What do you mean by conspiracy

This brings us to what is probably the most important difference between conspiracy theories and investigations into actual conspiracies. For those interested in actual conspiracies — including investigative journalists, historians, prosecutors or judges — the existence of a plot is a testable hypothesis. The approach to evidence demands that sources are checked and claims verified.

If there is an absence of proof or if evidence contradicts the hypothesis, this is not automatically considered to be part of a cover-up. For the conspiracy theorist, the opposite applies. The idea of a plot is not a hypothesis, but a fundamental, unshakeable principle. The possibility that the basic premise of the conspiracy theory may be wrong, or that it might be proven wrong by new evidence, is not even entertained. Conspiracy theories are essentially irrefutable: logical contradictions, evidence showing the opposite, even the complete absence of proof have no bearing on the conspiratorial explanation because they can always be accounted for in terms of the conspiracy.

The lack of proof about a plot, or any positive proof against its existence, is turned around and taken as evidence of the craftiness of the secret cabal behind the conspiracy. Awareness of the differences between inquiries into real conspiracies and conspiracy theories is important because contemporary conspiracy culture thrives on the perception that somehow this distinction is fuzzy, or even non-existent.

Yet the difference could not be more real — or socially and politically relevant. Conspiracy theorists are traders in illusion. They offer a certain amount of comfort , which is what makes them appealing in the first place. But they invariably lead to a dead end, away from genuine solutions to societal problems, which are more diverse and more complex than any conspiracy theorist cares to imagine.

Children of migration as brokers of 'care' — Walton Hall, Buckinghamshire. Portsmouth Climate Festival — Portsmouth, Portsmouth. Edition: Available editions United Kingdom. Become an author Sign up as a reader Sign in. Some conspiracy theorists believe contrails are chemicals being sprayed for nefarious purposes. Jovan Byford , The Open University. When people hear the word conspiracy , they often think of shady people making shady plans in shady backrooms.

Most conspiracy theories are about this kind of thing. The classic image of a conspiracy theory is that of a bulletin board with strings connecting photos of supposed conspirators and newspaper clippings of seemingly random events. In this way, conspiracy theories often ignore the obvious or simple explanation in favor of an interpretation that tries to tie together unrelated elements in a convoluted way. The internet has increased the reach of conspiracy theories, raising serious concerns about how they contribute to the spread of misinformation and disinformation.

Of course, some conspiracies are very real. What are some other forms related to conspiracy theory? What are some words that share a root or word element with conspiracy theory? What are some words that often get used in discussing conspiracy theory? The term conspiracy theory is often used to mock such theories as absurd. QAnon is no laughing matter. Brain: okay just reading one more conspiracy theory about Justin Bieber shapeshifting into a lizard.

Is conspiracy theory used correctly in the following sentence? You know the world is weird when the real news reads like some bizarre conspiracy theory. If any of your relationships have ended because of differences over political beliefs or your stance on masks, anti-racism protests or conspiracy theories, you may be struggling to name the sense of loss and grief you are feeling.

It will take an all-out national effort to dismantle the radicalization pipeline that has planted conspiracy theories in the heads of millions of Americans and inspired last month's attack on the Capitol, experts tell Axios. The problem of online abuse and misinformation became impossible to ignore over the last year, with harmful online conspiracy theories fueling the pandemic, and political lies threatening the election.

Don't make them famous, help them raise money or elevate conspiracy theories. Cosby conspiracy theorists share a perspective born of a long, pained history of American racism. Examples of conspiracy. There have been cases, perfectly proper cases, in which people have been convicted and sent to prison for conspiracies to publish obscene matter. From the Hansard archive. Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3. The public would like to see us dealing with them and preventing conspiracies being hatched in this country and inflicted on other countries.

I encouraged him, and we had private conspiracies behind the scenes. Why is it that conspiracies and convictions for always come from prosperous quarter? I saw for myself, and investigated instances, and delved into the murky international conspiracies, which were as fetid as the swamp forests themselves.

I do not believe in conspiracies in this case. There are certainly matters that must remain secret and there are certainly conspiracies and plots in our society. They somehow manage to conjure up all sorts of conspiracies that they think are going on here. Many democracies have fallen and are falling, some of them because of party conspiracies and chicanery.

I agree that we should put conspiracies behind us. I have always regarded professional bodies of this kind as, in part at least, conspiracies against the layman. One has to realise that not all conspiracies are organised in one place.

Clause 1 1 deals with making conspiracies statutory conspiracies. They must stop their propaganda exercise of looking for conspiracies and trying to colour the picture. We are in danger of suffering from the national neurosis of seeing conspiracies everywhere we look.

See all examples of conspiracy. These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web.