Many unproven conspiracy theories exist with
varying degrees of popularity, frequently
related to clandestine government plans and
elaborate murder plots.
Conspiracy theories usually deny consensus
or cannot be proven using the historical or
scientific method and are not to be confused
with research concerning verified conspiracies
such as Germany's pretense for invading Poland
in World War II.
== Aviation ==
Numerous conspiracy theories pertain to air
travel and aircraft.
Incidents such as the 1955 bombing of the
Kashmir Princess, the 1985 Arrow Air Flight
1285 crash, the 1986 Mozambican Tupolev Tu-134
crash, the 1987 Helderberg Disaster, the 1988
bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 and the 1994
Mull of Kintyre helicopter crash as well as
various aircraft technologies and alleged
sightings, have all spawned theories of foul
play which deviate from official verdicts.
=== Black helicopters ===
This conspiracy theory emerged in the U.S.
in the 1960s.
The John Birch Society, who asserted that
a United Nations force would soon arrive in
black helicopters to bring the U.S. under
UN control, originally promoted it.
The theory re-emerged in the 1990s, under
the presidency of Bill Clinton, and has been
promoted by talk show host Glenn Beck.
A similar theory concerning so-called "phantom
helicopters" appeared in the UK in the 1970s.
=== Chemtrails ===
Also known as SLAP (Secret Large-scale Atmospheric
Program), this theory alleges that water condensation
trails ("contrails") from aircraft consist
of chemical or biological agents, or contain
a supposedly toxic mix of aluminum, strontium
and barium, under secret government policies.
An estimated 17% of people globally believe
the theory to be true or partly true.
In 2016, the Carnegie Institution for Science
published the first-ever peer-reviewed study
of the chemtrail theory; 76 out of 77 participating
atmospheric chemists and geochemists stated
that they had seen no evidence to support
the chemtrail theory, or stated that chemtrail
theorists rely on poor sampling.
=== Korean Air Lines Flight 007 ===
The destruction of Korean Air Lines Flight
007 by Soviet jets in 1983 has long drawn
the interest of conspiracy theorists.
The theories range from allegations of a planned
espionage mission, to a US government cover-up,
to the consumption of the passengers' remains
by giant crabs.
=== Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 ===
The 
disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight
370 in southeast Asia in March 2014 has prompted
many theories.
One theory suggests that this plane was hidden
away and reintroduced as Flight MH17 later
the same year in order to be shot down over
Ukraine for political purposes.
Prolific American conspiracy theorist James
H. Fetzer has placed responsibility for the
disappearance with Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu.
Theories have also related to allegations
that a certain autopilot technology was secretly
fitted to the aircraft.
=== Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 ===
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down
over Ukraine by Russia-backed rebels or by
the Russian military in July 2014.
This event has spawned numerous alternative
theories.
These variously include allegations that it
was secretly Flight MH370, that the plane
was actually shot down by the Ukrainian Air
Force to frame Russia, that it was part of
a conspiracy to conceal the "truth" about
HIV (seven disease specialists were on board),
or that the Illuminati or Israel was responsible.
== Business and industry ==
=== 
Deepwater Horizon ===
Multiple conspiracy theories pertain to a
fatal oil-rig industrial accident in 2010
in the Gulf of Mexico, alleging sabotage by
those seeking to promote environmentalism,
or a strike by North Korean or Russian submarines.
Elements of such theories have been suggested
or promoted by US radio host Rush Limbaugh.
=== New Coke ===
A theory claims that The Coca-Cola Company
intentionally changed to an inferior formula
with New Coke, with the intent either of driving
up demand for the original product or permitting
the reintroduction of the original with a
new formula using cheaper ingredients.
Coca-Cola president Donald Keough rebutted
this charge: "The truth is, we're not that
dumb, and we're not that smart."
== 
Deaths and disappearances ==
Conspiracy theories frequently emerge following
the deaths of prominent leaders and public
figures.
In ancient times, widespread conspiracy theories
were circulated pertaining to the death of
the Roman emperor Nero, who committed suicide
in 68 AD.
Some of these theories claimed that Nero had
actually faked his death and was secretly
still alive, but in hiding, plotting to return
and reestablish his reign.
In most of these stories, he was said to have
fled to the East, where he was still loved
and admired.
Other theories held that Nero really was dead,
but that he would return from the dead to
retake his throne.
Many early Christians believed in these conspiracy
theories and feared Nero's return because
Nero had viciously persecuted them.
The Book of Revelation alludes to the conspiracy
theories surrounding Nero's alleged return
in its description of the slaughtered head
returned to life.
Today, there are many conspiracy theories
concerning the assassination of John F. Kennedy
in 1963.
Vincent Bugliosi estimates that over 1,000
books have been written about the Kennedy
assassination, at least ninety percent of
which are works supporting the view that there
was a conspiracy.
As a result of this, the Kennedy assassination
has been described as "the mother of all conspiracies".
The countless individuals and organizations
that have been accused of involvement in the
Kennedy assassination include the CIA, the
Mafia, sitting Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson,
Cuban Prime Minister Fidel Castro, the KGB,
or even some combination thereof.
