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How do conspiracies happen, how can historians use them to understand more about the past, and where do they begin and cease to be relevant to the study of history? 

Conspiracy and Democracy

Jonathan Haslam, Professor of the History of International Relations
The history of Russia’s Secret Services from the Revolution to the Fall of the Wall: the Military Intelligence, the codes and ciphers and the KGB. 

Near and Distant Neighbours 1917–1989

Dr Girard will describe how the “red scare” greatly varied depending on the period, the political affiliation or the country; and the main long-lasting conspiracy theory actually concerned the threat of the far-right and, to a certain extent, of the government itself. 

Conspiracy Theories in France and Italy during the Cold War and Decolonization

A Public Lecture by Conspiracy & Democracy Visiting Fellow Professor Cornel Zwierlein (Ruhr-Universität Bochum). 

It seems as if Conspiracy Theories are a particularly modern phenomenon. By relying on some examples and cases, this lecture gives a long-term overview of what they looked like and when they appeared. We possess full-fledged conspiracy theory texts only since the 16th century. While examples may have existed already in Antiquity, we do not possess any textual evidence for them. The lecture tries to develop an explanation for why conspiracy theories emerged only at this point in European history. In order to do so, it is necessary to distinguish between conjurations, any kind of revolts, conspiracies and conspiracy theories. We will show how their coming into being is linked to the emergence of the ‘Information Public Sphere’, as a by-product of the early inter-state diplomatic communication (which has, first, little to do with the later famous ‘Enlightenment Public Sphere’), and how those narratives filled in where knowledge gaps existed. In a hasty run through history, we will distinguish several phases or ‘epochs’ of Conspiracy (theory) communication. Finally, we will ask how Democracy comes in: ‘Real’ democracies were practiced rather nowhere after Ancient Europe, and were rare even during the 19th century. So, in pre-modern times, often it was ‘democracy’ or ‘democrats’ that were ‘conspiring’ against the good order of the commonwealth – not vice versa.

Cornel Zwierlein is Associate Professor at the University of Bochum, Germany. Currently, he is on leave as a Visiting Fellow at Harvard University. His research focuses on the intersection of political, religious and scientific knowledge. Cornel is the author of ‘Discorso und Lex Dei die Entstehung neuer Denkrahmen im 16. Jahrhundert und die Wahrnehmung der französischen Religionskriege in Italien und Deutschland’ (Göttingen, 2006), and, more recently, ‘Der gezähmte Prometheus. Feuer und Sicherheit zwischen Früher Neuzeit und Moderne’ (Göttingen, 2011). 

The Early Modern Foundations of Conspiracy & Democracy

Mr Dwight Smith Jr will speak about ‘The Mafia & Conspiracy’. Mr Smith’s paper will explore how the idea of the mafia and conspiracy emerged in America, developed and became entangled in very different contexts.

Mr Smith will describe the ideas, experiences, and events through which his book, ‘The Mafia Mystique’ (1975), took shape; the consequences of those events that have led to contemporary public understanding and use of ‘Mafia’ in the United States; and the consequences in a democracy of strategies that were developed for organized crime control. 

The Mafia & Conspiracy

Episode 4 - The London Brain Project
What do you get with you put a bunch of brilliant neuroscientists and an artist in one room? The London Brain Project.  Michelle Downes, Georgia Pitts and Louise Croft explain to host Steve Cross how their programmes are helping children deal with their medical conditions, Plus discuss the highs and lows of getting funding.

This is an episode of the podcast series 'Clever people doing things'. Produced by UCL Public and Cultural Engagement, the five episodes are based on their training and funding project, 'Train and Engage', following the stories of researchers and their public engagement work.

www.ucl.ac.uk/public-engagement

Clever people doing things podcast: Episode 4 - The London Brain Project

Since the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO, last year, the U.S. has seen the growth of a new social movement that has focused national attention on policing tactics, criminal justice, and the continued health and social inequalities confronting black Americans today. Legislation that would require states to notify the U.S. Justice Department of all police shootings, fatal and non-fatal, has been introduced. President Obama made an historic visit to a federal prison to draw attention to the need for criminal justice reform. This Forum explored these efforts and other policy shifts over the past year, looking at what has — or has not — occurred in addressing these serious problems facing black Americans in today’s policing policies, the operation of the criminal justice system, and the continued presence of inequitable health and social conditions.
This discussion built upon a February 2015 Forum production that examined the intersection of race with policing practices, neighborhood environments, educational and employment opportunities, and other factors that impact health. We reconvened that panel of public health, social justice and legal experts to further explore their recommendations and the ongoing challenges of creating policy change.

