About this episode

Jonah Goldberg interviews Andrew McKenzie-McHarg about the history and implications of conspiracy theories.

June was a long month, and Jonah Goldberg is feeling entitled to a little bit of self-indulgence. Instead of turning to the bottle, however, he has opted for a rollicking, frolicsome ramble through the deep history of conspiracy theory. Jonah is joined by Andrew McKenzie-McHarg, author of the definitive volume on the topic, to discuss conspiracy theory (singular), etymology, secularization, 19th-century social science, the paranoid style, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, Argentina, magic and science, antisemitism, apocalyptic thinking, Karl Popper, Richard Hofstadter, Karl Marx, World War I, Donald Trump, social media, institutions, and Catholicism. Show Notes: —Andrew McKenzie-McHarg - The Hidden History of Conspiracy Theory —Jesse Walker - The United States of Paranoia: A Conspiracy Theory —Richard Hofstadter - “The Paranoid Style in American Politics” —Jesse Walker review of The Hidden History of Conspiracy Theory in Reason The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a nonpartisan perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including the Saturday Ruminant, audio versions of all our articles…

People in this episode

Host: Jonah Goldberg

Guest: Andrew McKenzie-McHarg

Topics covered

• conspiracy theory
• history
• politics
• social science
• antisemitism
• apocalyptic thinking
• media

Keywords

• conspiracy theory
• history
• antisemitism
• social media
• politics
• apocalyptic thinking
• Donald Trump

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: The Hidden History of Conspiracy Theory, The United States of Paranoia: A Conspiracy Theory, The Paranoid Style in American Politics

Places: Argentina

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