It is also frequently asserted that the United
States federal government intentionally covered
up crucial information in the aftermath of
the assassination to prevent the conspiracy
from being discovered.The deaths of prominent
figures of all types attract conspiracy theorists,
including, for example, the deaths of US President
Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Jr.,
Eric V, Dmitry Ivanovich, Sheikh Rahman, Yitzhak
Rabin, Zachary Taylor, George S. Patton, Diana,
Princess of Wales, Dag Hammarskjöld, and
David Kelly.Also popular are theories about
the deaths of celebrities or politicians.
Notable among such theories include the long-running
"Paul is dead" theory, which alleges that
Paul McCartney died in 1966 and was replaced
by a look-alike..
Another is the conspiracy theory that widely
circulated in Nigeria and alleges that Nigerian
president Muhammadu Buhari has died in 2017
and replaced by a lookalike Sudanese impostor.
Inverted theories concerning deaths are also
popular, prominent among which are claims
that Elvis Presley's death was faked, and
that Adolf Hitler survived the Second World
War and fled to the Americas, to Antarctica,
or to the moon.
Theories that Adolf Hitler had survived were
deliberately promoted by the government of
the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin as part
of a disinformation campaign.The disappearance,
and often presumed death, of an individual
may also become a cause for conspiracy theorists.
Theories of a cover-up surrounding the 1974
disappearance of Lord Lucan following the
murder of his family's nanny include, for
example, allegations of a suicide plot whereby
his body was fed to tigers at Howletts Zoo.Numerous
persistent conspiracy theories have also attended
the 2007 disappearance of English girl Madeleine
McCann.The murder of Democratic National Committee
employee Seth Rich spawned several right-wing
conspiracy theories, including the claim that
Rich had been involved with the leaked DNC
emails in 2016, which runs contrary to the
U.S. intelligence's conclusion the leaked
DNC emails were part of Russian interference
in the 2016 United States elections.
Law enforcement as well as fact-checking websites
like PolitiFact.com, Snopes.com, and FactCheck.org
stated that these theories were false and
unfounded.
The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and
The Washington Post called the fabrications
fake news and falsehoods.
== Economics and society ==
=== New 
World Order ===
The New World Order theory states that a group
of international elites controls governments,
industry, and media organizations, with the
goal of establishing global hegemony.
They are alleged to be implicated in most
of the major wars of the last two centuries,
to carry out secretly staged events, and to
deliberately manipulate economies.
Organizations alleged to be part of the plot
include the Federal Reserve System, the Council
on Foreign Relations, Trilateral Commission,
the Bilderberg Group, the European Union,
the United Nations, the World Bank, the International
Monetary Fund, Bohemian Grove, Le Cercle and
Yale University society Skull and Bones.
The Discordian hoax has resulted in one of
the world's foremost conspiracy theories,
which claims that the "Illuminati" are secretly
promoting the posited New World Order.
Theorists believe that a wide range of musicians,
including Beyoncé and Whitney Houston, have
been associated with the "group".
Prominent theorists include Mark Dice and
David Icke.
=== Denver Airport ===
Some theorists believe that Denver International
Airport stands above an underground city which
serves as a headquarters of the New World
Order.
Theorists cite the airport's unusually large
size, its distance from Denver city center,
as well as assorted alleged Masonic or Satanic
symbols, and a set of murals which include
depictions of war and death.
=== George Soros ===
Hungarian-American investor George Soros has
been the subject of conspiracy theories since
the 1990s.
Soros has used his wealth to promote various
political, social, educational and scientific
causes, grants totaling an estimated $11 billion
up to 2016.
However, theories tend to assert that Soros
is in control of a large portion of the world's
wealth and governments, and that he secretly
funds a large range of persons and organizations
for nefarious purposes, such as Antifa, which
the conspiracies allege to be a single far-left
militant group.
Such ideas have been promoted by Donald Trump,Bill
O'Reilly, Roy Moore, Alex Jones, Arizona Congressman
Paul Gosar, Breitbart News and cartoonist
Ben Garrison.
Soros conspiracy theories are sometimes linked
to antisemitic conspiracy theories.
=== Freemasonry ===
Conspiracy theories concerning the Freemasons
have proliferated since the 18th century.
Theorists have alleged that Freemasons control
large parts of the economies or judiciaries
of a number of countries, and have alleged
Masonic involvement in events surrounding
the sinking of the Titanic and the crimes
of Jack the Ripper.
Notable among theorists has been American
inventor Samuel Morse, who in 1835 published
a book of his own conspiracy theories.
Freemason conspiracy theories have also been
linked to certain antisemitic conspiracy theories.
=== Üst akıl ===
Conspiracy theories in Turkey started to dominate
public discourse during the late reign of
the Justice and Development Party and Recep
Tayyip Erdoğan.