This event was presented October 1, 2015 in Collaboration with PRI’s The World & WGBH.

Watch the entire series from The Forum at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health at www.ForumHSPH.org.

Revisiting Race, Criminal Justice and Health: What Has — and Has Not Changed — in the U.S.

Speaker(s): Mark Canning, Dr Jurgen Haacke, Shibani Mahtani | In 2010 the world saw in Myanmar both relief and opportunity when - thirteen years after Myanmar achieved ASEAN membership - political and economic reforms began, shifting Myanmar away from isolationist military rule towards civilian government. Even while the depth and degree of these reforms remain unclear, Myanmar, one of Southeast Asia's poorest and most fragile economies, has begun to see easing in its foreign relations, and international trade and investment engagements. But just as Myanmar's history has long been troubled, with one of the world's longest-running periods of ethnic strife and civil wars, from well before military rule began in 1962, so too Myanmar since 2010 has shown a chequered and fragile landscape of continued religious and ethnic conflict. This November Myanmar goes to the polls. What will determine the outcome of those general elections? How will Myanmar achieve economic success comparable to those of its ASEAN neighbours? Mark Canning is Senior Adviser at Bell Pottinger and former UK Ambasssador to Indonesia, ASEAN, Myanmar, Malaysia and Zimbabwe. Jurgen Haacke is Associate Professor of International Relations at LSE, and Centre Associate at the Saw Swee Hock Southeast Asia Centre. Shibani Mahtani (@ShibaniMahtani) is Staff Reporter at the Wall Street Journal. She is based in Yangon, and reports on Myanmar and the rest of Southeast Asia. Danny Quah (@DannyQuah) is Professor of Economics and International Development at LSE, and Director of the Saw Swee Hock Southeast Asia Centre. The Saw Swee Hock Southeast Asia Centre (@LSESEAC) is an inter-disciplinary, regionally-focused academic centre within the Institute of Global Affairs at LSE. Building on the School's deep academic and historical connections with Southeast Asia, the Centre seeks to encourage the best academic and policy research, with core focus on the social context of the region.

Myanmar on the Brink [Audio]

Speaker(s): Shami Chakrabarti | To mark the paperback release of On Liberty, Shami Chakrabarti will be in conversation with Conor Gearty and taking questions from the audience and Twitter. You can send your questions via Twitter to @LSELaw using #LSEShami. In On Liberty Shami explores why our fundamental rights and freedoms are paramount in upholding democracy, and how they are coming under unprecedented pressure today. Since 9/11 governments have decided that human and civil rights, and the rule of law, are often too costly, and have offered an apparently simple trade-off: greater security in exchange for less freedom. Drawing on her own life and work, and on Liberty’s campaigning on issues including privacy, 42 day detention and ASBOs, Shami shows why our rights are indispensable and looks to the future. These freedoms, for which generations have fought, both protect and empower us, and curb the power of the mighty – and what’s more, Shami warns, once gone, they will be almost impossible to recover. Shami Chakrabarti is Director of the civil liberties advocacy organisation Liberty. She was a member of the panel of the Leveson Inquiry and is Chancellor of Oxford Brookes University and an alumna of LSE. Conor Gearty (@conorgearty) is Director of the Institute of Public Affairs and Professor of Human Rights Law at LSE.  LSE Law (@lselaw) is an integral part of the School's mission, plays a major role in policy debates & in the education of lawyers and law teachers from around the world.

On Liberty: a conversation with Shami Chakrabarti [Audio]

Peiran Wei, a 2015 China and Globalization Fellow at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and former Bloomberg reporter, describes his country as "switching gears" – in its economy, its politics, and its culture. Wei discusses attitudes towards the rising billionaire class in China, the impact of China’s capital outflow around the globe, and the importance of social stability to the Communist Party.

Don't Panic: China's Just Switching Gears | PolicyCast

This talk will explore Mark Twain’s perspective on conspiracy theory in late-nineteenth century America. In Twain’s time, public attitudes towards conspiracy theory went through a somewhat unusual change. Namely, conspiracy theory was becoming increasingly identified with amusement and entertainment. Figures such as Josiah Strong and Ignatius Donnelly drew enormous crowds and sold bestselling books by offering conspiratorial interpretations of history that bore a closer resemblance to P.T. Barnum’s promotions than to conventional political rhetoric.

