Among the Truthers

From 9/11 conspiracy theorists and UFO obsessives to the cult of Ayn Rand and Birther crusaders, America is suffering from an explosion in post-rationalist ideological movements. In Among the Truthers, journalist Jonathan Kay offers a thoughtful and sobering look at how social networking and Web-based video sharing have engendered a flourishing of new conspiracism. Kay details the sociological profiles of ten brands of modern conspiracists—the Failed Historian, the Mid-Life Crack-Up, the Damaged Survivor, the Campus Revolutionary, the Stoner, the Clinical Case, the Puzzle Solver, the Christian Doomsayer, the Cosmic Voyager, and the Egomaniac—in a compelling exploration of America’s departure from reason and what it means for the very future of rational discourse as the nation steps further into the 21^st century.

How did America’s trust in its own institutions collapse, and who are the new prophets of political paranoia?

• The Erosion of Trust: An incisive look at why faith in government and media has collapsed, creating fertile ground for outlandish theories to take root.
• False Flag Operations: A sobering history of state-sponsored deception, from historical precedents to the modern-day belief that the 9/11 attacks were an inside job.
• Ten Conspiracist Profiles: A fascinating sociological breakdown of the key archetypes driving these movements, from "The Failed Historian" to "The Mid-Life Crack-Up."
• The Age of Misinformation: A critical analysis of how social networking and web-based video have become powerful engines for spreading paranoia and what it means for the future of rational discourse.