Faced with disorientation, most citizens are likelier to tune out than to resist conspiracism.

Evidence

But others will avoid sustained disorientation by acquiescing in conspiracist narratives. They will adjust. They will accommodate. They will join the company of those for whom conspiracist charges are “true enough.” The most likely scenario for most, however, will be tuning out: retreating into private life and distancing themselves emotionally from every bit of news about public life. Call it resignation, or numbing. — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 383

Categorization

• SEED: The distinction between resigned numbing and active acquiescence could be angle for an essay on the quiet majority’s response to information crises.