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Copyright © Quassim Cassam 2019
The right of Quassim Cassam to be identified as Author of this Work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First published in 2019 by Polity Press
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All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purpose of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.
ISBN-13: 978-1-5095-3582-8
ISBN-13: 978-1-5095-3583-5(pb)
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Cassam, Quassim, author.
Title: Conspiracy theories / Quassim Cassam.
Description: Cambridge, UK ; Medford, MA : Polity Press, [2019] | Series: Think
Identifiers: LCCN 2019008492 (print) | LCCN 2019010406 (ebook) | ISBN 9781509535842 (Epub) | ISBN 9781509535828 (hardback) | ISBN 9781509535835 (pbk.)
Subjects: LCSH: Conspiracy theories.
Classification: LCC HV6275 (ebook) | LCC HV6275 .C36 2019 (print) | DDC 001.9--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019008492
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Printed and bound in Great Britain by CPI Group (UK) Ltd, Croydon
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Back in 2015, in an article for the digital magazine Aeon, I discussed the intellectual character of conspiracy theorists. I was influenced by Susan Stebbing’s famous observation that there is an urgent need today for the citizens of a democracy to think well. My idea in the Aeon article was that conspiracy theories were often the result of bad thinking and of the intellectual character traits that result in bad thinking.
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.
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.
I thank Pascal Porcheron for persuading to me write this book and for very helpful comments on earlier drafts. I also thank Naomi Eilan and Deborah Ghate for many other helpful comments and discussions.