In 2014, Erdoğan coined the term üst akıl
("mastermind") to denote the alleged command
and control institution, somewhat ambiguously
placed with the government of the United States,
in a comprehensive conspiracy to weaken or
even dismember Turkey, by orchestrating every
political actor and action perceived hostile
by Turkey.
Erdoğan as well as the Daily Sabah have on
multiple occasions alleged that very different
non-state actors—like the Salafi jihadist
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL),
the libertarian socialist Kurdistan Workers'
Party (PKK) and supporters of Fethullah Gülen—were
attacking Turkey at the same time in a well-coordinated
campaign.One instance of promoting the "mastermind"
conspiracy theory occurred in February 2017,
when then-Ankara Mayor Melih Gökçek claimed
that earthquakes in the western province of
Çanakkale could have been organized by dark
external powers aiming to destroy Turkey's
economy with an "artificial earthquake" near
Istanbul.
In another example, in November 2017, the
Islamist newspaper Yeni Akit claimed that
the fashion trend of "ripped denim" jeans
was in fact a means of communication, via
specific forms of rips and holes, between
agents of foreign states and their collaborators
in Turkey.
== Espionage ==
=== 
Israeli animal spying ===
Conspiracy theories exist alleging that Israel
uses animals to conduct espionage or to attack
people.
These are often associated with conspiracy
theories about Zionism.
Matters of interest to theorists include a
series of shark attacks in Egypt in 2010,
Hezbollah's accusations of the use of "spying"
eagles, and the 2011 capture of a griffon
vulture carrying an Israeli-labeled satellite
tracking device.
=== Harold Wilson ===
Numerous persons, including former MI5 officer
Peter Wright and Soviet defector Anatoliy
Golitsyn, have alleged that British Prime
Minister Harold Wilson was secretly a KGB
spy.
Historian Christopher Andrew has lamented
that a number of people have been "seduced
by Golitsyn's fantasies".
=== Malala Yousafzai ===
Conspiracy theories concerning Malala Yousafzai
are widespread in Pakistan, elements of which
originate from a 2013 satirical piece in Dawn.
These theories variously allege that she is
a Western spy, or that her attempted murder
by the Taliban in 2012 was a secret operation
to further discredit the Taliban, and was
organized by her father and the CIA and carried
out by actor Robert de Niro disguised as an
Uzbek homeopath.
=== Poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal
===
Conspiracy theories have arisen in this case
because of alleged inconsistencies in the
evidence presented by the British government.
One example is Craig Murray's blog.
== Ethnicity, race and religion ==
=== 
Antisemitism ===
Since at least the Middle Ages, antisemitism
has featured elements of conspiracy theory.
In medieval Europe it was widely believed
that Jews poisoned wells, had been responsible
for the death of Jesus, and ritually consumed
the blood of Christians.
The second half of the 19th century saw the
emergence of notions that Jews and/or Freemasons
were plotting to establish control over the
world.
Forged evidence has been presented to spread
the notion that Jews were responsible for
the propagation of Communism, the most notorious
example being The Protocols of the Elders
of Zion (1903).
Such antisemitic conspiracy theories became
central to the worldview of Adolf Hitler.
Antisemitic theories persist today in notions
concerning banking, Hollywood, the news media
and a purported Zionist Occupation Government.Holocaust
denial is also considered an antisemitic conspiracy
theory because of its position that the Holocaust
is a hoax designed to advance the interests
of Jews and justify the creation of the State
of Israel.
Notable Holocaust deniers include former Iranian
President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad, the convicted
chemist Germar Rudolf and the discredited
author David Irving.
=== Anti-Armenianism ===
Conspiracy theories which allege that the
Armenians wield secret political power are
prevalent in Azerbaijan, and have been promoted
by President Ilham Aliyev.Turkish Foreign
Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has claimed
that the Russian media is run by Armenians.
American writer and disbarred lawyer Samuel
Weems has claimed that the Armenian Genocide
was a hoax designed to defraud Christian nations
of billions of dollars, and that the Armenian
Church instigates terrorist attacks.
Filmmaker Davud Imanov has accused the Armenians
of plotting against Azerbaijan and has claimed
that the Karabakh movement was a plot by the
CIA to destroy the Soviet Union.Journalist
Arzu Geybulla has drawn attention to the way
in which such theories are used to stifle
political dissent.
=== Anti-Baha'ism ===
Iran's Baha'i minority has been the target
of conspiracy theories alleging involvement
with hostile powers.
Iranian government officials and others have
claimed that Bahá'ís have been agents variously
of Russian imperialism, British colonialism,
American expansionism and Zionism.
An apocryphal and historically-inaccurate
book published in Iran, entitled The Memoirs
of Count Dolgoruki, details a theory that
the Bahá'ís intend to destroy Islam.
Such anti-Bahá'í accusations have been dismissed
as having no factual foundation.
=== Anti-Catholicism ===
Anti-Catholic paranoia has featured in the
Protestant mind since the Reformation.
Conspiracy theories have taken many forms,
including the 17th-century Popish Plot allegations,
claims by persons such as William Blackstone
that Catholics posed a secret threat to Britain,
and numerous writings by authors such as Samuel
Morse, Rebecca Reed, Avro Manhattan, Jack
Chick and Alberto Rivera.
