Adam Ruins Everything (2015) s02e12 Episode Script
Adam Ruins Conspiracy Theories
1 Morning, Squirtle.
Good morning, my girlfriend.
I saved you the Sunday crossword.
Aww, you're so thoughtful.
Oatmeal and soy sauce again? Mm-hmm.
I love it.
Well, everyone has their thing.
Oh, could you grab me a pencil? I could, and I would, and I would love to.
- What the - Oh! You found my moon landing literature.
Fascinating, right? Melinda, do you think the moon landing was faked? Uh, yeah, don't you? Come on, Adam, I thought you questioned everything.
I do, but this is a straight-up conspiracy theory.
What's so bad about conspiracy theories? - They can be fun.
- No, conspiracy theories are dangerous, and irrational and just plain wrong.
The moon landing definitely happened.
Oh yeah? Then prove it.
I can't believe this, but I guess I have to.
Hi, I'm Adam Conover and this is "Adam Ruins Everything.
" Okay, explain it to me one more time.
Why do you think the moon landing was faked? We're both skeptics, right? So think about it skeptically.
There's no way NASA had the technology to go to the moon.
They just filmed it on a sound stage, that would've been way easier.
Yeah, that's what conspiracy theorists think.
But the truth is faking the moon landing in 1969 actually would have been harder than just going to the moon in the first place.
Here, I'll show you.
Fake Moon Landing, take one.
All right, in this scene you're on the moon and it's real and we're fooling America and action! See? Stanley Kubrick just shot a guy jumping around on set and then they played it back on TV.
Sorry, but given the filmmaking and lighting technology at the time, that actually wouldn't have been possible.
Right, the lighting.
Look at how bright it is.
Look at these shadows.
This was clearly shot in a studio.
(LIGHTS POWERING ON) (MAN) Actually creating that lighting would've been essentially impossible in a studio.
Melinda, meet Mark Schubin.
He's a forensic motion picture analyst and an Emmy-winning light fellow of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers.
Thanks, Adam.
Using image forensics, I can tell you that the light source we see in the moon footage is actually parallel sun rays with no diffusion.
If you look at the photos from the Apollo mission, you can see that all the shadows are parallel because the light source is 93 million miles away.
(ADAM) But if you try to recreate that same photo using studio lighting, the shadows diverge.
Huh Back in the '60s, the only way to recreate that effect would be to build a wall of millions of laser lights so close together, they'd be like pixels on a TV screen.
No, no, no, no, no! This lighting is all wrong! I need lasers, Peter! Lasers! But lasers back then were big and costly, so rigging together that many of that size would've required an enormous apparatus that probably would've cost more than the entire Apollo project.
Perfect! This is great! Now we just need millions of these lasers.
Oh, uh, I don't know if that's in our budget Or the country's.
Honestly, Peter you make me furious.
(MARK) And in those days, the only lasers that were practically available were red.
Which means that color photos we have from the moon landing would have been impossible.
I can't shoot in red light! It makes this moon look like a bordello! Correction! We need millions of ultra rare, multi-colored lasers.
How do I explain I mean, that's not even a remotel (HIGH-PITCHED VOICE) "How do I explain Even a remotely" Go back to film school, Peter! Now today, we could recreate the correct lighting with computer graphics.
But in 1969, those didn't exist.
Hmm.
I've asked my colleagues in forensics and in movie production and given the parallel light rays and the detailed color photos, we just cannot think of any way they could've faked the moon landing with the technology they had at the time.
- Hmm - Thanks, Mark.
Convinced? Maybe that's what they want you to think.
What if NASA secretly created computer graphics and just kept it from us for 40 years? Well, then an astronomical number of people would've had to keep that secret.
Like over 400,000 NASA employees You want all 400,000 of us to keep our mouths shut? - Yes, please.
- Good luck.
We love gossip.
(ADAM) Scientists from Australia, Spain and England who said they independently picked up the moon landing transmission from space And why would we lie for you? You're always making fun of our Vegemite.
(ADAM) And the Russians, our Space Race rivals who had every reason to prove us wrong.
It's been 50 years, and we haven't even claimed that you faked it.
You beat us fair and square this time.
But we'll get you back (SNICKERING) in 2016! But where's the tangible proof that we went to the moon, huh? - There isn't any.
- Actually, there is.
While the astronauts were on the moon, they laid out a reflective material called retro reflectors.
So today, when an observatory on Earth aims a high-powered laser at them, it bounces right back.
Cut! Cut! Shut it down! This is impossible! Oh, no, no, no! Wait! It still could have been faked.
All you'd have to do is secretly develop computer graphics technology decades ahead of its time, convince multiple governments to lie on our behalf, and then somehow get retro reflectors to the moon without actually going there.
