With the spread of social media, conspiracy narratives have gained a powerful tool. Researchers from Cambridge Social Decision-Making Laboratory have created several online games to “prebunk” rather than debunk misinformation.
Diving deep into conspiracy theories this month, we were left wondering if certain narratives get recycled throughout history. Are we more susceptible nowadays, or is Social Media the reason for spreading new and old conspiracy theories? We sat down with Assistant Professor Elise Wang, who brought together her vast knowledge of medieval literature and her interest in conspiracy theories to answer the question of why some conspiracies just won’t die. For our interview, she walked us through why specific conspiracy theories that are popular today should be considered with the past in mind. Additionally, we gained some insights into why people choose to believe in conspiracies in the first place.
