On this edition of Your Call, Matthew Remski, Derek Beres, and Julian Walker, discuss their book, “Conspirituality: How New Age Conspiracy Theories Became a Health Threat."
The book builds on conversations and research they've done for their podcast, also called Conspirituality, which they launched in 2020 in response to the COVID misinformation that was running rife throughout the wellness world.
Conspirituality, a potent and insidious blend of spirituality and conspiracy theories, has existed for a century. But when the pandemic “inflamed an obsession with health,” as Remski, Beres, and Walker write, many wellness communities became petri dishes of disinformation about masks and vaccines. As the months marched on, conspiritualist influencers spun tales about 5G technology, child sex-trafficking rings, and grand political plots orchestrated by the world’s “elites” — and captured more and more followers along the way.
“At best, the conspirituality movement attacks public health efforts in times of crisis. At worst, it fronts and recruits for the fever-dream of QAnon. As the alt-right and New Age horseshoe toward each other in a blur of disinformation, clear discourse and good intentions get smothered.”
Many of the people in this movement support Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has joined the Trump campaign. How big is the 'Make America Healthy Again' movement and how is it affecting the election and public health science?
Guests:
Derek Beres, author, speaker, and founder of Siris Health
Julian Walker, writer and yoga teacher
Matthew Remski, cult survivor, researcher, and author of "Surviving Modern Yoga: Cult Dynamics, Charismatic Leaders, and What Survivors Can Teach Us"
Resources:
Salon: Trump and RFK Jr. unite to "Make America Healthy Again” by threatening to dismantle public health
Rolling Stone: Why Are So Many Popular Wellness Influencers Red-Pilled?
Time: The Conspirituality of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The New York Times: The Kind of Moms Who Fall for ‘Make America Healthy Again’
MSNBC: Trump vows to reward RFK Jr. with a job in a possible second term
