The Hidden Logic of Extremist Conspiracy Theories with Julia Ebner

And Disorder's Partnership with the New Books Network

As all Mega-Orderers will be acutely aware:

Extremist ideologies and the conspiracy vehicles that carry them are now heard throughout mainstream social and political discourse. Whether it’s Trump parroting falsehoods about migrants eating dogs and cats or Robert F. Kennedy Jr. parroting debunked claims about how vaccines cause autism, extreme viewpoints cloaked in conspiracy theories are now frequently articulated by those in offices of power.

(Listen here on Apple Podcasts; or here on Spotify)

How has this happened? When did the extremes become mainstream? And what draws people to these radical ways of thinking in the first place? Then as we delve deeper why do extremists so frequently rely on conspiracy theories to articulate their political programs? Why don’t they come out and just voice the radical or exclusionary political program directly? Why do they conceal it via complex conspiracy theories about Lizards, Pedophilia rings, and a Jewish plot to dilute the purity of the white race?

This is the first episode of a two-part interview with Julia Ebner -- the princess of extremist infiltration, the queen of counter radicalization, and author of Going Mainstream: Why Extreme Ideas are Spreading, and What We Can Do About It. [This is an amazing amazing book I think you’ll love it and such a breeze to read, it constitutes part of our new series on New Books in Disorder with the New Books Network of which more below]

(Listen here on Apple Podcasts; or here on Spotify)

The duo delve into the intricate relationship between conspiracy theories and extremist ideologies. Analysing how conspiracy theories serve as a unifying force among various radical groups, by providing a framework for scapegoating and explaining grievances. Plus: the psychological appeal of conspiracy myths, their role in modern political movements, and the historical context that shapes these narratives.

(Listen here on Apple Podcasts; or here on Spotify)

Hear Julia on some of the Russian angle of conspiracy myths here.

For more on Julia visit https://www.julia-ebner.com/speaker

Get Julia’s book ‘Going Mainstream: Why extreme ideas are spreading, and what we can do about it’ - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Going-Mainstream-extreme-ideas-spreading/dp/1804183784

Read Jason’s article, ‘A lizard person’s guide to US election conspiracy theories’ in the New European: https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/a-lizard-persons-guide-to-us-election-conspiracy-theories/

Listen: Episode 77 - The System is Rigged: Conspiracy theories and the revenge of the losers https://pod.link/1706818264/episode/cc41cbf3e1c05fb8a696e0faad151283

For a great video about her life and experiences:

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Now for more about our partnership with the New Books Network:

I have recently been appointed New Books Network Podcasting Fellow. Hooray! Through This Partnership with the New Books Network, Disorder is proud to present a special subset of our podcasts as a 'New Books Series' featuring some of the world's most impactful geopolitical thinkers: such as New York Times Best Selling Author Robert Kaplan [this is an upcoming pod set to drop in April], Atlantic Columnist Anne Applebaum, famous public intellectuals like Julia Ebner, Harvey Whitehouse, and Brian Klaas, and Award winning journalists Stephanie Baker, Tom Burgis, and Peter Geoghagan. Delve into these cutting edge geopolitical books via our newly launched 'New Books Series' of Disorder episodes. Julia’s episode today, is a great example of how this content will sound and feel.

For more on the New Books Network which runs lots of podcasts about every sort of topic -

https://newbooksnetwork.com/

And for an NBN podcast on Incels connected to what Julia has spoken about, ‘What Do Men Want?: Masculinity and Its Discontents’ by Nina Power Hosted by Pierre d'Alancaisez: https://newbooksnetwork.com/what-do-men-want

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Now for just a touch more Julia:

I don’t know about you but I find Julia’s voice, her experiences and her insights absolutely captivating, in fact itt is hard to stop listening to the episode, hence if you want the full uncut audio before the second episode drops next week please subscribe to the pay for substack to access that audio beyond the firewall below: