Amicus Curiae lecture series to kick off with author of ‘Conspiracy Theories: A Primer’ – Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine

Marshall University’s Amicus Curiae Lecture Series on Constitutional Democracy is kicking off the 2022 fall semester and the 10th season with Dr. Joseph Uscinski, who will present “Getting Conspiracy Theories Right,” at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 1. The lecture will take place in the Brad D. Smith Foundation Hall on Marshall’s Huntington campus.

Uscinski is the co-author of American Conspiracy Theories, published in 2014; the editor of Conspiracy Theories and the People Who Believe Them, published in 2018; and the author of a textbook, Conspiracy Theories: A Primer. Uscinski is a professor of political science at the University of Miami. He studies public opinion and mass media, focusing on conspiracy theories and related misinformation.

“I am very excited to welcome Joseph Uscinski to our lecture series,” said Patricia Proctor, director of the Simon Perry Center for Constitutional Democracy, which sponsors the Amicus Curiae series. “I first learned of him several years ago by reading interviews with him by prominent national publications that often turn to him to analyze the widespread dissemination and impact of conspiracy theories and why people believe them. His work is based on scrupulous research and is quite illuminating.”

Widely considered an expert on conspiracy theories, how they work and how they originate, Uscinski has made multiple appearances across media platforms. Uscinski’s research has appeared in Journal of Politics, Political Research Quarterly and Critical Review, along with other scholarly sources and popular media.

Uscinski will outline how conspiracy theories are started and how they continue to grow and flourish within sections of our political society.

“This issue of conspiracy theories is one of the most impactful issues prevalent in our democracy right now and I look forward to the opportunity to learn more about it from Dr. Uscinski,” Proctor said. “As we resume the lecture series after a two-year hiatus, I am glad we are doing so with a topic that should be a concern for all who value truth and reason in our national civic discourse.”

Uscinski first book, The People’s News: Media, Politics and the Demands of Capitalism, was published in 2014 by New York University Press.  Uscinski also regularly publishes in popular media including The Atlantic and The Washington Post. He has been interviewed by national and international publications more than 1,000 times.

The lecture series is sponsored by Marshall’s Simon Perry Center for Constitutional Democracy with support from the West Virginia Humanities Council and will be aired at a later date on West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s West Virginia Channel.