Classic conspiracism defends ultimate values while new conspiracism lacks scale

Evidence

Conspiracists in the classic mode assume a protective pose not against this or that whisper, rumor, or cabal but against malignancy on a grand scale. They see conspiracy as the motive force in world events; indeed, history is conspiracy. In this respect, classic conspiracism is often apocalyptic; at stake is nothing less than the survival of Protestantism threatened by a worldwide papacy, for example, or capitalism threatened by a worldwide communist movement. The new conspiracism, in contrast, lacks a sense of history, scope, or scale. The new conspiracism is not defending ultimate values; often the stakes are low, of the moment, and no values are articulated at all. — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 70

Categorization

• DEFINE: Contrasts the classic apocalyptic, historically-scaled conspiracism with the new form’s lack of history, scope, or articulated values.
• XREF: connects to: New and classic conspiracism share urgency but differ fundamentally. — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 51; New conspiracism abandons evidence while classic conspiracism theorizes it; New conspiracism differs from classic conspiracy theory in kind — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 185 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• New conspiracism abandons evidence while classic conspiracism theorizes it #expands (0.85)
• New conspiracism differs from classic conspiracy theory in kind #expands (0.80) — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 185
• New conspiracism drops explanation and evidence in favor of bare assertion #expands (0.80) — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 14
• New conspiracism abandons explanatory theory and targets democratic legitimacy #complicates (0.75) — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 11