You could that, right? Forget it, lady.
It'd be easier to put a man on the moon.
At the end of the day, the evidence against the hoax hypothesis is so overwhelming, you just have to accept the simpler explanation.
In 1969, humans landed on the moon.
Nope.
- What? - I'm not convinced.
But I gave you facts, and an expert and a comprehensive list of citations.
I'm sorry, it just feels fishy to me.
Why are you so upset I believe this anyway? It's not like conspiracy theories hurt anyone.
Oh, no, that's not true.
Conspiracy theories can destroy lives.
We're not making it to the farmers market today, are we? No, we're not.
I can't believe you still think the moon landing was faked.
Come on, what's the big deal? Conspiracy theories are harmless.
No, they definitely aren't.
Let me tell you the story of one conspiracy theory that destroyed dozens of lives.
And to do it, we'll have to go back to the 1980s.
Aww, no rad '80s wardrobe? Sorry, how about a scrunchie? Ooh, thank you! Aww, what a cute little daycare center.
(CHILDREN GIGGLING) This daycare center is a conspiracy to abduct children and use them as blood sacrifices for Satanic rituals! Okay, well that is clearly insane.
Yep, but at the time most of America actually believed it.
There is no question that something is going on out there.
(REPORTER) Nationwide, we found that minor cases of Satanic activity light up the map.
These 12-year-old boys with their parents' consent demonstrated how they were taught to inflict pain on their enemies.
(REPORTER #2) Contemporary Satanism relies heavily on bizarre and sometimes bloody ceremonies.
The ideal sacrifice, we are told, apparently requires babies.
Oh! Oh yeah! Tuck Sorry, taped over my Jazzercise video.
It may seem silly today, but at the time a survey found that 70% of Americans believed Satanic ritual abuse was real.
But after investigating the matter for a decade, the FBI reported (CAMERAS CLICKING) (SLURPING) Baby breeding? So were the babies breeding with each other? Or Wait, no, this is crazy.
Why did so many people believe this? Well, the whole Satan-palooza started because one guy lied to get attention.
Typical.
(ADAM) In 1972, a man named Mike Warnke wrote a memoir called "The Satan Seller" about his supposed past in an evil Satanic cult.
- That's gross.
- And a lie.
In 1992, investigative journalists exposed Warnke as a total fraud.
And now he's a stand-up comedian.
What is daylight savings time? And if we're saving so much of it, - who's got it all? - (CRICKETS CHIRPING) Ugh, I think I liked his old stuff better.
Well, it was too late.
Warnke's fake memoir went viral and inspired copycats.
"Satanic cults are kidnapping our children for blood sacrifices"? And it's happening in our daycare centers! - What? - (MELINDA) Yeah, about that - Why daycare centers? - Well, daycares were a relatively new industry in the '80s and a lot of people weren't comfortable with the idea.
So when the Satanic Panic hit, they were the perfect scapegoats.
Why do you wanna take care of kids so bad, huh? So you can fatten 'em up for Beelzebub's barbeque? She's a Satanist.
No, I'm Episcopalian! Conspiracy theorists started targeting daycare workers and unfortunately, so did the police.
(SIREN WAILING) (ADAM) Of course, police couldn't find any physical evidence of Satanic rituals at daycare centers.
So instead, they relied on statements made by kids.
(SNIFFS) No goats blood, no baby's bones.
Guess we're gonna have to interrogate small children.
(ADAM) Some cops were so convinced the cults were real, they questioned kids over and over until they got the answers they wanted.
I have to go, I have to go! Well, you can go "potty" after you admit your teacher's a Satanist, Anne.
Okay, she worships the devil and then I saw her kissing the devil and she got meetings with the devil! - I knew it, you freak! - No, no, no! Come on, let's go! Wait, I'm an Episcopalian! This practice quickly spun out of control and childcare providers across the country were falsely accused of Satanic abuse.
In total, more than 70 people were convicted for horrific crimes they didn't commit.
- 70? - They were later exonerated, but not before some had spent more than 20 years in prison.
They lost their homes, their businesses, their freedom, all because of one conspiracy theory that was never even remotely true.
- That's terrible.
- Yeah, it is.
The stark truth is this old-fashioned witch hunt actually happened in America just a handful of years ago.
We'd all love to believe that conspiracy theories are just harmless ideas held by a few silly kooks.
But if we're not careful, they can take over the minds of the entire nation and lead us to persecute our own fellow citizens.
You're right.
Ideas can really hurt people.
We have to be sure what we believe is true.
Good.
I'm so glad that y And I'm not sure we landed on the moon.
Really? Still? Adam, let it go.
I'm just too skeptical and rational to believe it.
No, you don't believe it because you're just the victim of the human brain's faulty wiring.