Theorists often claim that the pope is the
Antichrist, or they accuse Catholics of suppressing
evidence incompatible with Church teachings
and engaging in secret evil rituals, crimes
and other plots.
In 1853, the Scottish minister Alexander Hislop
published his anti-Catholic pamphlet The Two
Babylons, in which he claims that the Catholic
Church is secretly a continuation of the pagan
religion of ancient Babylon, the product of
a millennia-old conspiracy founded by the
Biblical king Nimrod and the Assyrian queen
Semiramis.
It also claims that modern Catholic holidays,
including Christmas and Easter, are actually
pagan festivals established by Semiramis and
that the customs associated with them are
pagan rituals.
Modern scholars have unanimously rejected
the book's arguments as erroneous and based
on a flawed understanding of Babylonian religion,
but variations of them are still accepted
among some groups of evangelical Protestants.
Jehovah's Witnesses periodical The Watchtower
frequently published excerpts from it until
the 1980s.
The book's thesis has also featured prominently
in the conspiracy theories of racist groups,
such as The Covenant, The Sword, and the Arm
of the Lord.Fears of a Catholic takeover of
the US have been especially persistent, prompted
by phenomena such as Catholic immigration
in the 19th century, and Ku Klux Klan propaganda.
Such fears have attached to Catholic political
candidates such as Al Smith and John F. Kennedy.Pope
John Paul I died in September 1978, only a
month after his election to the papacy.
The timing of his death and the Vatican's
alleged difficulties with ceremonial and legal
death procedures has fostered several conspiracy
theories.
The elderly Pope Benedict XVI's resignation
in February 2013, for given reasons of a "lack
of strength of mind and body", prompted theories
in Italian publications such as La Repubblica
and Panorama that he resigned in order to
avoid an alleged scandal involving an underground
gay Catholic network.
=== Antichrist ===
Apocalyptic prophecies, particularly Christian
claims about the End Times, have inspired
a range of conspiracy theories.
Many of these cite the Antichrist, a leader
who will supposedly create an oppressive world
empire.
Countless figures have been called Antichrist,
including Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II,
Russian emperor Peter the Great, Saladin,
Pope John XXII, Benito Mussolini and Barack
Obama.
=== Bible and Jesus ===
Bible conspiracy theories posit that significant
parts of the New Testament are false, or have
been omitted.
Various groups both real (such as the Vatican)
and fake (such as the Priory of Sion) are
said to suppress relevant information concerning,
for example, the dating of the Turin Shroud.Much
of this line of conspiracy theory has been
stimulated by a debunked book titled The Holy
Blood and the Holy Grail (1982), which claimed
that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were lovers
and that their offspring and descendants were
secretly hidden in Europe following the death
of Jesus, from whom the then-living French
draughtsman Pierre Plantard claimed descent.
Interest in this hoax saw a resurgence following
the publication of Dan Brown's 2003 novel,
The Da Vinci Code.
=== Islam ===
"War against Islam" is a conspiracy theory
in Islamist discourse which describes an alleged
plot to either harm or annihilate the social
system within Islam.
The perpetrators of this conspiracy are alleged
to be non-Muslims and "false Muslims", allegedly
in collusion with political actors in the
Western world.
The "War against Islam" theory is often used
in order to refer to modern social problems
and changes, but the Crusades are often seen
as its starting point.Since the September
11 Attacks, many anti-Islamic conspiracy theories
have emerged, concerning a variety of topics.
Love Jihad, also called Romeo Jihad, refers
to a conspiracy theory concerning Muslim males
who are said to target non-Muslim girls for
conversion to Islam by feigning love.
The "Eurabia" theory alleges a massive Muslim
plot to islamize Europe (and often the rest
of the western world) through mass immigration
and high birth rates.
In addition, before and during his presidency,
US President Barack Obama was accused by opponents
of secretly being a Muslim.
=== Racism ===
In the United States, black genocide conspiracy
theory holds the view that African Americans
are the victims of genocide instituted by
white Americans.
Lynchings and racial discrimination were formally
described as genocide by the Civil Rights
Congress in 1951.
Malcolm X also talked about "black genocide"
in the early 1960s.
Public funding of the Pill was also described
as "black genocide" at the first Black Power
Conference, in 1967.
In 1970, after abortion was more widely legalized,
some black militants depicted abortion as
being part of the conspiracy.In some U.S.
cities that are governed by African American
majorities, such as Washington, D.C., a persistent
conspiracy theory holds that white Americans
are plotting to take over those cities.
White genocide conspiracy theory is a white
nationalist notion that immigration, integration,
low fertility rates and abortion are being
promoted in predominantly white countries
in order to turn white people into a minority
or cause their extinction.
A 2017 study in France by IFOP, for example,
found that 48% of participants believed without
evidence that political and media elites are
conspiring to replace white people with immigrants.Some
Rastafari maintain the view that a white racist
patriarchy ("Babylon") controls the world
in order to oppress black people.
