Summary

Conspiracy theories fulfill a double purpose. They provide an epistemological reading of reality, posing claims of veracity and falsity that often depart from conventional wisdom. Concomitantly, conspiracy narratives are theories of power, used to promote a political or pragmatic agenda. Those believing them are expected to react in time, act, and counter the malign intent of those supposedly conspiring against their community, society, or humanity at large.

Major sectors of Latin American societies have been prone to give credence to conspiracy theories under different historical circumstances. Due to the countries’ geopolitical positions and the prevalence of social inequality, racial anxiety, internal tensions and conflict, and a sense of institutional vulnerability, many have given credence to conspiratorial narratives. Several contextual scenarios have been particularly conducive to the adoption and diffusion of conspiratorial narratives. Among these are situations of accelerated political change and economic crisis, social and political polarization, institutional distrust, and international wars. Under such circumstances, conspiracy carriers and entrepreneurs have led many to suspect the existence of internal or external enemies plotting to take advantage of a naïve public and willing to affect society, take control of resources, or steal parts of a national territory. It is expected that research on conspiracy theories in Latin America, still incipient even though conspiracism has been widely present in society and the media, will be bolstered in coming years.