By John Cook and Sander van der Linden and Stephan Lewandowsky and Ullrich Ecker 4 minute Read
The conspiracy theory video “Plandemic” recently
went viral. Despite being taken down by YouTube and Facebook, it continues to get uploaded and viewed
millions of times. The video is an interview with conspiracy theorist Judy Mikovits, a
disgraced former virology researcher who believes the COVID-19 pandemic is based on a vast deception, with the purpose of profiting from selling vaccinations.
The video is rife with misinformation and conspiracy theories. Many high-quality fact-checks and debunkings have been published by reputable outlets such as
Science,
Politifact, and
FactCheck.
As scholars who research how to counter science misinformation and conspiracy theories, we believe there is also value in exposing the rhetorical techniques used in “Plandemic.” As we outline in our
Conspiracy Theory Handbook and
How to Spot COVID-19 Conspiracy Theories, there are seven distinctive traits of conspiratorial thinking. “Plandemic” offers textbook examples of them all.
Learning these traits can help you spot the red flags of a baseless conspiracy theory and hopefully build up some resistance to being taken in by this kind of thinking. This is an important skill given the current
surge of pandemic-fueled conspiracy theories.
The viral video ‘Plandemic’ illustrates many of the characteristics of conspiratorial thinking, from embracing contradictions to assuming nefarious intent.
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