They believe that Emperor Haile Selassie of
Ethiopia did not die in 1975, instead believing
that the allegedly racist media propagated
false reports of his death in order to quash
the Rastafari movement.
== Extraterrestrials ==
Among the foremost concerns of conspiracy
theorists are questions of alien life; for
example, allegations of government cover-ups
of the supposed Roswell UFO incident or activity
at Area 51.
Also popular are theories concerning so-called
'men in black', who allegedly silence witnesses.
Many reports of dead cattle found with absent
body parts and seemingly drained of blood
have emerged worldwide since at least the
1960s.
This phenomenon has spawned theories variously
concerning aliens and secret government or
military experiments.
Prominent among such theorists is Linda Moulton
Howe, author of Alien Harvest (1989).Many
conspiracy theories have drawn inspiration
from the writings of ancient astronaut proponent
Zecharia Sitchin, who declared that the Anunnaki
from Sumerian mythology were actually a race
of extraterrestrial beings who came to Earth
around 500,000 years ago in order to mine
gold.
In his 1994 book Humanity's Extraterrestrial
Origins: ET Influences on Humankind's Biological
and Cultural Evolution, Arthur Horn proposed
that the Anunnaki were a race of blood-drinking,
shape-shifting alien reptiles.
This theory was adapted and elaborated on
by British conspiracy theorist David Icke,
who maintains that the Bush family, Margaret
Thatcher, Bob Hope, and the British Royal
Family, among others, are or were such creatures,
or have been under their control.
Critics have suggested that 'reptilians' may
be seen as an antisemitic code word; a charge
denied by Icke.
== Government, politics and conflict ==
In the modern era, political conspiracy theories
are often spread using fake news on social
media.
A 2017 study of fake news published by the
Shorenstein Center found that "misinformation
is currently predominantly a pathology of
the right".Political conspiracy theories may
take generalized and wide-ranging forms concerning
wars and international bodies, but may also
be seen at a localized level, such as the
conspiracy theory pertaining to the 118th
Battalion, a British regiment stationed in
Kitchener, Ontario during World War I, which
is believed by some in Kitchener to still
be present and controlling local politics.
=== Illuminati ===
Conspiracy theories concerning the Illuminati,
a short-lived 18th-century Enlightenment society,
appear to have originated in the late 19th
century, when some conservatives in Europe
came to believe that the group had been responsible
for the French Revolution of 1789–1799.
Hoaxes about the Illuminati were later spread
in the 1960s by a group of American practical
jokers known as the Discordians, who, for
example, wrote a series of fake letters about
the Illuminati to Playboy.
=== False flag operations ===
False flag operations are covert operations
designed to appear as if they are being carried
out by other entities.
Some allegations of false flag operations
have been verified or have been subjects of
legitimate historical dispute (such as the
1933 Reichstag arson attack).
Discussions of unsubstantiated allegations
of such operations feature strongly in conspiracy
theory discourse.
Other allegations of similar operations have
attached to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the
Oklahoma City bombing, the 2004 Madrid train
bombings, and the 1964 Gulf of Tonkin incident.The
rise of ISIS gave rise to conspiracy theories
that it had been created by the US, CIA, Mossad,
or Hillary Clinton.
The same happened after the rise of Boko Haram.
=== 9/11 ===
The multiple attacks made on the US by terrorists
using hijacked aircraft on 11 September 2001
have proved especially attractive to conspiracy
theorists.
Theories may include reference to missile
or hologram technology.
By far, the most popular theory is that the
attacks were in fact controlled demolitions,
a theory which has been rejected by the engineering
profession and the 9/11 Commission.
=== Sandy Hook ===
A 2012 fatal mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary
School in Newtown, Connecticut, prompted numerous
conspiracy theories, among which is the claim
that it was a manufactured event with the
aim of promoting gun control.
Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke has
theorized that 'Zionists' were responsible.
Theorists such as Alex Jones have suggested
that the event was staged with actors.
Harassment of the bereaved families by conspiracy
theorists has resulted in a number of prosecutions.
Rush Limbaugh also stated that the event happened
because the Mayan Calendar phenomenon made
shooter Adam Lanza do it.
=== Clintons ===
A discredited theory, parts of which have
been advanced by Christopher Ruddy among others,
asserts that former US President Bill Clinton
and his wife Hillary Clinton have assassinated
fifty or more of their associates.
The Lakeland Ledger, the Chicago Tribune and
Snopes.com have debunked this theory, pointing
to detailed death records, the unusually large
circle of associates that a President is likely
to have, and the facts that many of the people
listed had no known link to the Clintons,
or had been misidentified, or were still alive.The
unsolved 2016 murder of DNC staff member Seth
Rich has prompted conspiracy theorists to
claim that his killing was instigated by Hillary
Clinton following alleged collaboration with
WikiLeaks during the 2016 United States presidential
campaign.
