thirty-six per cent of Americans accept some version of a 9/11-related conspiracy theory. The State Department website indicates that it
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| Thirty-six per cent of Americans accept some version of a 9/11-related conspiracy theory |
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recognises that these theories have "a great appeal and are often widely believed" and is trying to fight it.
When I visited the US this summer many of my colleagues accepted the rumour that officials had deliberately flooded black neighbourhoods in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. Yesterday a well-established solicitor explained to me how Mossad plotted Diana's death.
It is the lack of trust in government and official authority that is boosting the influence of conspiracy theories. More and more people are sceptical about the official version of events. And when things go wrong we look for someone in authority to blame.
We cannot accept that politicians can make a genuine mistake or that what happened was an accident. Nothing happens by accident. That is why we are so ready to believe that behind every tragic event lurks a hidden agenda. Conspiracy theories save us the trouble of facing the confusions and uncertainties of our ever changing world. 
FIRST POSTED DECEMBER 18, 2006
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News & Comment: News & Politics
