A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic Visions in Contemporary America is a 2003 non-fiction book written by Michael Barkun, then a political scientist at Syracuse University. It was published by University of California Press.
The author, Michael Barkun, is a political scientist, then working for Syracuse University. His previous book, Religion and the Racist Right: The Origins of the Christian Identity Movement, focused on extreme religion. The book was published in 2003 by University of California Press.
Along with the Internet playing a key role in introducing individuals to beliefs once consigned to the outermost fringe of American political and religious life, Barkun points to the convergence of two phenomena that influence contemporary American conspiracism:
Publishers Weekly gave the book a positive review, calling it "scholarly but fluently written and free of excessive jargon", and wrote that it "combines sociological depth with a deadpan appreciation of pop culture and raises serious questions about the replacement of democracy by conspiracy as the dominant paradigm of political action in the public mind." Paul Boyer described it as "in the tradition of studies of the cultural underground", and that Barkun "demonstrating the patience of Job, [...] only occasionally ventures a mild judgment". He concluded that "BarkunâÂÂs explorations, like the canary in the coal mine, warn us of what may lie ahead."
In a February 2004 review, writer and political blogger Daniel Pipes called the book "soberly presented" and "important", yet about a "frightening prospect" of increasing conspiracism. Ray Pratt said that "despite intelligent efforts to frame the topic conceptually and theoretically, still leaves [him] seeking answers to some bigger questions about why the phenomenon of conspiracy culture persists and even seems to be growing".