ABSTRACT
Contemporary conspiracy theories are generally formulated about modern institutions such as the state, science, industries, capitalism and the ‘power elite’ (Melley 2000; Knight 2000; Aupers 2012; Boltanski 2014). Mass media play a particular role in this: From established newspapers to film, documentaries or news – mass media invoke distrust since they are powerful, omnipresent and highly influential in what we think, see and experience. Eva Horn argues in this respect: ‘As media enable and inform our perception and our communication, as they surreptitiously intervene in almost every aspect of everyday life, they represent perfect tools of manipulation and thus ideal candidates for any kind of conspiratorial suspicion’ (Horn 2008: 128).