And that's what makes everyone susceptible to conspiracy theories.
Even you.
I'm so sorry.
Adam, just drop it.
You're not gonna convince me the moon landing wasn't faked.
I've thought it through, and it's the most rational conclusion.
No, I'm afraid it isn't.
Conspiracy theories feel like they're rational, but that's because our brains are hardwired in a way that causes us to make cognitive mistakes.
Humans are generally very good at understanding the world around us.
We look for cause and effect, we seek out patterns, and we ask why events happened and who caused them.
But those same impulses are also subject to cognitive biases that can cause us to come up with incorrect theories about the world.
For example It makes us uncomfortable when events are random so we tend to look for patterns where they don't exist.
Place your bets.
Huh, it's been red the last ten times.
We're due for a black! Put it all on black, baby! - Red.
- Ah, Spritz! We're also subject to what's called intentionality bias.
That means when something negative happens to us, even when it's an accident, we tend to assume that someone did it intentionally.
I'm sorry, it got damaged in shipping.
The postal service did this on purpose because they want me to pay extra for mail insurance! I'm onto your scheme! On top of this, we're also victim to proportionality bias.
Our brains crave a balance of cause and effect so when an event is huge and shocking, we need the cause to be just as huge and shocking.
Breaking news! A Malaysian plane carrying over 200 passengers has inexplicably gone lost at sea! What? I can't live in a world where planes just malfunction and disappear for no reason! There's gotta be something bigger behind it! When major events are truly random, it unnerves us.
And our cognitive biases start to take over.
We begin to see patterns, causes and effects, and shadowy actors where none exist.
Engine failure is too simple.
Maybe it got sucked into a black hole put there by the US government working with Elvis! And when we're afraid the effect intensifies.
Research suggests that when people feel threatened or out of control, they become more prone to conspiratorial thinking.
And there's evidence that's why both Republicans and Democrats become more susceptible to conspiracy theories when their party loses power.
How deep does this thing go? And that's why conspiracy theories tend to form around large, terrifying tragedies.
For example when JFK was assassinated, it was such a random and horrific event, people couldn't believe it was the work of just one man.
(GASPS) The president was killed? It couldn't have been just one crazy guy.
There must be more to it! But when Ronald Reagan was shot, there were no prominent conspiracy theories.
Why? Because Reagan didn't die.
This made the event less shocking, which made it easier to accept the consensus explanation.
Proportionality bias in action.
Huh, the president was mildly injured.
It sounds like it was just one crazy guy and there's nothing more to it.
These biases are a natural part of human cognition, which means conspiratorial thinking isn't just for a few crazies in tinfoil hats.
We're all subject to it.
51% of Americans still believe in some JFK conspiracy theory.
Take position on the grassy knoll.
And over a fifth of Americans believe a UFO crashed at Roswell.
(BOTH) I knew they were real! The fact is, there's a little conspiracy theorist in all of us.
What if Melinda's right? Maybe the moon landing was faked and my show's just being controlled by the Illuminati! But we have to resist that voice, - because if we don't - No! I'm the only one that sees through the looking glass, man! Wake up, sheeple! The wool is being pulled over your eyes and they're knitting a sweater out your brain.
Whew, looks like I'm gonna need some help.
- Hey, Adam.
- (GASPS) Lizard-person! No, Melinda, this is Dr.
Dan Jolley.
He's a lecturer at Staffordshire University in the UK and an expert, in the psychology of conspiracy theories.
Melinda, it's true.
We're all prone to conspiratorial thinking.
And the danger is that kind of thinking can erode your trust in institutions and the people around you.
For example, if you think the government is all plots and schemes, you'll feel like nothing you do will make a difference.
So you're less likely to vote.
Elections are all controlled by the Bilderbergers.
And exposure to conspiracy theories can also make you less likely to trust basic science.
- Global warming's a hoax.
- And you'll be less likely to rely on proven medical treatments in favor of hoax remedies.
That's a Masonic symbol! I know it is.
The truth is, conspiratorial thinking actually reduces your power to change the world for the better.
You begin to doubt everyone.
Your friends, your family, even trusted sources like the newspaper.
And that's the greatest irony of all.
I wonder if they're coming back.
Now the truth is there are real people in power who are trying to harm us for their benefit.
But they're not some shadowy cabal controlling our brains from a pyramid.
Real conspiracies are things like a California labor union that secretly misappropriated funds, uncovered by Paul Pringle in the "LA Times.
" Or how regulators in Florida kept bad insurers open so the state wouldn't have to pay, as reported on by Paige St.
John of the "Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
" Or take any of the marketing conspiracies we've talked about on our show which were originally uncovered by scholars and journalists.
Huh It is so important to think critically and question common wisdom.
