Conspiracy theories assume nefarious intent and are never positive
Evidence
The researchers identified several recurring themes which together with our own research seemed to indicate that, in addition to linguistic markers, conspiratorial reasoning has a very predictable signature. If you start examining conspiracy theories, you will notice recurring commonalities in their narrative. For example, conspiracy theories mostly assume evil or nefarious intentions. The story is typically not that a group of people are colluding – in secret – to throw you a surprise birthday party. There are virtually no positive conspiracy theories. — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 208
Categorization
- CANDY: The ‘no positive conspiracy theories, no surprise birthday parties’ line is a memorable light observation about the genre.
- XREF: connects to: Conspiracy theories primarily assign blame rather than explain events — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 972; Conspiracy theories usually aim to name an enemy, not to build a coherent story. — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 64; Conspiracy theories function mainly to identify enemies, not narrate coherent plots — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 64 (+1 more)
Broader Connections
- Conspiracy theories usually aim to name an enemy, not to build a coherent story.
#complicates(0.85) — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 64 - Conspiracy theories function mainly to identify enemies, not narrate coherent plots
#complicates(0.85) — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 64 - Conspiracy theories primarily assign blame rather than explain events
#complicates(0.80) — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 972 - Totalizing conspiracy theories claim all visible knowledge is deliberately false.
#expands(0.70) — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 477