How the CIA Invented and Weaponized the Term "Conspiracy Theory"

Some of us here at DP have discussed how CT is a term used to debunk ideas and stifle free inquiry. Above is a narrative concerning these matters.

We've hit the meta point where there is a conspiracy theory for why they're called "conspiracy theories."

The irony of it all is gonna make the microchips the CIA installed into my brain from my vaccines melt.

CMPancake said:

We've hit the meta point where there is a conspiracy theory for why they're called "conspiracy theories."

The irony of it all is gonna make the microchips the CIA installed into my brain from my vaccines melt.

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Soon, Alex Jones is going to be revealed to be a Martian, and then the entire CT community will eat each other alive.

Literally.

TheGoverness said:

Soon, Alex Jones is going to be revealed to be a Martian, and then the entire CT community will eat each other alive.

Literally.

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Its pretty obvious that he is if you've watched any of the compilation videos on YouTube. I love watching them cause he's so crazy.

CMPancake said:

We've hit the meta point where there is a conspiracy theory for why they're called "conspiracy theories."

The irony of it all is gonna make the microchips the CIA installed into my brain from my vaccines melt.

Click to expand...

What's a meta point ?

ajn678 said:

Its pretty obvious that he is if you've watched any of the compilation videos on YouTube. I love watching them cause he's so crazy.

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I like watching his videos too. It gives me a pretty good laugh.

The last video I watched of his he was talking about vampires. :lamo

:inandout:

Dibbler said:

Some of us here at DP have discussed how CT is a term used to debunk ideas and stifle free inquiry. Above is a narrative concerning these matters.

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Along the lines of Islamophobia. Both tools to shut down critics or dismiss peoples concerns.

Well the CIA may have invented and weaponized the term, but Dubya was the first to make it really really popular with his address at the UN in November 2001, complete with his amusing dyslexic grammar:

"Let us never tolerate outrageous conspiracy theories concerning the attacks of September 11; malicious lies that attempt to shift the blame away from the terrorists, themselves, away from the guilty".

Ah, the power of the Bully Pulpit. :mrgreen:

Thoreau72 said:

Well the CIA may have invented and weaponized the term, but Dubya was the first to make it really really popular with his address at the UN in November 2001, complete with his amusing dyslexic grammar:

"Let us never tolerate outrageous conspiracy theories concerning the attacks of September 11; malicious lies that attempt to shift the blame away from the terrorists, themselves, away from the guilty".

Ah, the power of the Bully Pulpit. :mrgreen:

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You prefer spreading malicious lies that shift the blame away from those responsible?

What am I saying, of course you do.

Dibbler said:

Some of us here at DP have discussed how CT is a term used to debunk ideas and stifle free inquiry. Above is a narrative concerning these matters.

Click to expand...

Muh Gerd. Conspiracy is a Conspiracy.

Er. Muh. Gerd. Mahnd Blern.

Sent from my XT1526 using Tapatalk

I'm about a third of the way through an excellent book about this, published in 2013 by University of Texas Press, by Lance deHaven-Smith, entitled Conspiracy Theory In America, a most interesting book. It has already shown many details about the assassination of JFK that I did not know.

Yes, our darlings at CIA coined the phrase in 1967 as a way to marginalize any person who doubted the official story as told by the Warren Commission.

Damn, it has sure worked well. It is so easy to manipulate the public perception.

And so it is that since its first use in 1967, a steady use of the term has convinced Americans that conspiracy theories are a form of flawed reasoning akin to superstition. Men and women who are intelligent and reasonable when discussing the crimes of the mafia, for example, or other criminal groups, quickly become incapable of understanding or imagining that humans in high government positions are capable of wrongdoing.

Yes, they will know the misinformation efforts are successful when everything the American public believes is false. Damn it works well!:shock:

coldjoint said:

Along the lines of Islamophobia. Both tools to shut down critics or dismiss peoples concerns.

Click to expand...

So I guess "antisemitism" is just a made-up "tool thing" to delegitimize the Nazis, then?

"Conspiracy Theory" was invented by the CIA?

Yea, to freaking bad the earliest known use was also in a way to ridicule those that believe in bogus coprolite. And it was in 1909.

Now correct me if I am wrong, but the CIA was not around in 1909.

Review on JSTOR

1909, that is what, 38 years before the CIA existed?

Wow, a conspiracy theory about the term conspiracy theory. Which itself is complete conspiracy and no facts.

Enough to make your head spin.

Oozlefinch said:

"Conspiracy Theory" was invented by the CIA?

Yea, to freaking bad the earliest known use was also in a way to ridicule those that believe in bogus coprolite. And it was in 1909.

Now correct me if I am wrong, but the CIA was not around in 1909.

Review on JSTOR

1909, that is what, 38 years before the CIA existed?

Wow, a conspiracy theory about the term conspiracy theory. Which itself is complete conspiracy and no facts.

Enough to make your head spin.

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You are mistaken it was 38 years before the knowledge that the CIA existed was put out there with a fake story about them being created. In reality they have been the covert arm of the Illuminati for millenia!

Oozlefinch said:

"Conspiracy Theory" was invented by the CIA?

Yea, to freaking bad the earliest known use was also in a way to ridicule those that believe in bogus coprolite. And it was in 1909.

Now correct me if I am wrong, but the CIA was not around in 1909.

Review on JSTOR

1909, that is what, 38 years before the CIA existed?

Wow, a conspiracy theory about the term conspiracy theory. Which itself is complete conspiracy and no facts.

Enough to make your head spin.

Click to expand...

No, the term was not invented by the CIA. Negative.

However, its first appearance in modern media was in 1967, as it pertained to public disbelief in the findings of the Warren Commission. And that was in the day before the internet.

Part of the appendix in Lance deHaven-Smith's book includes the entirety of CIA dispatch 1035-960, which instructs its field agents in how to deal with the media regarding the public skepticism regarding the Warren Commission and its findings.

Figure 4.1 on page 125 of that book is a graph showing 'annual number of stories mentioning conspiracy theory' on the vertical axis, compared to the year of mention on the horizontal axis, with one solid line for NYT, and a dashed line for TIME magazine. The lines are flat before 1967, and climb steadily afterwards, with very large spikes(NYT) beginning in the 90's into present time.

DeHaven-Smith has done the research, and you won't like it if you choose to read it, which you won't dare do. Conspiracy Theory in America, University of Texas Press, 2013

Read it and weep.