Conspiracies and Conspiracy Theories in the Age of Trump

This book focuses on the constant tension between democracy and conspiratorial behavior in the new global order. It addresses the prevalence of conspiracy theories in the phenomenon of Donald Trump and Trumpism, and the paranoid style of American politics that existed long before, first identified with Richard Hofstadter. Hellinger looks critically at both those who hold conspiracy theory beliefs and those who rush to dismiss them. Hellinger argues that we need to acknowledge that the exercise of power by elites is very often conspiratorial and invites both realistic and outlandish conspiracy theories. How we parse the realistic from the outlandish demands more attention than typically accorded in academia and journalism. Tensions between global hegemony and democratic legitimacy become visible in populist theories of conspiracy, both on the left and the right. He argues that we do not live in an age in which conspiracy theories are more profligate, but that we do live in an age in which they offer a more profound challenge to the constituted state than ever before.

Table of Contents

Preface

Chapter 1  Introduction: Conspiracy Theory versus Theorizing Conspiracy

                Return of the Paranoid Style in American Politics

                What We Know from Survey Research

                Conspiracy and Conspiracy Theory Defined

                The Paranoid Style and Populism

                Trumpian Conspiracy Theories

                An Outline of the Book

Chapter 2Paranoia, Conspiracy Panic, and the Regime of Truth

                I m Not a Conspiracy Theorist, but        

                The Shadow of Hofstadter

The Regime of Truth

Fake News

Historians, Social Scientists and Proving Conspiracy Theory

A Typology of Conspiracy Theories

JFK, 9/11 and the Regime of Truth

Consequences and Summing Up

Chapter 3 Trumpism, Fake News and the New Normal

                Populism, Paranoia and Celebrity

                Fake News

Mueller s Conspiracy Theory and the Media

Conspiracy Theory, Fusion, and the Alt-Right

                Conspiracism and Threats to Democracy

Chapter 4Suspicious Minds, the 2016 Election and Its Aftermath

Reading Voters Entrails

Populism and Election 2016

                Fake News and Russian Intervention in Election 2016

The Year of Voting Dangerously

Partisan Conspiracy Beliefs

Social Immobility and Unresponsive Elites

Globalization, Economic Distress and the Vote

Suspicion and the Vote

Chapter 5 Globalization, Populism, Conspiracism

                Suspicious Minds in the New World Order           

                Immigrants, Nativism, and Trump

                Wall Street and Monassen PA

                Transnational Capitalism and the Nation State

                Nationalism, Economic Discontent, Geographical Stress in Election 2016

                Populism versus Transnational Capitalism

                Conclusion: The Great Disrupter

Chapter 6 Dark Money and Trumpism

                Money, Politics and Trump

                Dark Money and Billionaire Cabals

                Show us the Dark Money Trail

                Conspiracy Panic and Muckraking

                Corruption in a Republic of Money

                Dark Money as a Sphere of Conspiracism

                Conspiracy or Just Plain Old Interest Group Politics?

Chapter 7 The Deep State, Hegemony, and Democracy

                What is the Deep State? What is it Not?

                Parapolitics

                The Conspiratorial Roots of National Security and Institutions

                Donald Trump and the Deep State

                Conspiracy Fiction, Conspiracy Reality

                Parapolitics and Blowback

                Parapolitics, the Deep State and Russiagate

Chapter 8 Conclusion: Conspiracy Theories and Political Decay

                Needed a New Regime of Truth

                What We Can Learn from Conspiracism Abroad

                A Research Agenda

                Last Words: No Time to Panic