January 8, 2013, the radio program Against the Grain hosted a talk by Peter Staudenmaier from the Renewing the Anarchist Tradition conference.

What is the Matter With Conspiracy Theories?

From the assassination of JFK to a wide range of theories related to the attacks of September 11, 2001, conspiracy theories seem natural to the left. But should they be? Anarchist historian Peter Staudenmaier discusses the problems with substituting conspiracy theories for radical social critique. He draws on Sigmund Freud, Theodor Adorno, and Franz Neumann, focusing not on the details of any particular conspiracy, but on the problems with the theoretical assumptions on which they operate.

Listen to the full talk on Against the Grain here.

You can also download the talk.