"The Most Famous Conspiracy Theorist in the World Is the President of the United States"

"Conspiracy theories are easy ways to tell difficult stories. They provide a storyline that makes a harsh or random world seem ordered. 'Especially if it's ordered against you,' he says. 'Since, then, none of it is your fault, which is even more comforting.'
"'That said, more extreme conspiracy theories are becoming more mainstream, which is obviously dangerous,' Fink adds. 'Conspiracy theories act in a similar way as religious stories: they give you an explanation and structure for why things are the way they are. We are in a Great Awakening of conspiracy theories, and like any massive religious movement, the same power it has to move people also is easily turned into a power to move people against other people.'"

Adrienne Lafrance at The Atlantic looks at conspiracy theories in the era of Donald Trump.