Conspiracism causes a deeper rift than partisan polarization

Evidence

Conspiracism has created a schism more profound and corrosive than the partisan polarization that has beset American politics in recent years. This epistemic polarization has special force. It creates divergent accounts of political reality. It amplifies disorientation. And it has the capacity to reshape our relations to others. — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 293

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Conspiracism’s core target is democratic disagreement itself, not this or that policy — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 21; Prior polarization and weakened parties preconditioned conspiracism’s delegitimating effects — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 104; Presidential recognition power makes conspiracism uniquely divisive at the top — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 145 (+3 more)

Broader Connections

• Polarization does not statistically predict conspiracy talk #corroborates (0.80) — Joseph E. Uscinski and Joseph M. Parent, American Conspiracy Theories, 667