Conspiracy Theory in America by Unknown

Author:Unknown
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: University of Texas Press
Published: 2013-10-14T16:00:00+00:00

Figure 4.1. Annual number of stories mentioning “conspiracy theory,” New York Times, 1875–2011, andTimemagazine, 1913–2011.

Several events reinforced the argument for antigovernment suspicion. In 1968, District Attorney Jim Garrison in New Orleans prosecuted businessman Clay Shaw for participating in the conspiracy to assassinate President Kennedy. The events surrounding the case were the subject of the 1991 movie JFK, directed by Oliver Stone. Although Shaw was acquitted, the trial nevertheless kept alive the controversy surrounding the official account of the Kennedy assassination. Likewise, public confidence in public officials was further eroded by publication of the Pentagon Papers in 1971. [19] A history of the Vietnam War compiled by the Department of Defense, the Pentagon Papers confirmed many conspiracy beliefs about the government’s real motives for engaging in the conflict, the dismal prognosis issued repeatedly to top policymakers for the war’s outcome by the CIA, and perhaps most important, proof that the U.S. government had lied to the American people repeatedly about the war’s rationale and prospects. [20]

Next, in 1973, came exposure of the crimes of Watergate, which had been committed in 1972, and release of transcripts from audiotapes of conversations in the Nixon White House. These confirmations of conspiracy beliefs were doubly problematic for the legitimacy of the political class. Falsification of their prior claims cast doubt on their candor generally. Also, the Nixon tapes, confessions by operatives, and other evidence showed the president not simply trying to keep information secret, but actually plotting to commit crimes against the people’s liberties, to steal the 1972 presidential election, and paying what Nixon himself called “hush money” to the Watergate co-conspirators after their arrest. The president was quoted saying he could raise a million dollars in cash for payoffs and, after the New York Times published the Pentagon Papers, issue an order for the Internal Revenue Service to audit the tax returns of every New York Times employee.

Use of the term “conspiracy theory” by the New York Times ratcheted upward over the years. By the mid-1970s the label was appearing in twenty to thirty stories each year. The term’s usage increased in part because its application spread quickly beyond politics to entertainment and business. These were areas of society where, as in politics and government, insiders have a recognized ability to exert considerable influence on events without being easily detected. In 1966 the conspiracy-theory label was used for the first time in sports. Today, roughly 25 percent of all New York Times stories that mention “conspiracy theory” appear in the sports pages. [21] The 1966 story described suspicions about difficulties Cassius Clay was encountering in his search for a venue for a boxing match. Soon, the concept was picked up and applied in other sports and in other areas of society to refer to theories of collusion for nefarious purposes. In sports, it went from boxing to other sports and then to other positions in matches and on teams, such as coaches and referees. In economic arenas, it was used to explain fashion trends, gas shortages, and gas prices.

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