Elements of this story have been promoted
by figures including Alex Jones, Newt Gingrich,
and Sean Hannity as an alternative theory
to Russian interference in the election.Pizzagate
is a debunked conspiracy theory that emerged
during the 2016 United States presidential
election, connecting a pizza restaurant and
members of the Democratic Party with a non-existent
child-sex ring.
It has been comprehensively discredited by
numerous bodies including the District of
Columbia Police Department, Snopes.com, The
New York Times, and Fox News.
=== Barack Obama ===
Former US President Obama has been the subject
of numerous conspiracy theories.
His presidency was the subject of a 2009 film,
The Obama Deception, by Alex Jones, which
alleged that Obama's administration was a
puppet government for a wealthy elite.
Another theory which came to prominence in
2009 (known as "birtherism") denies the legitimacy
of Obama's presidency by claiming that he
was not born in the US.
This theory has persisted despite the evidence
of his Hawaiian birth certificate and of contemporary
birth announcements in two Hawaiian newspapers
in 1961.
Notable promoters of the theory are dentist-lawyer
Orly Taitz and President Donald Trump, who
has since publicly acknowledged its falsity
but is said to continue to advocate for it
privately.
Other theories claim that Obama, a Protestant
Christian, is secretly a Muslim.
A pair of fatal attacks on US government facilities
in Benghazi, Libya, by Islamist terrorists
in 2012 has spawned numerous conspiracy theories,
including allegations that Obama's administration
arranged the attack for political reasons,
and Senator Rand Paul's repeated assertion
that the government's response to the incident
was designed to distract from a secret CIA
operation.
=== FEMA ===
The United States' Federal Emergency Management
Agency is the subject of many theories, including
the allegation that the organization has been
engaged in the building of concentration camps
on US soil, in advance of the imposition of
martial law and genocide.
=== African National Congress ===
Members of South Africa's African National
Congress party have long propagated conspiracy
theories, frequently concerning the CIA and
alleged white supremacists.
In 2014, Deputy Minister of Defence Kebby
Maphatsoe joined others in accusing without
evidence Public Protector Thuli Madonsela
of being a US agent working to create a puppet
government in South Africa.
=== Cultural Marxism ===
The intellectual group known as the Frankfurt
School which emerged in the 1930s has increasingly
been the subject of conspiracy theories which
have alleged the promotion of communism in
capitalist societies.
The term 'Cultural Marxism' has been notably
employed by conservative American movements
such as the Tea Party, and by Norwegian mass-murderer
Anders Breivik.
=== Deep state ===
Occasionally used as a neutral term to denote
a nation's bureaucracy, the conspiratorial
notion of a "deep state" is a concept originating
principally in Middle Eastern and North African
politics with some basis in truth, and has
been known in the US since the 1960s.
It has since come to prominence under the
Trump presidency.
"Deep state" in the latter sense refers to
an unidentified "power elite" who act in co-ordinated
manipulation of a nation's politics and government.
Proponents of such theories have included
Canadian author Peter Dale Scott, who has
promoted the idea in the US since at least
the 1990s, as well as Breitbart News, Infowars
and US President Donald Trump.
A 2017 poll by ABC News and The Washington
Post indicated that 48% of Americans believe
in the existence of a conspiratorial "deep
state" in the US.
=== Sutherland Springs ===
The 2017 Sutherland Springs church shooting
has also been the subject of multiple conspiracy
theories.
The shooter has been linked to multiple conspiracies,
such as identifying him as a Democrat, Hillary
Clinton supporter, Bernie Sanders supporter,
"alt-left" supporter, Antifa member, or radical
Muslim; or claiming that he carried an Antifa
flag and told churchgoers: "This is a communist
revolution".
Some reports also falsely claimed that he
targeted the church because they were "white
conservatives".
== Medicine ==
=== 
Alternative therapy suppression ===
A 2013 study approved by the University of
Chicago suggested that almost half of Americans
believe at least one medical conspiracy theory,
with 37% believing that the Food and Drug
Administration deliberately suppresses 'natural'
cures due to influence from the pharmaceutical
industry.
A prominent proponent of comparable conspiracy
theories has been convicted fraudster Kevin
Trudeau.
=== Artificial diseases ===
Scientists have found evidence that HIV was
transferred from monkeys to humans in the
1930s.
Evidence exists, however, that the KGB deliberately
disseminated a notion in the 1980s that it
was invented by the CIA.
This idea, and similar ideas concerning Ebola,
have since been promoted by persons such as
actor Steven Seagal, Nation of Islam leader
Louis Farrakhan and former South Africa President
Thabo Mbeki.
Similar conspiracy theories allege that pharmaceutical
companies assist in the creation of conditions
and diseases including ADHD, HSV and HPV.
=== Fluoridation ===
Water fluoridation is the controlled addition
of fluoride to a public water supply to reduce
tooth decay.
Although many dental-health organizations
support such fluoridation, the practice is
opposed by conspiracy theorists.
Allegations may include claims that it has
been a way to dispose of industrial waste,
or that it exists to obscure a failure to
provide dental care to the poor.
