Build a conspiracy theory from scratch.
The best way to learn to spot a conspiracy theory is to make one yourself.
Pick a real news story. On the next step you'll choose who's behind it and why. Then walk through the four moves real conspiracists use, with a debunk on every step.
- Hunt anomalies — turn coincidence into evidence of a secret plot.
- Fabricate connections — draw lines between unrelated dots until they look meaningful.
- Dismiss counter-evidence — if a fact disagrees, make the fact part of the cover-up.
- Discredit the critics — dismiss people who point out flaws in your theory.
Pick the event.
Choose whichever real-feeling headline your imagination will run wildest with. Don't overthink it.
Kansas orders deletion of seized files
A Kansas judge has ordered authorities to delete all electronic copies made from files seized during a police search of the Marion County Record, a small local newspaper. The searches, carried out nearly two weeks earlier, removed computers and cellphones from the paper’s office. The court order requires that digital copies created from those devices be destroyed, limiting how officials may keep and use material gathered in the raid.
Defining Western Feminism in 2023
New YouGov research across Western Europe and the United States finds a gap between people’s agreement with gender-equality principles and their willingness to call themselves 'feminists.' Respondents were randomly assigned one of three question formats: the word 'feminist' alone, a definition of feminist principles, or both. When asked the word alone, only 15–48% claimed the label; when given the definition, 74–91% endorsed equal rights, while the combined definition+word question produced 45–77% support.
Robots replace talent scouts in music industry crisis
For decades the music industry relied on A&R scouts—talent spotters who traveled to clubs, small venues and local gigs looking for acts with hit potential. In recent years that search has moved online as social media and streaming platforms such as TikTok and Spotify let artists reach large audiences without labels. Record companies now monitor streams, follower growth and viral trends to decide where to invest, changing how new talent is discovered and promoted.
Humanity Breaks Climate Records
In 2023 many regions experienced unusually severe heat, droughts, floods and storms. The Guardian surveyed 45 climate scientists worldwide who say these extreme events align with long-standing scientific predictions about global warming. However, the impacts are happening faster and more intensely than many models had forecast, in part because the return of El Niño is amplifying heat and weather extremes this year.