But if you fall victim to these insidious thought patterns and start distrusting everyone and everything, you could end up disbelieving the hardworking people who expose actual conspiracies.
And that takes you further from the truth.
Not closer to it.
You know what? I never thought about it like that.
You're right.
I don't want to live in a world where I don't trust anything.
So, okay.
I'm not gonna believe in any of those conspiracy theories.
Oh, Melinda, I'm so happy to hear that.
Just the moon landing.
What? But I did the whole episode! That's how it's supposed to work! Didn't I change the way you see everything? No.
This has never happened before! Is my whole show a lie? Am I the one being ruined? (WHEEZING) Okay, just calm down and let's talk this through.
Oh, boy.
Hello, everybody, we are here behind the scenes on "Adam Ruins Everything.
" I am with Dr.
Dan Jolley because I have way more questions for him about his work.
Thanks for the invite, it's so exciting to be here and talk to you and your audience.
Now, I understand from what you've told me and I find this fascinating, that people who believe in conspiracy theories can actually believe in two that contradict each other.
It may sound really wacky when you first say it like that, but it's all based around your beliefs.
If your central belief is that maybe you distrust the government, it doesn't necessarily matter that the conspiracy theories are contradictory as long as they support that central belief.
Earlier on our show, we talk about how, well, if NASA faked the moon landing, the theory there is that, oh, they didn't have the technology, they weren't able to do it.
But then if you require that, they actually have amazing filmmaking faking technology.
Those two ideas conflict.
Either they Yeah.
Have a high level of technology or they don't, but if you're distrustful of the government, maybe you'll overlook that contradiction Absolutely.
As long as it makes sense in the middle, you can endorse multiple different things.
People ask me sometimes, I've actually gotten this question, my family member or a loved one has really gone down the rabbit hole of conspiracy theories and they're saying crazy stuff.
How do I get through to them? How do I talk to that family member? I think the first thing to really appreciate is why that person may believe in that conspiracy theory.
That person may be just thinking about their viewpoint, and not necessarily thinking about the other facts.
So you could maybe sort of ask them questions - Rather than saying, - Yeah.
"Hey, this is wrong.
Don't believe this.
" Instead you could say, "Hey, have you thought about looking into the author of this piece, who's running this website?" I like that a lot So that actually makes sense to me.
It's very much a trial and error at this point.
It's still kind of It's a new field, understanding how to combat this.
Because only a few years ago, we thought they were harmless.
Now more research and others are showing that actually they're quite harmful.
It's thinking of, "What can we do?" So a bit of research that I have is that if you give someone a counter-argument So for example, the factual information about vaccines First, followed by the conspiracy account, this appears to give someone a shield against the conspiracy theory.
It seems to improve their intentions to vaccinate.
However, if you give someone the conspiracy theory first, followed by that factual information, it doesn't appear to work.
Huh, so it's If you If someone hears the conspiracy theory first and then the correction, they maybe still have the conspiracy theory bouncing around in their heads.
Absolutely.
Once it's established, it takes over our belief system.
And it's potentially quite resistant to correction.
And research has shown that even just reading about conspiracy theories can change the way you think without you being aware.
Wow.
It's showing the hidden impact of conspiracy theories.
It often seems like the people who are promoting the conspiracy theories make the movies that are fun to watch or the YouTube videos or they give the inflammatory talks.
And the people giving the true information need to step up and make our information more fun to experience.
Absolutely.
And that potentially is one way forward 'cause it is difficult, really, to kind of get that information across in an accessible, engaging, but accurate way.
So even your show is a perfect example - of trying to do that - We do our best.
Getting across the psychology and all the kind of biases as a way to make it accessible to the audience.
Well, thank you so much for coming on the show, Dan.
Well, thank you for inviting me, it's been great.
And now, more "Adam Ruins Everything.
" (HEAVY BREATHING) Here, breathe into this.
Actually most studies advise against using a paper bag to treat hyperventilation.
Adam, why do you do this? Why can't you just let it go one time? I don't believe in the moon landing.
So what if I'm wrong? Because then you won't know the truth.
And it's always better to know.
Otherwise you're just going through life being wrong.
Adam, maybe everything you said is true.
But I'm not just some person on your show.
I'm your girlfriend.
Sometimes you're gonna think I'm wrong, and you're just gonna have to be okay with that.
But I've never done that before.
I don't even know if I can.
I mean, you believe the moon landing was faked! And you eat oatmeal with soy sauce on it.
Same thing.
I don't think it is.
Adam, I've tried it.
It is.
Hey, can you do this? Can you let it go? Okay.
I'll try.
For you.
Great, thank you.
Now I gotta check my horoscope.
Mercury's in retrograde! Hello? Hello? Can anyone help me? I seem to be stuck in this woman's brain.
