Human lives are lost, hearts are scattered-conspiracy theories are popular, tearing American society apart
2021-10-02 18:24:44Source: Xinhua News Agency
Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, October 1st (International Observation) Human lives are lost, hearts are scattered-conspiracy theories are widespread, tearing American society apart
Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhu Ruiqing
Corey Rowe is an American soldier who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2004, he returned to the United States with both physical and psychological trauma and co-produced the documentary “Fragile Change” with friends, questioning the US government as the “behind the scenes” of planning the “September 11” incident. This film has aroused widespread attention in the United States, and has promoted the continuous fermentation of related conspiracy theories.
With the help of the Internet and the advocacy of some politicians, a large number of conspiracy theories about wars, elections, and the new crown epidemic have emerged in the United States over the years, reflecting the growing distrust of the people in the government and the further tearing of society.
The price of blood and tears behind the conspiracy theory
Before the “September 11” incident, there were conspiracy theories in the United States about the assassination of former President Kennedy and the landing of the “Apollo 11” on the moon. The occurrence of this terrorist attack marked that American society had entered into a “questioning everything.” In times, all kinds of bizarre talks are becoming more and more popular.
“Conspiracy theories have always existed, but the way they share conspiracy theories has changed.” Karen Douglas, a professor of psychology at the University of Kent in the United Kingdom, said that the Internet has made conspiracy theories spread more easily than ever before, and people can quickly find people with similar views. , Join the group and share opinions.
“5G is the culprit of the new crown epidemic; Microsoft founder Bill Gates tried to promote vaccines and bury chips in everyone’s body to achieve the purpose of controlling the world…” Since the outbreak of the new crown epidemic in the United States, various related epidemics The conspiracy theories spread widely on the Internet. The UK’s “Anti-Digital Hate Center” analyzed more than 800,000 Twitter, Facebook and other social media messages and concluded that about two-thirds of false information about vaccines were made by 12 Americans.
The spread of vaccine conspiracy theories has cost American society a heavy price. Affected by false information, many Americans are reluctant to get vaccinated. Currently, unvaccinated people in the United States account for 99.5% of new coronavirus deaths and 97% of hospitalized cases.
Kyle Dixon, 27, died of Covid-19 at the beginning of this year. His sister Limail was both sad and angry when she talked about her death. “Because of believing in those conspiracy theories, Kyle did not want to wear a mask and failed to effectively maintain social distancing.” Limaile said that even in the last moments of Kyle’s life, many family members still spread various epidemic conspiracy theories online. .
The government’s dishonesty is caused by the people
“All vaccine conspiracy theorists have one characteristic in common: they have lost confidence in the government and would rather trust any source other than the government.” British “Guardian” columnist Neslin Malik wrote.
According to a report released by the Pew Research Center in May this year, since 2007, the proportion of Americans who believe that the government can be trusted at all times or most of the time has not exceeded 30%. Currently, only 2% of respondents believe that the government “almost always” can do the right thing.
Internally, the US government has been unable to effectively bridge the racial rift, and the epidemic has further highlighted the government’s ruling orientation of saving the rich and not helping the poor. Externally, the U.S. government has launched military operations such as the Iraq War to maintain its hegemony, often slandering and discrediting other governments, deliberately provoking or intensifying conflicts in some regions. Regarding the reckless actions of the US government, the disappointment and dissatisfaction of the American people has been accumulating, and trust has been continuously lost. This provides more and more room for the spread of conspiracy theories.
At the same time, the US government, which has always advocated “freedom of speech,” has neglected necessary supervision of online information, which has led to the rapid fermentation of various conspiracy theories on the Internet. Article 230 of the US “Communications Fair Conduct Act” stipulates that social media shall not be liable for the content posted by users on its platform. However, “Harvard Business Review” pointed out that this rule was formulated more than 20 years ago, and with the continuous development of technology, such a rule has long been outdated.
False information exacerbates social divisions
Conspiracy theories have even become a tool for some politicians to manipulate public opinion, further intensifying the phenomenon of political polarization in the United States. According to Mark Finster, a professor at the University of Florida School of Law, when people’s distrust of the government begins to aggravate social divisions or is used by some politicians, this distrust can become dangerous.
Against the background of widespread conspiracy theories, an organization called “Anonymous Q” emerged. The organization claimed that there was fraud in the 2020 U.S. election. The new crown virus was created in a laboratory to prevent former President Trump from being re-elected. There is an anti-Trump “deep power group” within the U.S. government. A report on the CNN website pointed out that “Anonymous Q” was born on the edge of the Internet and is now penetrating into the mainstream political realm of the United States. In the 2020 general election, Republican Marjorie Taylor Green, a public supporter of “Anonymous Q”, was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives as proof.
At the beginning of this year, a group of Americans who believed that there was fraudulent elections attacked Congress, proving that conspiracy theories have intensified political polarization in the United States and constituted a security threat. In August, the US Department of Homeland Security warned that threats of cyber violence related to election conspiracy theories were increasing. The “Washington Post” published an article that the popularity of election conspiracy theories is tearing many families apart under the instigation of the media and selfish politicians. Some people are “brainwashed” by the media and politicians. To their families, these people are like joining a cult or becoming addicted to drugs.
More than a dozen scholars jointly published an article entitled “Political Sectarianism in the United States” in the American “Science” magazine last year. The article stated that under the influence of social media, the American people are very hostile to non-self-party members, and regard the other party as “immoral” or “disgusting.” In this case, a person’s party identity seems to be more important than policy approval.
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