Conspiratorial thinking, mis- and disinformation, and anti-intellectualism are at dangerous levels. With traditional media on the way out, social media algorithms siloing users into personal echo chambers, and generative AI muddying the waters, it’s getting harder and harder to tell news from nonsense. Our ability to think critically about the world around us is being undermined by these forces and many others, which are being used to sow confusion, disrupt democracy, damage the environment, and degrade social well-being.

With clear-eyed reasoning and examples that are equal parts fascinating and shocking, Uncover Up: How to Think Clearly in an Age of Conspiracies offers sociological, historical, philosophical, and literary perspectives on conspiracy theories, allowing us to cut through the fog of misinformation. This guide to critical thinking helps us recognize when, how, and why a piece of dubious media is able to shape our worldview or secure our support, ultimately showing us how to critically approach the deluge of questionable claims we encounter every day.