A further theory promoted by the John Birch
Society in the 1960s described fluoridation
as a communist plot to weaken the American
population.
=== Vaccination ===
A popular conspiracy theory states that the
pharmaceutical industry has mounted a cover-up
of a causal link between vaccines and autism.
The theory took hold with the publication
in 1998 of a fraudulent paper by discredited
former doctor Andrew Wakefield.
The resulting anti-vaccine movement has been
promoted by a number of prominent persons
including Rob Schneider, Jim Carrey and U.S.
President Donald Trump, and has led to increased
rates of infection and death from diseases
such as measles in many countries, including
the US, Italy, Germany, Romania and the UK.Vaccine
conspiracy theories have been widespread in
Nigeria since at least 2003, as well as in
Pakistan.
Such theories may feature claims that vaccines
are part of a secret anti-Islam plot, and
have been linked to fatal mass shootings and
bombings at vaccine clinics in both countries.
== Science and technology ==
=== Global warming ===
Global warming conspiracy theorists typically
allege that the science behind global warming
has been invented or distorted for ideological
or financial reasons.
Many have promoted such theories, including
U.S. President Donald Trump, US Senator James
Inhofe, British journalist Christopher Booker,
and Viscount Christopher Monckton.
=== Weather and earthquake control projects
===
Numerous theories pertain to real or alleged
weather-controlling projects.
Theories include the debunked assertion that
HAARP, a radio-technology research program
funded by the US government, is a secret weather-controlling
system.
Some theorists have blamed 2005's Hurricane
Katrina on HAARP.
HAARP has also been suggested to have somehow
caused earthquakes, such as the 2010 Haiti
earthquake, the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and
tsunami or the 2013 Saravan earthquake.
Theories concerning HAARP may also refer to
mind-control technology.Also of interest to
conspiracy theorists are cloud-seeding technologies.
These include a debunked allegation that the
British military's Project Cumulus caused
the fatal 1952 Lynmouth Flood in Devon, England,
and claims concerning a secret project said
to have caused the 2010 Pakistan floods.
=== MKUltra ===
Genuine American research in the 1950s and
1960s into chemical interrogation and mind-control
techniques has prompted many subsequent conspiracy
theories, especially following CIA Director
Richard Helm's 1973 order to destroy all files
related to the project.
These theories include the allegation that
the mass fatality at Jonestown in 1978 was
connected to an MKUltra experiment.
=== RFID chips ===
Radio frequency identification chips (RFID),
such as are implanted into pets as a means
of tracking, have drawn the interest of conspiracy
theorists who posit that this technology is
secretly in widespread use on humans.
Former Whitby town councilor Simon Parkes
has promoted this theory, which may be related
to conspiracy theories concerning vaccination,
electronic banking and the Antichrist.
=== Flat Earth ===
Flat Earth theory first emerged in 19th-century
England, despite the Earth's spherical nature
having been known since at least the time
of Pythagoras.
It has in recent years been promoted by American
software consultant Mark Sargent through the
use of YouTube videos.
Flat-earther conspiracy theorists hold that
planet Earth is not a sphere, and that evidence
has been faked or suppressed to hide the fact
that is instead a disc, or a single infinite
plane.
The conspiracy often implicates NASA.
Other claims may include such allegations
as that GPS devices are rigged to make aircraft
pilots wrongly believe they are flying around
a globe.
=== Technology suppression ===
Numerous theories pertain to the alleged suppression
of certain technologies and energies.
Such theories may focus on the Vril Society
Conspiracy, allegations of the suppression
of the electric car by fossil-fuel companies
(as detailed in the 2006 documentary Who Killed
the Electric Car?), and the Phoebus cartel,
set up in 1924, which has been accused of
suppressing longer-lasting light bulbs.
Other long-standing allegations include the
suppression of perpetual motion and cold fusion
technology by government agencies, special
interest groups, or fraudulent inventors.Promoters
of alternative energy theories have included
Thomas Henry Moray, Eugene Mallove, and convicted
American fraudster Stanley Meyer.
=== Weaponry ===
Conspiracy theorists often attend to new military
technologies, both real and imagined.
Subjects of theories include: the alleged
Philadelphia Experiment, a supposed attempt
to turn a U.S. Navy warship invisible; the
alleged Montauk Project, a supposed government
program to learn about mind control and time
travel; and the so-called Tsunami bomb which
is alleged to have caused the 2004 Indian
Ocean tsunami.Other theories include Peter
Vogel's debunked claim that an accidental
explosion of conventional munitions at Port
Chicago was in fact a nuclear detonation,
and a theory promoted by the Venezuelan state-run
TV station ViVe that the 2010 Haiti earthquake
was caused by a secret US "earthquake weapon".
=== Targeted Individuals ===
Conspiracy theorists claim that government
agents are utilizing electromagnetic weapons
to induce auditory hallucinations on the population.
Theorists often cite research into psychotronic
weapons, the Cuban Health Attacks, and the
Microwave Auditory Effect as proof of their
theory.