For his part, Twain was ambivalent about these developments. On the one hand, he expressed appreciation for the “solid satisfaction” to be had from a good conspiratorial mystery. Twain even penned a conspiracy theory history on Shakespeare where he commented on his enthusiasm for what he termed the “conjecturability” associated with conspiracy. On the other, Twain also regarded the public’s amusement with conspiracy thinking as a disturbing trend. If historical events were only considered interesting when they provided a thrilling mystery or visceral head rush, this encouraged people to drift towards political insularity and extremism. In tracing these currents in Twain’s thought, the discussion will delve into widely-known works by Twain like Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court as well as lesser-known pieces such as the unfinished novel Tom Sawyer’s Conspiracy. 

Paranoid Masculinities: Conspiracy Theory in Mark Twain’s Fiction

Panelists Maziar Bahari, journalist and filmmaker, and Tim Greenberg, Executive Producer of The Daily Show, joined moderator Candy Crowley, former political correspondent and host of State of the Union with Candy Crowley, for a discussion on the rights of journalists. The panelists discussed their personal experiences with arrest, repercussions from their past productions and works, and the state of human rights for journalists across the globe. 

Journalism is not a Crime | Institute of Politics

The Harvard Black Men’s Forum and the Institute of Politics hosted a discussion between linguist, political activist and MIT professor Noam Chomsky and Havard Professor Brandon Terry. The two covered a wide range of topics, including the Black Lives Matter movement, Bernie Sanders’ presidential run, income inequality and the power of organized, grassroots movements to effect social and political change. 

Identity, Power and the Left: The Future of Progressive Politics | Institute of Politics

Zena Agha, Iraqi-Palestinian Poet, Mariah Al Abdeh, Syrian Activist and Director of Women Now for Development, Fouad Faris, Syrian Activist and refugee, Douglas Johnson, Director of the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy, and Curt Rhodes, Founder and International Director of Questscope, joined moderator Marco Werman, Host of PRI’s The World, for a discussion on the Syrian Refugee Crisis. The speakers addressed topics ranging from the world’s perception of refugees to the necessary next steps in solving and minimizing the damage of the conflict. 

Taking Action on the Syrian Refugee Crisis | Institute of Politics

On October 6, 2015, the Ash Center hosted a discussion entitled The Refugee Crisis in Europe: The Challenges of Policy, Politics, and Logistics. Speakers discussed the complex challenges of responding to the ongoing refugee crisis in Europe from several different perspectives, exploring its political context and ramifications, the European Union’s capacity to respond to emergencies within its own borders, the logistics involved in managing the flow of refugees across the continent, and the importance of information technology in shaping events and aiding the response. 

Panelists included: Muriel Rouyer, Adjunct Professor of Public Policy, Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, Harvard Kennedy School; Bartel Van De Walle, Visiting Scholar, Program on Crisis Leadership, Harvard Kennedy School; and Associate Professor, Department of Information Management, Tilburg School of Economics and Management, Tilburg University (The Netherlands); Tina Comes, Visiting Scholar, Program on Crisis Leadership, Harvard Kennedy School; and Associate Professor, Centre for Integrated Emergency Management, Department for ICT, University of Agder (Norway); and Anaide Nahikian, Program Manager, Advanced Training Program on Humanitarian Action at the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, Executive Producer of the Humanitarian Assistance Webcast, and Associate Instructor at the Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard School of Public Health.


The Refugee Crisis in Europe: The Challenges of Policy, Politics, and Logistics | AshCast

On September 17, 2015, The Ash Center hosted a conversation with the authors of The Arab Spring: Pathways of Repression and Reform. Speakers included: Tarek Masoud, Sultan of Oman Associate Professor of International Relations, Harvard Kennedy School; Jason Brownlee, Associate Professor of Government and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Texas; and Andrew Reynolds, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.  The event was moderated by Stephen Walt, Robert and Renee Belfer Professor of International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School, and cosponsored by the Harvard Kennedy School Middle East Initiative. 

The Arab Spring: Pathways of Repression and Reform | AshCast

How do conspiracies happen, how can historians use them to understand more about the past, and where do they begin and cease to be relevant to the study of history? Such questions were the starting point for this panel debate, in which Professor Christopher Andrew and Dr Stephen Dorril examine cases from Stalinist Russia, Harold Wilson’s government in the 1960s, and Northern Ireland in the 1970s, to name but a few.

Paranoid Masculinities: Conspiracy Theory in Mark Twain’s Fiction

University of Cambridge