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New Conspiracism, Fake News, and QAnon

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Abstract

Changes in the information ecosystem since 1980 have accelerated the spread of both paranoid-style conspiracy theories and actual conspiracies, especially of deliberate attempts to misinform the public by domestic as well as foreign actors. Misinformation campaigns, as we now refer to propaganda, are typically produced and dissembled to achieve a political goal and are marked by the three interrelated characteristics of conspiracy: (1) secrecy; (2) vulnerability to defeat by exposure; and (3) illegal, deceptive, or unethical. Misinformation well illustrates the symbiotic relationship between conspiracies and conspiracy theories—the “old” paranoid style or “new conspiracism.” The latter includes QAnon, which takes the form of “fabulism,” conspiratorial narratives wholly fabricated without a basis in fact, often having a supernatural or an apocalyptic character. The steady erosion of moral and political certainties, the frayed welfare system, wealth concentration, erosion of national sovereignty, and celebrity culture are all contributing factors to the growth of conspiracy culture.

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Correspondence to Daniel C. Hellinger .

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Hellinger, D.C. (2023). New Conspiracism, Fake News, and QAnon. In: Conspiracies and Conspiracy Theories in the Age of Trump. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-44829-4_3

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