Wow, she spends a lot of time thinking about fountains.
Good morning, my girlfriend.
I saved you the Sunday crossword.
Aww, you're so thoughtful.
Oatmeal and soy sauce again? Mm-hmm.
I love it.
Well, everyone has their thing.
Oh, could you grab me a pencil? I could, and I would, and I would love to.
- What the - Oh! You found my moon landing literature.
Fascinating, right? Melinda, do you think the moon landing was faked? Uh, yeah, don't you? Come on, Adam, I thought you questioned everything.
I do, but this is a straight-up conspiracy theory.
What's so bad about conspiracy theories? - They can be fun.
- No, conspiracy theories are dangerous, and irrational and just plain wrong.
The moon landing definitely happened.
Oh yeah? Then prove it.
I can't believe this, but I guess I have to.
Hi, I'm Adam Conover and this is "Adam Ruins Everything.
" Okay, explain it to me one more time.
Why do you think the moon landing was faked? We're both skeptics, right? So think about it skeptically.
There's no way NASA had the technology to go to the moon.
They just filmed it on a sound stage, that would've been way easier.
Yeah, that's what conspiracy theorists think.
But the truth is faking the moon landing in 1969 actually would have been harder than just going to the moon in the first place.
Here, I'll show you.
Fake Moon Landing, take one.
All right, in this scene you're on the moon and it's real and we're fooling America and action! See? Stanley Kubrick just shot a guy jumping around on set and then they played it back on TV.
Sorry, but given the filmmaking and lighting technology at the time, that actually wouldn't have been possible.
Right, the lighting.
Look at how bright it is.
Look at these shadows.
This was clearly shot in a studio.
(LIGHTS POWERING ON) (MAN) Actually creating that lighting would've been essentially impossible in a studio.
Melinda, meet Mark Schubin.
He's a forensic motion picture analyst and an Emmy-winning light fellow of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers.
Thanks, Adam.
Using image forensics, I can tell you that the light source we see in the moon footage is actually parallel sun rays with no diffusion.
If you look at the photos from the Apollo mission, you can see that all the shadows are parallel because the light source is 93 million miles away.
(ADAM) But if you try to recreate that same photo using studio lighting, the shadows diverge.
Huh Back in the '60s, the only way to recreate that effect would be to build a wall of millions of laser lights so close together, they'd be like pixels on a TV screen.
No, no, no, no, no! This lighting is all wrong! I need lasers, Peter! Lasers! But lasers back then were big and costly, so rigging together that many of that size would've required an enormous apparatus that probably would've cost more than the entire Apollo project.
Perfect! This is great! Now we just need millions of these lasers.
Oh, uh, I don't know if that's in our budget Or the country's.
Honestly, Peter you make me furious.
(MARK) And in those days, the only lasers that were practically available were red.
Which means that color photos we have from the moon landing would have been impossible.
I can't shoot in red light! It makes this moon look like a bordello! Correction! We need millions of ultra rare, multi-colored lasers.
How do I explain I mean, that's not even a remotel (HIGH-PITCHED VOICE) "How do I explain Even a remotely" Go back to film school, Peter! Now today, we could recreate the correct lighting with computer graphics.
But in 1969, those didn't exist.
Hmm.
I've asked my colleagues in forensics and in movie production and given the parallel light rays and the detailed color photos, we just cannot think of any way they could've faked the moon landing with the technology they had at the time.
- Hmm - Thanks, Mark.
Convinced? Maybe that's what they want you to think.
What if NASA secretly created computer graphics and just kept it from us for 40 years? Well, then an astronomical number of people would've had to keep that secret.
Like over 400,000 NASA employees You want all 400,000 of us to keep our mouths shut? - Yes, please.
- Good luck.
We love gossip.
(ADAM) Scientists from Australia, Spain and England who said they independently picked up the moon landing transmission from space And why would we lie for you? You're always making fun of our Vegemite.
(ADAM) And the Russians, our Space Race rivals who had every reason to prove us wrong.
It's been 50 years, and we haven't even claimed that you faked it.
You beat us fair and square this time.
But we'll get you back (SNICKERING) in 2016! But where's the tangible proof that we went to the moon, huh? - There isn't any.
- Actually, there is.
While the astronauts were on the moon, they laid out a reflective material called retro reflectors.
So today, when an observatory on Earth aims a high-powered laser at them, it bounces right back.
Cut! Cut! Shut it down! This is impossible! Oh, no, no, no! Wait! It still could have been faked.
All you'd have to do is secretly develop computer graphics technology decades ahead of its time, convince multiple governments to lie on our behalf, and then somehow get retro reflectors to the moon without actually going there.
You could that, right? Forget it, lady.
It'd be easier to put a man on the moon.
