Conspiracy research should track idea migration, not belief truth

Evidence

Despite the many references to UFOs, this is not a book about fl ying saucers. I do not know whether they exist or, if they do, where they come from; and I do not address either of those questions. What this work does concern is the fusion of right-wing conspiracy theories with UFO motifs. This is a study of how certain dissimilar ideas have migrated from one underground subculture to another. — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 50

Categorization

• DEFINE: Frames the book’s object of study: idea migration across subcultures rather than the truth of UFOs.
• XREF: connects to: Conspiracy functions as an alternative epistemology when interpretation has no ground truth — , The Braided Reading EPUB: 5-Year…, 105; Conspiracy believers abandon specific claims while retaining a core that something must be wrong — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects…, 214; Copied stories across conspiracy sites create false impressions of source diversity. — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 393 (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• Refuting a conspiracy theory directly is useless; examining its origin works better #corroborates (0.82) — Holm Gero Hümmler, Ulrike Schiesser, Fact and Prejudice, 703
• Conspiracy theories are inherently unfalsifiable because believers dismiss counterevidence as a plot #contradicts (0.80) — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 96
• Conspiracy functions as an alternative epistemology when interpretation has no ground truth #expands (0.78) — , The Braided Reading EPUB, 105
• Copied stories across conspiracy sites create false impressions of source diversity. #exemplifies (0.75) — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 393
• Tracing a thinker’s sources can wrongly deny their originality #qualifies (0.75)
• Conspiracy believers abandon specific claims while retaining a core that something must be wrong #corroborates (0.72) — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 214
• Correcting conspiracy misinformation can backfire and entrench the false belief. #corroborates (0.72) — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 119