Pop Culture Conspiracy Theories

THE ILLUMINATI:

The Illuminati is an old order that started in Bavaria in 1776. They supported liberalism and free thought, and gained recruits from Masonic groups. The Illuminati was broken up by the Bavarian government because they thought it could fuel the revolutions in Europe at the time. Because of their secrecy, people believe the Illuminati is still alive. They are said to support “New World Order,” as they wrote about it years before people started finding supposed evidence.

Why people believe it: The Order’s goal is to control the government- people who believe in it say the government is controlled by lizard people.

Why the theory is fake: The Illuminati may be real and a little private, but it is by no means taking over the U.S. government. No one has ever gotten legitimate proof of members of the government being a part of the Illuminati group or being lizard people. Plus, due to the system of checks and balances, if one branch of the government tried to do anything drastic, like a global war, it would be stopped immediately by the other branches.

“I guess I could believe it. I believe people could take over the government because the government is unfair with some things.” –Lydia Zoko, 10

FAKE MOON LANDING:

Theorists who are interested in NASA and technology believe that in order to keep up with Space Race between the Soviet Union and the U.S., the U.S. developed the perfect way to get on the moon: fake it. Conspiracy theorists believe the moon landing was filmed by a government studio with props and costumes and with Buzz Aldrin and co-pilots as the stars.

Why people believe it: The U.S. couldn’t keep up with the race with the Soviet Union to get to the moon. In order to keep the prestige of the NASA organization in the public’s eye, the landing was filmed to impress both citizens of the U.S. and citizens of the Soviet Union.

Why the theory is fake: NASA has shown time and time again the technology they use to go into space, and people are allowed to see actual spaceship launches in Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

“I just think it’s too far out there because it was such a huge event that happened. I just feel like we didn’t have the software at the time to fake it.”

        -Kailee Edelen, 11

LIFE SIMULATION:

Connecting to the well-known computer game “The Sims,” this theory explains how Earth might be in a simulation. Every action and emotion people take or feel could be controlled by someone else. It’s just like how gamers play “The Sims” by telling characters exactly what to do and where to go.

Why people believe it: The reason everything is just being brought up now is because people are starting to notice “glitches.” These glitches include planes stopping in midair, celebrities pausing on live T.V. and the  2017 Oscars mistaking “Moonlight” and “La La Land.”

Why the theory is fake: Philosopher and author Nick Bostrom debunks this theory with his debate “Are We Living in a Simulation?” He explains that humans live in a physical world with physically alive people. Human bodies operate completely different than they would if people were in a simulation. For example, the human heart beats and the human brain controls the body and has a thought process.

“I believe it because I believe there are glitches in people. I get glitches all the time.” -Mia Plaza, 11

CLONING:

Ever played a game of “Spot the Difference?” Theorists play it too-  against celebrities. Clones can be used for many reasons. Celebs may become terribly sick, or even die. They believe dopplegangers take their place.

Why people believe it: “Clones” look different, like the shape of their eyes or hair. Some believe singer Britney Spears has been long gone. Going through a car crash with Justin Timberlake, some theorists believe that while Justin was left with only severe burns, Spears died. Avril Lavigne is said to have died at the start of her career, too. People who believe in cloning say she was replaced by a clone, explaining why her albums were different after 2004.

Why the theory is fake: Every famous person has bad hair days. Celebrities can cover up birthmarks with makeup and try to change things up with their look. A lot of online users claimed Kylie Jenner’s face has changed over the years- a more reasonable explanation for it would be plastic surgery or even makeup.

“Yeah, [cloning] is plausible. Scientists have done it with sheep before, why not humans?” –David Hernandez, 11

MANDELA EFFECT:

The Mandela Effect is a phenomenon where tons of people throughout the world remember one thing, usually involved in pop culture, to look, spell or sound like something, but in real life it’s completely different than their memory. People can also remember historical events, but the events never happened.

Why people believe it: It is said that the world goes through alternate universes or parallel realities and small things start to change. These changes can range from movies, to food and celebrity deaths.

Why the theory is fake: Companies like Pepsi, Coca-Cola and IHOP have come out with statements saying that they intentionally changed their logos. Specifically, Coca-Cola calls it an evolution.

“I think basic psychology explains why the Mandela Effect is fake. There’s a reason people don’t remember things. It has to do with what the brain retrieves and picks up. Everyone’s minds are different.” -Caleb Lumpkins, 11

FLAT EARTH:

The Flat Earth theory states that the earth is not a globe shape, but a flat disk. “Flat-Earthers” of the “Flat Earth Society” believe that if people travel to the north and south poles of the earth and cross the ice caps surrounding them, they will fall off the edge.

Why people believe it: The Bible portrays the earth as a flat sphere, with the sphere of sky above it and below it. Ancient Greek philosophers Thales and Democritus believed the earth was a disk.

Why the theory is fake: There’s video and photo evidence that come from space showing Earth. In these videos and photos, the earth is indeed round. Another flaw in this theory is the earth’s rotation: it’s a matter of seeing the sun every morning and the moon every night within the planet’s rotation.

“I don’t believe it’s flat because if it was flat, you would just fall off the face of the earth.” -Grace Roberts, 10

BERMUDA TRIANGLE:

The Bermuda Triangle is located between Miami, Puerto Rico and Bermuda in the Atlantic Ocean. T.V., movies and legends show it as a mysterious area that causes planes to crash, boats to wreck and supernatural events to take place there, like mysterious lights and aliens.

Why people believe it: The crash of Flight 19, a military flight, along with several other disappearances of boats and planes in the 1950s surrounded this area of the Atlantic ocean in myth.

Why the theory is fake: The Bermuda’s funky effects on technology, boats and planes are easily explained. The technology they used such as compasses and directional tools use magnetite, the metal used in magnets to be attracted to one another. Samples of rocks in the Bermuda Triangle contain this metal too, which is probable cause for the compasses of boats and planes to act up.

“I don’t believe it because I’ve been there in the Bermuda Triangle on a cruise, and I  didn’t die.”  -Brianna Bryant, 10

CROATOAN:

The Croatoan Conspiracy has been around for centuries. It’s almost a tall tale, but most consider it to be related to people going missing, dying or acting insane.

Why people believe it: There’s no real reason why most people go missing. There have been some posts saying that the word is a curse or that it’s involved with spiritual beings. Others say that it has to do with the Croatoan Island, that was later renamed Hatteras Island, located in North Carolina.

Why the theory is fake: When the Lost Colony of Roanoke went missing, they carved the word “CROATOAN” into a tree. Their leader, John White, attempted to find them twice by sailing to the Croatoan Island. He failed because of inclement weather issues, so he never actually made it to the island. It’s a possibility that the colony had been on that island after all. Their leader just never found them.

“I think there could be lots of different theories for this. Maybe they were kidnapped, but I don’t think they died.” -Emma Coser, 12