At the end of the day, the evidence against the hoax hypothesis is so overwhelming, you just have to accept the simpler explanation.
In 1969, humans landed on the moon.
Nope.
- What? - I'm not convinced.
But I gave you facts, and an expert and a comprehensive list of citations.
I'm sorry, it just feels fishy to me.
Why are you so upset I believe this anyway? It's not like conspiracy theories hurt anyone.
Oh, no, that's not true.
Conspiracy theories can destroy lives.
We're not making it to the farmers market today, are we? No, we're not.
I can't believe you still think the moon landing was faked.
Come on, what's the big deal? Conspiracy theories are harmless.
No, they definitely aren't.
Let me tell you the story of one conspiracy theory that destroyed dozens of lives.
And to do it, we'll have to go back to the 1980s.
Aww, no rad '80s wardrobe? Sorry, how about a scrunchie? Ooh, thank you! Aww, what a cute little daycare center.
(CHILDREN GIGGLING) This daycare center is a conspiracy to abduct children and use them as blood sacrifices for Satanic rituals! Okay, well that is clearly insane.
Yep, but at the time most of America actually believed it.
There is no question that something is going on out there.
(REPORTER) Nationwide, we found that minor cases of Satanic activity light up the map.
These 12-year-old boys with their parents' consent demonstrated how they were taught to inflict pain on their enemies.
(REPORTER #2) Contemporary Satanism relies heavily on bizarre and sometimes bloody ceremonies.
The ideal sacrifice, we are told, apparently requires babies.
Oh! Oh yeah! Tuck Sorry, taped over my Jazzercise video.
It may seem silly today, but at the time a survey found that 70% of Americans believed Satanic ritual abuse was real.
But after investigating the matter for a decade, the FBI reported (CAMERAS CLICKING) (SLURPING) Baby breeding? So were the babies breeding with each other? Or Wait, no, this is crazy.
Why did so many people believe this? Well, the whole Satan-palooza started because one guy lied to get attention.
Typical.
(ADAM) In 1972, a man named Mike Warnke wrote a memoir called "The Satan Seller" about his supposed past in an evil Satanic cult.
- That's gross.
- And a lie.
In 1992, investigative journalists exposed Warnke as a total fraud.
And now he's a stand-up comedian.
What is daylight savings time? And if we're saving so much of it, - who's got it all? - (CRICKETS CHIRPING) Ugh, I think I liked his old stuff better.
Well, it was too late.
Warnke's fake memoir went viral and inspired copycats.
"Satanic cults are kidnapping our children for blood sacrifices"? And it's happening in our daycare centers! - What? - (MELINDA) Yeah, about that - Why daycare centers? - Well, daycares were a relatively new industry in the '80s and a lot of people weren't comfortable with the idea.
So when the Satanic Panic hit, they were the perfect scapegoats.
Why do you wanna take care of kids so bad, huh? So you can fatten 'em up for Beelzebub's barbeque? She's a Satanist.
No, I'm Episcopalian! Conspiracy theorists started targeting daycare workers and unfortunately, so did the police.
(SIREN WAILING) (ADAM) Of course, police couldn't find any physical evidence of Satanic rituals at daycare centers.
So instead, they relied on statements made by kids.
(SNIFFS) No goats blood, no baby's bones.
Guess we're gonna have to interrogate small children.
(ADAM) Some cops were so convinced the cults were real, they questioned kids over and over until they got the answers they wanted.
I have to go, I have to go! Well, you can go "potty" after you admit your teacher's a Satanist, Anne.
Okay, she worships the devil and then I saw her kissing the devil and she got meetings with the devil! - I knew it, you freak! - No, no, no! Come on, let's go! Wait, I'm an Episcopalian! This practice quickly spun out of control and childcare providers across the country were falsely accused of Satanic abuse.
In total, more than 70 people were convicted for horrific crimes they didn't commit.
- 70? - They were later exonerated, but not before some had spent more than 20 years in prison.
They lost their homes, their businesses, their freedom, all because of one conspiracy theory that was never even remotely true.
- That's terrible.
- Yeah, it is.
The stark truth is this old-fashioned witch hunt actually happened in America just a handful of years ago.
We'd all love to believe that conspiracy theories are just harmless ideas held by a few silly kooks.
But if we're not careful, they can take over the minds of the entire nation and lead us to persecute our own fellow citizens.
You're right.
Ideas can really hurt people.
We have to be sure what we believe is true.
Good.
I'm so glad that y And I'm not sure we landed on the moon.
Really? Still? Adam, let it go.
I'm just too skeptical and rational to believe it.
No, you don't believe it because you're just the victim of the human brain's faulty wiring.
And that's what makes everyone susceptible to conspiracy theories.
Even you.
