Conspiracy theories can generally be defined as unverified explanations for significant events, often suggesting secret plots orchestrated by powerful and malicious actors. They remain prevalent even when other, more probable explanations are available to us. Sometimes they seem totally ridiculous, and sometimes they're real. Put on your tin foil hat and join us in exploring some of the most fascinating theories out there.
Hours of research by our editors, distilled into minutes of clarity.
The "Paul is Dead" theory proposes the famous Beatle died in a car crash and was replaced by a McCartney lookalike. The idea gained traction after a student's article exploring the topic was published in 1969. Some fans believe The Beatles left clues of McCartney's passing in their songs.
Conspiracy theorists believe shapeshifting reptiles have taken human form and gained authority to manipulate human populations. From US politicians to British royalty, could lizard people be holding positions of power?
COVID-19 spreading around the same time as the rollout of 5G sparked conspiracy theories and outrage that the new wireless technology was harming people and the environment.
Oliver Stone's $40M film "JFK" (1991) imagined the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy as the result of a conspiracy by US government agents. Before the film, this belief was not common, but it became widely adopted afterward. The film's impact contributed to the release of major CIA files in subsequent decades.
During the 2016 presidential elections, Comet Ping Pong Pizza became the subject of a conspiracy theory that the Clinton family used the space as a front for kidnapping and trafficking children. The hoax began on 4chan after the public became aware that the shop's owner was a Democratic donor.
The tragedy that killed the Princess of Wales, her partner Dodi Fayed, and their driver, Henri Paul in Paris has been the subject of popular conspiracies. Diana, known to have a difficult relationship with the royal family, was believed by many to have been the victim of a murder plot.
The document proposed a future weather modification system to achieve military objectives, but clarified that such a system "does not reflect current military policy, practice, or capability." Past testing of biological and chemical weapons has accelerated conspiracies about streaks of condensation trailing aircraft to be harmful chemical agents.
Conspiracy theories about the phenomenon—also known as contrails—began circulating in the 1990s, but have gained significant traction on social media platforms. Chemtrails are more common in high-humidity conditions, where they persist and form cirrus clouds.
Peter McIndoe claims the US government killed 12 billion birds only to replace them with drones. These statements have powered protests—and McIndoe's fictional campaign that highlights how conspiracies and their theorists are treated.
This 36-minute podcast describes the 1990s territory battle between the US and Mexico, during which the disputed island disappeared. The fight for ownership was important because island territories influenced maritime borders. With evidence of Bermeja's existence limited to dated accounts and maps, Mexico sent a team to the reported site of the landmass, but they found nothing. The vanishing island gave rise to waves of conspiracy theories, such as one that accused the governments of hiding the island to better oil profits.