Death by Conspiracy?: 9. The Conspiracist Mindset
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BBC
2.8 • 947 Ratings
🗓️ 21 February 2022
⏱️ 14 minutes
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Summary
Marianna asks what we get wrong about people who are drawn to conspiracy theories – and finds out who's really at risk of falling down the rabbit hole. Gary Matthews was a talented artist and photographer, sociable and well-liked - a familiar face in his hometown of Shrewsbury. A few years ago, his friends noticed that he was getting into conspiracy theories. Like millions of others, he fell for Covid pseudoscience when the pandemic hit. In January 2021, at the age of 46, Gary caught the virus, and died. Marianna Spring, the BBC’s specialist disinformation reporter, travels to the serene medieval Shropshire town that Gary Matthews called home to investigate what happened to him - and why. While delving into the conspiracy underbelly of this picturesque town, she finds out more about Gary's life - and discovers a story that's been repeated across the country, and around the world. Producer: Ant Adeane Editor: Mike Wendling
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | An early start here. |
| 0:02.7 | It's time to kick off. |
| 0:04.0 | Your day. Morning! |
| 0:05.8 | What a line-up. |
| 0:07.2 | Oh, thanks very much. |
| 0:08.3 | We do get some great guests on the show. |
| 0:10.1 | The crowd is loving this. |
| 0:12.2 | Thanks, guys. Thank you. Too kind. |
| 0:14.1 | From morning chaos to match day commentary. |
| 0:17.6 | And everything in between. |
| 0:19.0 | BBC sounds packed with personality. |
| 0:23.6 | Hello, hi, we're from the BBC. I'm in a park in central London near where I work at the BBC |
| 0:30.1 | and I'm conducting a little experiment with the general public because there's a question I want to get to the bottom of. |
| 0:38.1 | We're asking people what words come to mind when they describe someone who believes online |
| 0:42.6 | conspiracies. And would you guys mind telling us what words come to mind? |
| 0:46.8 | Say, isolated, less socialised, perhaps a little bit in a spiral online. |
| 0:54.2 | There must be a fantasist |
| 0:56.3 | because you have to be realistic in life. |
| 1:00.2 | Sad, misinformed. |
| 1:02.5 | A bit crazy, those people that kind of come up |
| 1:04.5 | with those sorts of conspiracy theorist views. |
| 1:07.2 | Crazy? |
... |
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