No S#!t Study: Scientists Find That Conspiracy Theorists Will Pretty Much Believe Anything You Tell Them
From www.iflscience.com - May 27, 2015 NASA faked the moon landings, HIV was made by the government, and Elvis ain’t dead. Further fueled by “reliable evidence” on the Internet, these conspiracy theories can be added to and expanded upon for years, even decades in the case of the supposed UFO landings of Roswell in 1947. 
Scientists successfully trolled conspiracy theorists
From www.salon.com - February 26, 2015 Over 90 percent of people who like posts on conspiracy theory pages primarily engage with conspiracy theories A Definitive Guide to Disproving Stupid and Idiotic Conspiracy Theories (Video)
From aattp.org - December 21, 2014 Here's a new video that will show you how to debunk most stupid conspiracy theories with a single question. 
Use Empathy Before Facts When Debating a Conspiracy Theorist
From bigthink.com - December 24, 2014 It all comes back to psychology. Oliver and Wood say that facts will not dissuade them, it will only shut down the discussion that much faster—instead empathize. It's true, other studies have shown people feel threatened when facts conflict with anyone's beliefs. People will throw back untested assertions—anything to defend the world they've come to understand. But when we understand and appreciate the emotional reasoning behind the belief, we may be better equipped talk about the issue in a way they'll comprehend. 
America’s growing society of fear: Paranoia, conspiracy theories and the “rise” of ebola
From www.salon.com - October 30, 2014 America is not on the verge of an ebola epidemic — so why does everyone think it is? |
Science vs Conspiracy: Collective Narratives in the Age of Misinformation
From journals.plos.org - February 26, 2015 The large availability of user provided contents on online social media facilitates people aggregation around shared beliefs, interests, worldviews and narratives. In spite of the enthusiastic rhetoric about the so called collective intelligence unsubstantiated rumors and conspiracy theories—e.g., chemtrails, reptilians or the Illuminati—are pervasive in online social networks (OSN). In this work we study, on a sample of 1.2 million of individuals, how information related to very distinct narratives—i.e. main stream scientific and conspiracy news—are consumed and shape communities on Facebook. Our results show that polarized communities emerge around distinct types of contents and usual consumers of conspiracy news result to be more focused and self-contained on their specific contents. To test potential biases induced by the continued exposure to unsubstantiated rumors on users’ content selection, we conclude our analysis measuring how users respond to 4,709 troll information—i.e. parodistic and sarcastic imitation of conspiracy theories. We find that 77.92% of likes and 80.86% of comments are from users usually interacting with conspiracy stories. 
Why Do People Believe in Conspiracy Theories?
From www.scientificamerican.com -November 22, 2014 Who believes in conspiracy theories—and why 
5 Most Insidious Conspiracy Theories of 2014
From www.globalpossibilities.org -December 7, 2014 AlterNet / By Cliff Weathers Ripped from the headlines, these fabrications were spread by politicians, pundits and social media. 
Pseudoscience website makes their dumb fans think YouTube hoax video is real
From deadstate.org - June 20, 2015 Conspiracy and pseudoscience websites are some of the most highly engaged outlets on the Internet. |
Jade Helm "Invasion" Conspiracy Theory
How a Bizarre Conspiracy Theory About a Military Takeover of the Southwest Grew Wildly Out of Control
What's behind the Jade Helm paranoia? By Zaid Jilani / AlterNet July 17, 2015 
|
Jade Helm Leader Says He Can’t Wait to Kill Useless Liberals; Listen to His Creepy Interview— July 18, 2015
Pete Lanteri is a well-known leader of the Counter Jade Helm Texas group. He is in the news again for recent comments that he made about being excited about killing thousands of “useless” liberals. 
Chuck Norris, Louis Gohmert and other Texans adamantly refuse to believe that Obama isn’t invading their state
From www.salon.com - May 9, 2015 Chuck Norris and his fellow conspiracy theorists are modern day Benjamin Franklins, says Chuck Norris VIDEO |
