By Basab Dasgupta
The so-called conspiracy theories (CT), that President Donald Trump calls “Fake News,” have always been around. When John Kennedy was killed more than sixty years ago, a flurry of CTs emerged, investigations were conducted, and books were written. The clandestine operations of the CIA and FBI added to the intrigue and inspiration behind these theories. However, we still do not know what exactly happened.
The CTs are inherently speculations and not facts. However, a good CT must have a sound logic behind it and be consistent with known facts. We can glorify them by comparing them with theories in physics or with theories offered by a detective to explain a murder mystery. To downplay their relevance, we can call them nonsensical gossip mongering.
In any event, CT is an outlet for one’s imagination and creativity. It is like writing a novel, loosely based on a series of factual episodes. The author takes the facts and threads them together with his/her own speculative links.
To the common people, it is a source of entertainment and a topic for social conversation. The speculations are especially intriguing when they describe scandals involving sex, money, corruption, crimes, etc. The popularity of tabloid newspapers attests to this morbid curiosity.
In the old days, the division between real news and CTs was clear. For serious news, you would watch Walter Cronkite or read the New York Times. To dwell on CTs, you buy tabloids.
Readers bought the tabloids knowing that the accounts in them could not be trusted for accuracy. CTs in tabloids were driven by money; controversial topics sell!
In recent years, the CTs have entered the mainstream media without a shortage of stories. Was Obama born in Kenya? Did Trump collude with the Russians to win the 2016 presidential election? Did Hillary Clinton delete 30,000+ e-mails to hide incriminating evidence regarding the Clinton Foundation? Did Biden have a connection with the Chinese government, making him go easy on China?
It is not just the US; CTs are everywhere. CTs in India have centered around the deaths of prominent figures such as Indira Gandhi, Subhas Bose, Lal Bahadur Shastri, and Homi Bhabha.
The dividing line between hard-core news and speculative narratives started to blur with the emergence of cable news networks broadcasting 24/7. To fill time, they invite political pundits and social commentators with various points of view to speak with the goal of higher ratings for their broadcasts and more profit for the networks.
The more controversial and scandalous the news segments, the better the ratings. It is difficult to distinguish between facts and fiction when the source of information is some “expert” with an impressive resume.
At the same time, the credibility of tabloid newspapers has been increasing. During the 2008 US presidential election, the “National Enquirer" broke a story on infidelity and the birth of an illegitimate child of the then Democratic candidate John Edwards.
Although ignored by the mainstream media, it ended up being true and led to Edwards dropping out of the race in disgrace. The popularity of social media is also contributing to a rapid spread of controversial CTs.
Discussion of CTs with friends and relatives is perfectly acceptable for the sake of entertainment and intellectual stimulation. However, the consequences of engagement of a political leader, a news anchorman, or a newspaper editor in CTs can be detrimental to the country. Spreading of unsubstantiated stories has the potential of causing unnecessary divisions, confusion, disruptions, and even violence.
Equally dangerous is the decision by social media giants like Facebook and Google to censor messages and/or close certain accounts using their judgment about what is true and what is false.
Some people’s lives revolve around CTs, with beliefs like the existence of a global “illuminati” group or infiltration by aliens from outer space. They analyze every event from that perspective. There is a danger if some of these people lose the distinction between fact and fantasy and act based on their misguided beliefs.
The scientific or criminal investigation theories can often be confirmed after a series of additional investigations. The CTs, on the other hand, remain as mysteries because politicians or celebrities seldom disclose the true motivations behind their actions, thought processes, or personal lives.
The CTs fill a void in the minds of a curious public, even when they are known to be unreliable; fortunately, most people have been able to separate CTs and reality, despite their political bias.
With the advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI), we have now entered a disturbing and dark period in the realm of CTs. One usually tries to prove or disprove a CT by gathering evidence in the form of photos, videos, speeches, etc. With the help of current AI technology, such as “Deep Fake”, audio and video clips of celebrities and dignitaries are being generated with a chilling degree of accuracy that can fool common people into believing almost anything. A recent example was a viral clip of EU leaders snorting cocaine on a train. AI-generated images of the Iran-US-Israel war allegedly flooded newsrooms across the world, causing confusion and chaos.
I have been deceived by such false information on two recent occasions. A YouTube video clip broadcasting a “breaking news”, mimicking the voice of Rachel Maddow, a well-known cable news anchor, claimed that Vladimir Putin had been arrested by his own Military brass.
The given reason was their frustration with the continuation of the Ukraine war, with no tangible benefit in sight, but costing the nation heavily both in terms of manpower and money. The video showed all relevant political figures as well as reactions from heads of different nations. I was ready to spread this good news. Fortunately, I checked with other channels to see what they were broadcasting and realized that it was fake news. I was duped.
On another occasion, I was led to believe that Dr Sanjay Gupta, the Chief Medical Correspondent of CNN, has made a breakthrough in the cure of prostate enlargement, something I suffer from. It had authentic video and audio of Dr Gupta along with members of the CNN crew and a detailed account of both the medicine and explanation of why it works. I ended up ordering some pills only to learn later that the broadcast used AI and deepfakes.
How do you fight fake news? One friend gave me the following advice: “Turn off your TV and radio and stop reading newspapers. Only believe what you see in front of you with your own eyes and what you hear with your own ears. Do not spread any questionable information and do not believe anything on social media”. Another strategy is to cross-check every piece of information with as many different sources as possible.
As an old Hindu person, I have a unique philosophical perspective that might allow me to live through this fake news era unperturbed. Our ancient holy men preached that life on this earth is only an illusion. As a result, I do not worry about what is true and what is fake. They are all illusions.
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(California-based Basab Dasgupta has a doctorate in Physics from the University of Wisconsin and has worked with Sony as Vice President of an operating division.)