I'm so sorry.
Adam, just drop it.
You're not gonna convince me the moon landing wasn't faked.
I've thought it through, and it's the most rational conclusion.
No, I'm afraid it isn't.
Conspiracy theories feel like they're rational, but that's because our brains are hardwired in a way that causes us to make cognitive mistakes.
Humans are generally very good at understanding the world around us.
We look for cause and effect, we seek out patterns, and we ask why events happened and who caused them.
But those same impulses are also subject to cognitive biases that can cause us to come up with incorrect theories about the world.
For example It makes us uncomfortable when events are random so we tend to look for patterns where they don't exist.
Place your bets.
Huh, it's been red the last ten times.
We're due for a black! Put it all on black, baby! - Red.
- Ah, Spritz! We're also subject to what's called intentionality bias.
That means when something negative happens to us, even when it's an accident, we tend to assume that someone did it intentionally.
I'm sorry, it got damaged in shipping.
The postal service did this on purpose because they want me to pay extra for mail insurance! I'm onto your scheme! On top of this, we're also victim to proportionality bias.
Our brains crave a balance of cause and effect so when an event is huge and shocking, we need the cause to be just as huge and shocking.
Breaking news! A Malaysian plane carrying over 200 passengers has inexplicably gone lost at sea! What? I can't live in a world where planes just malfunction and disappear for no reason! There's gotta be something bigger behind it! When major events are truly random, it unnerves us.
And our cognitive biases start to take over.
We begin to see patterns, causes and effects, and shadowy actors where none exist.
Engine failure is too simple.
Maybe it got sucked into a black hole put there by the US government working with Elvis! And when we're afraid the effect intensifies.
Research suggests that when people feel threatened or out of control, they become more prone to conspiratorial thinking.
And there's evidence that's why both Republicans and Democrats become more susceptible to conspiracy theories when their party loses power.
How deep does this thing go? And that's why conspiracy theories tend to form around large, terrifying tragedies.
For example when JFK was assassinated, it was such a random and horrific event, people couldn't believe it was the work of just one man.
(GASPS) The president was killed? It couldn't have been just one crazy guy.
There must be more to it! But when Ronald Reagan was shot, there were no prominent conspiracy theories.
Why? Because Reagan didn't die.
This made the event less shocking, which made it easier to accept the consensus explanation.
Proportionality bias in action.
Huh, the president was mildly injured.
It sounds like it was just one crazy guy and there's nothing more to it.
These biases are a natural part of human cognition, which means conspiratorial thinking isn't just for a few crazies in tinfoil hats.
We're all subject to it.
51% of Americans still believe in some JFK conspiracy theory.
Take position on the grassy knoll.
And over a fifth of Americans believe a UFO crashed at Roswell.
(BOTH) I knew they were real! The fact is, there's a little conspiracy theorist in all of us.
What if Melinda's right? Maybe the moon landing was faked and my show's just being controlled by the Illuminati! But we have to resist that voice, - because if we don't - No! I'm the only one that sees through the looking glass, man! Wake up, sheeple! The wool is being pulled over your eyes and they're knitting a sweater out your brain.
Whew, looks like I'm gonna need some help.
- Hey, Adam.
- (GASPS) Lizard-person! No, Melinda, this is Dr.
Dan Jolley.
He's a lecturer at Staffordshire University in the UK and an expert, in the psychology of conspiracy theories.
Melinda, it's true.
We're all prone to conspiratorial thinking.
And the danger is that kind of thinking can erode your trust in institutions and the people around you.
For example, if you think the government is all plots and schemes, you'll feel like nothing you do will make a difference.
So you're less likely to vote.
Elections are all controlled by the Bilderbergers.
And exposure to conspiracy theories can also make you less likely to trust basic science.
- Global warming's a hoax.
- And you'll be less likely to rely on proven medical treatments in favor of hoax remedies.
That's a Masonic symbol! I know it is.
The truth is, conspiratorial thinking actually reduces your power to change the world for the better.
You begin to doubt everyone.
Your friends, your family, even trusted sources like the newspaper.
And that's the greatest irony of all.
I wonder if they're coming back.
Now the truth is there are real people in power who are trying to harm us for their benefit.
But they're not some shadowy cabal controlling our brains from a pyramid.
Real conspiracies are things like a California labor union that secretly misappropriated funds, uncovered by Paul Pringle in the "LA Times.
" Or how regulators in Florida kept bad insurers open so the state wouldn't have to pay, as reported on by Paige St.
John of the "Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
" Or take any of the marketing conspiracies we've talked about on our show which were originally uncovered by scholars and journalists.
Huh It is so important to think critically and question common wisdom.
But if you fall victim to these insidious thought patterns and start distrusting everyone and everything, you could end up disbelieving the hardworking people who expose actual conspiracies.