There are over 10,000 people who identify
as Targeted Individuals.
=== False history ===
Some theories claim that the dates of historical
events have been deliberately distorted.
These include the phantom time hypothesis
of German conspiracy theorist Heribert Illig,
who in 1991 published an allegation that 297
years had been added to the calendar by establishment
figures such as Pope Sylvester II in order
to position themselves at the millennium.
A comparable theory, known as the New Chronology,
is most closely associated with Russian theorist
Anatoly Fomenko.
Fomenko holds that history is many centuries
shorter than is widely believed and that numerous
historical documents have been fabricated,
and legitimate documents destroyed, for political
ends.
Adherents of such ideas have included chess
grandmaster Garry Kasparov.
== Space agencies ==
Scientific space programs are of particular
interest to conspiracy theorists.
The most prolific theories allege that the
US moon landings were staged by NASA in a
film studio, with some alleging the involvement
of director Stanley Kubrick.
The Soviet space program has also attracted
theories that the government concealed evidence
of failed flights.
A more recent theory, emergent following the
activities of hacker Gary McKinnon, suggests
that a secret program of manned space fleets
known as Solar Warden exists, supposedly acting
under the United Nations.
=== Nibiru (Planet X) ===
Conspiracy theorists have long posited a plot
by organizations such as NASA to conceal the
existence of a large planet in the Solar System
known as Nibiru or Planet X, which allegedly,
will one day pass close enough to the Earth
to destroy it.
Predictions for the date of destruction have
included 2003, 2012 and 2017.
The theory began to develop following the
publication of The 12th Planet (1976), by
discredited Russian-American author Zecharia
Sitchin, was given its full form by Nancy
Lieder, and has since been promoted by American
conspiracy theorist and End Times theorist
David Meade.
The notion has remained popular, and received
renewed attention during the period prior
to the solar eclipse of 21 August 2017.
Other conspiracy theorists in 2017 also predicted
Nibiru would appear, including Terral Croft
and YouTube pastor Paul Begley.
== Sports ==
=== 
Boxing ===
Boxing has featured in conspiracy theories,
such as the claims that the second Ali-Liston
fight and the first Bradley-Pacquiao fight
were fixed.
=== Shergar ===
The notorious theft and disappearance of the
Irish-bred racehorse Shergar in 1983 has prompted
many conspiracy theorists to speculate about
involvement by the Mafia, the IRA and Colonel
Gaddafi.
=== Rigged selection processes ===
The "frozen envelope theory" suggests that
the National Basketball Association rigged
its 1985 draft Lottery so that Patrick Ewing
would join the New York Knicks.
Theorists claim that a lottery envelope was
chilled so that it could be identified by
touch.
A similar "hot balls theory", promoted by
Scottish football manager David Moyes, suggests
that certain balls used in draws for UEFA
competitions have been warmed to achieve specific
outcomes.
=== 1984 Pepsi 400 ===
The 1984 Pepsi 400 at Daytona, Florida, was
the first NASCAR race to be attended by a
sitting US President, Ronald Reagan, and was
driver Richard Petty's 200th victory.
Rival driver Cale Yarborough's premature retirement
to the pit road has prompted conspiracy theorists
to allege that organizers fixed the race in
order to receive good publicity for the event.
=== Ronaldo and the 1998 World Cup Final ===
On the day of the 1998 World Cup Final, Brazilian
striker Ronaldo suffered a convulsive fit.
Ronaldo was initially removed from the starting
lineup 72 minutes before the match, with the
teamsheet released to a stunned world media,
before he was reinstated by the Brazil coach
shortly before kick off.
Ronaldo "sleepwalked" through the final, with
France winning the game.
The nature of the incident set off a trail
of questions and allegations which persisted
for years, with Alex Bellos writing in The
Guardian, "When Ronaldo's health scare was
revealed after the match, the situation's
unique circumstances lent itself to fabulous
conspiracy theories.
Here was the world's most famous sportsman,
about to take part in the most important match
of his career, when he suddenly, inexplicably,
fell ill.
Was it stress, epilepsy, or had he been drugged?".
Questions also circulated into who made Ronaldo
play the game.
The Brazil coach insisted he had the final
say, but much speculation focused on sportswear
company Nike, Brazil's multimillion-dollar
sponsor—whom many Brazilians thought had
too much control—putting pressure on the
striker to play against medical advice.
=== New England Patriots ===
The New England Patriots have also been involved
in numerous conspiracy theories.
During their AFC Championship 24–20 victory
over the Jacksonville Jaguars, several conspiracy
theories spread stating that the referees
helped the Patriots advance to Super Bowl
LII.
However, sports analyst Stephen A. Smith stated
the Jaguars were not robbed, but that they
had no one to blame but themselves for the
loss.
There were also conspiracy theories regarding
the Super Bowl LI matchup between the Patriots
and the Atlanta Falcons stating that the game
was rigged while others said the Falcons made
questionable play-calls at the end of the
game.
== See also ==
Conspiracy theories in the Arab world
Conspiracy theories in Turkey
