In the second paper Joseph Uscinski aims to show that conspiracy theor - PDF document

1 In the second paper Joseph Uscinski aims
In the second paper Joseph Uscinski aims to show that conspiracy theories should be treated with skepticism but not as wrong or false per se, as conspiracy theories have unique epistemological properties which shield them from falsification. Still, conspiracy theories may be necessary to the healthy functioning of society. Marion Vorms and Philippe Huneman argue in the third paper that conspiracy theories are very heterogeneous and that the prospects of a unified account of conspiracy theories are very low. Lee Basham discusses the epistemic problem of toxic truths in the fourth paper. Ò

2 ToxicityÓ is the likeli-hood that some c
ToxicityÓ is the likeli-hood that some conspiratorial scenarios are too ÒtoxicÓ for our usual institutions of public information to disseminate to the public, or even pursue. Basham ar-gues that cover-up via intentional neglect poses a significant threatto a function-ing democracy. In the fifth paper David Coady compares conspiracy theories to scientific theories and argues that just as most of us regard bad scientific theories (i.e.the false, unjustified and harmful ones) as an acceptable price to pay for good scientific theories, we should regard bad conspiracy theories as an ac-ceptab

3 le price to pay for the good ones. In th
le price to pay for the good ones. In the sixth paper, Kurtis Hagendeals with the question whether conspiracy theories operate within Òmonological be-lief systemsÓ, in which conspiracy theorists find support for their conspiratorial beliefs in other conspiratorial beliefs, or in related generalizations, rather than in evidence directly relevant to the conspi all the authors for their valuable contributions. I am also grateful to the anony-mous referees for their careful work. Special thanks are due to Massimo recent discussion on conspiracy theorieshas been mainly theoretical and resear

4 ch oriented, some contributions have bee
ch oriented, some contributions have been rather practical undertake in order to struggle against take an active role in debates concerning political conspiracy theories. I will argue that . Therefore the idea of preventing their public and open analysis sounds dangerousÑeven if we completely clear but perhaps the defenders of the Òanalytic definitionÓ sus-pect that ordinary people use the notion of conspiracy theory ÒwronglyÓ (what-ever that could he question of whether the state Ó and then Ò Philosophical Investigations (section 43) that for Òa large have secretly agreed that they publ

5 ishfalse results in order to get more fu
ishfalse results in order to get more funding for their research projects. As far as the defenders think that theory is unwar-ranted and propagate it only because of political and financial reasons, the theo-ry isa usual deceptive conspiracy theory. (Of course, it is possible that a decep-tive theory is true, although those who disseminate it believe that it is false.)(d) The genetically modified food conspiracy theory is an example of an open conspiracy theory. According to the theory, agribusiness enterprises have con-cealed the data that prove that GM food causes serious health proble

6 ms. Com-panies and health authorities ha
ms. Com-panies and health authorities have denied the claims. Many people think that ÒopenÓ conspiracy theories are actually false theoriesÑand in many cases they are probably rightÑbut it is better to talk about open rather than false theories, as public opinion and epistemic authorities are not infallible. (Notice that decep-tive conspiracy theories are usually open theories, but not all open conspiracy theories are deceptive. Open conspiracy theories are genuinely believed by at least some people, but are not strong enough to be considered warranted.) The list of open political cons

7 piracy theories is almost endless. Open
piracy theories is almost endless. Open theo-ries include those that deal with 9/11, JFK, Olof PalmeÕs murder, Princess Di-anaÕs death, vaccination, Jews, AIDS, black death, climate engineering, scientist David KellyÕs death, Pearl Harbor, and so on. But let us concentrate on the four a conspiracy against President Recep Tayyip Erdoan and his administration. The claim that there was a conspiracy against Hitler has not been denied. The claim about the military coup has been denied, but this claim is the official ver-sion of the events in the summer of 2016 and is supported, for instance,

8 by the international news media and ind
by the international news media and independent political commentators de facto moral commitments) or with specific prima facie duties are usually called Òcon-spiraciesÓ, especially if the members of the cooperation have a certain position, 9 The claim that the representatives of oil industry have secretly agreed to disseminate false information is not a conspiracy theory, as it is generally known that they (or their allies) disseminate it. (Cf. Lavik 2015.) Major news stories do get much medi always refer to conspiracies or plots. agree on issues they should not and start to pursue go

9 als they should avoid. When this happens
als they should avoid. When this happens the participants can rightfully be accused of conspiracy, as they have unauthorized goals now. Conspiracies in-volve secret cooperation, but that does not mean that the conspirators must meet secretly, so that outsiders do not know that they meet in the first place.11 To say that a group of people ÒconspiredÓ is not to say that their secret co-operation was, all things considered, wrong. Operation Valkyrie was a conspira-cy, as assassinations are prima facie wrong. However, there are many who would say that the members of the plot that aimed to m

10 urder Hitler had an excellent moral just
urder Hitler had an excellent moral justification for their plan. The Irangate conspiracy was a conspiracy and an illegal fraud, but some people think that what President Reagan did was, all things considered, morally acceptable. Possibly, they think that Reagan was a great patriot and republican who truly dedicated himself to his political ideals. 2009: 206write explicitly that they are interested only in Òde-monstrably falseÓ (and harmful) conspiracy theories.15 If we focus only on false theories, then we do not need the ordinary language meaning of the notion of conspiracy theories. H

11 owever, to limit oneÕs discussion to Òfa
owever, to limit oneÕs discussion to ÒfalseÓ theories is not an easy task. In order to make such limitation one should know which theories are really falseÑand not only believed to be falseUntil 2013, the claim that the National Security Agency (NSA) was monitoring millions of people all over the world was rather commonly believed to be false (among those who had heard about the claim), but it was not. The NSA surveillance conspiracy theory turned out to be true. The epistemic authorityÑin this case the mainstream mediaÑthat let us believe that monitoring cannot be that large was simply

12 wrong. If we have strong and sufficient
wrong. If we have strong and sufficient evidence that a particular conspiracy theory is obvi-ously false and causes concrete, immediate and serious harm, then of course we have good grounds to defend state action against the dissemination of the theo- Irangate conspiracy theory and Ò, Social Epistemology, 31, 572-91. Douglas, K.M. and Sutton, R.M. 2011, ÒDoes It Take One to Know? Endorsement of Conspiracy Theories Is Influenced by Personal Willingness to ConspireÓ, Brit-ish Journal of Social Psychology Machiavelli, N. 1996, Discourses on Livy, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. (T