And that takes you further from the truth.
Not closer to it.
You know what? I never thought about it like that.
You're right.
I don't want to live in a world where I don't trust anything.
So, okay.
I'm not gonna believe in any of those conspiracy theories.
Oh, Melinda, I'm so happy to hear that.
Just the moon landing.
What? But I did the whole episode! That's how it's supposed to work! Didn't I change the way you see everything? No.
This has never happened before! Is my whole show a lie? Am I the one being ruined? (WHEEZING) Okay, just calm down and let's talk this through.
Oh, boy.
Hello, everybody, we are here behind the scenes on "Adam Ruins Everything.
" I am with Dr.
Dan Jolley because I have way more questions for him about his work.
Thanks for the invite, it's so exciting to be here and talk to you and your audience.
Now, I understand from what you've told me and I find this fascinating, that people who believe in conspiracy theories can actually believe in two that contradict each other.
It may sound really wacky when you first say it like that, but it's all based around your beliefs.
If your central belief is that maybe you distrust the government, it doesn't necessarily matter that the conspiracy theories are contradictory as long as they support that central belief.
Earlier on our show, we talk about how, well, if NASA faked the moon landing, the theory there is that, oh, they didn't have the technology, they weren't able to do it.
But then if you require that, they actually have amazing filmmaking faking technology.
Those two ideas conflict.
Either they Yeah.
Have a high level of technology or they don't, but if you're distrustful of the government, maybe you'll overlook that contradiction Absolutely.
As long as it makes sense in the middle, you can endorse multiple different things.
People ask me sometimes, I've actually gotten this question, my family member or a loved one has really gone down the rabbit hole of conspiracy theories and they're saying crazy stuff.
How do I get through to them? How do I talk to that family member? I think the first thing to really appreciate is why that person may believe in that conspiracy theory.
That person may be just thinking about their viewpoint, and not necessarily thinking about the other facts.
So you could maybe sort of ask them questions - Rather than saying, - Yeah.
"Hey, this is wrong.
Don't believe this.
" Instead you could say, "Hey, have you thought about looking into the author of this piece, who's running this website?" I like that a lot So that actually makes sense to me.
It's very much a trial and error at this point.
It's still kind of It's a new field, understanding how to combat this.
Because only a few years ago, we thought they were harmless.
Now more research and others are showing that actually they're quite harmful.
It's thinking of, "What can we do?" So a bit of research that I have is that if you give someone a counter-argument So for example, the factual information about vaccines First, followed by the conspiracy account, this appears to give someone a shield against the conspiracy theory.
It seems to improve their intentions to vaccinate.
However, if you give someone the conspiracy theory first, followed by that factual information, it doesn't appear to work.
Huh, so it's If you If someone hears the conspiracy theory first and then the correction, they maybe still have the conspiracy theory bouncing around in their heads.
Absolutely.
Once it's established, it takes over our belief system.
And it's potentially quite resistant to correction.
And research has shown that even just reading about conspiracy theories can change the way you think without you being aware.
Wow.
It's showing the hidden impact of conspiracy theories.
It often seems like the people who are promoting the conspiracy theories make the movies that are fun to watch or the YouTube videos or they give the inflammatory talks.
And the people giving the true information need to step up and make our information more fun to experience.
Absolutely.
And that potentially is one way forward 'cause it is difficult, really, to kind of get that information across in an accessible, engaging, but accurate way.
So even your show is a perfect example - of trying to do that - We do our best.
Getting across the psychology and all the kind of biases as a way to make it accessible to the audience.
Well, thank you so much for coming on the show, Dan.
Well, thank you for inviting me, it's been great.
And now, more "Adam Ruins Everything.
" (HEAVY BREATHING) Here, breathe into this.
Actually most studies advise against using a paper bag to treat hyperventilation.
Adam, why do you do this? Why can't you just let it go one time? I don't believe in the moon landing.
So what if I'm wrong? Because then you won't know the truth.
And it's always better to know.
Otherwise you're just going through life being wrong.
Adam, maybe everything you said is true.
But I'm not just some person on your show.
I'm your girlfriend.
Sometimes you're gonna think I'm wrong, and you're just gonna have to be okay with that.
But I've never done that before.
I don't even know if I can.
I mean, you believe the moon landing was faked! And you eat oatmeal with soy sauce on it.
Same thing.
I don't think it is.
Adam, I've tried it.
It is.
Hey, can you do this? Can you let it go? Okay.
I'll try.
For you.
Great, thank you.
Now I gotta check my horoscope.
Mercury's in retrograde! Hello? Hello? Can anyone help me? I seem to be stuck in this woman's brain.
Wow, she spends a lot of time thinking about fountains.