Nonfiction

Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything

Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything

  • Downloads：3998
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2023-02-27 09:21:36
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Kelly Weill
  • ISBN：1643753371
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
  • Download

Summary

“A deep dive into the world of Flat Earth conspiracy theorists 。 。 。 that brilliantly reveals how people fall into illogical beliefs， reject reason， destroy relationships， and connect with a broad range of conspiracy theories in the social media age。 Beautiful， probing， and often empathetic 。 。 。 An insightful， human look at what fuels conspiracy theories。” —Science

Since 2015， there has been a spectacular boom in a centuries-old delusion: that the earth is flat。 More and more people believe that we all live on a pancake-shaped planet， capped by a solid dome and ringed by an impossible wall of ice。 In Off the Edge， journalist Kelly Weill draws a direct line from today’s conspiratorial moment， brimming not just with Flat Earthers but also anti-vaxxers and QAnon followers， back to the early days of Flat Earth theory in the 1830s。 We learn the natural impulses behind these beliefs: when faced with a complicated world out of our control， humans have always sought patterns to explain the inexplicable。 But something else has shifted。 Powered by Facebook and YouTube algorithms， the Flat Earth movement is growing。

At once a definitive history of the movement and an essential look at its unbelievable present， Off the Edge introduces us to a cast of larger-than-life characters。 We meet historical figures like the historical figures who first popularized the theory and the many modern-day Flat Earthers Weill herself gets to know。 We discover what， and who， converts people to Flat Earth belief， and what happens inside the rabbit hole。 In this incisive and powerful book， Kelly Weill explores how we arrived at this polarized moment and explains what needs to happen so that we might all return to the same spinning globe。

Download

Reviews

Sarah ，

An insightful and fun romp through the history and community of those who believe that the world is flat。 Weill traces the history of modern flat earth theory back to a19th century （snake oil salesman？） Samuel Rowbotham， through early 20th century flat earth communes/cults/communities （shoutout to Zion， Illinois and its fig bars） and on to the online communities of today。 She talks about how early YouTube played a pivotal role in bringing people to the conspiracy theory - this was the days of t An insightful and fun romp through the history and community of those who believe that the world is flat。 Weill traces the history of modern flat earth theory back to a19th century （snake oil salesman？） Samuel Rowbotham， through early 20th century flat earth communes/cults/communities （shoutout to Zion， Illinois and its fig bars） and on to the online communities of today。 She talks about how early YouTube played a pivotal role in bringing people to the conspiracy theory - this was the days of the algorithm suggesting increasingly more radicalized views because of the hit counts。 Interestingly， you can see the exact same thing happening on TikTok right now， where a general fyp quickly becomes a rabbit hole of conspiracy theories/misogyny/general hate after 1 or 2 likes of an adjacent video。 These types of escalating algorithms have serious real world consequences as we can clearly see from the rise of QAnon。 She talks a bit about the web of conspiracy theories - if you’re susceptible to one， you’re more susceptible to all of them。 Or， if you think the government is lying about the shape of the earth， then what else are they really hiding？ Are vaccines actually ok （anti-vaxxers）？ What really is in that pizza shop （pizzagate）？ Once you start to shake the foundations， it all comes crashing down。 I’m fascinated by the various offshoots/variations of flat earth theory。 There is one theory that we are in a dome à la Truman Show or that the earth is hollow…some flat earthers believe there is an ice wall at the edges。 Others are Endless flat earthers， believing that we are on one endless flat plane extending outward to infinity。 I appreciate this is not a troll book。 She is not lambasting these people but also not lending a sympathetic tone。 She does a great job of not adding fuel to the fire; instead just trying to identify the kindling and the heat of the flames。 。。。more

Andy ，

Why do people believe in something like the Flat Earth？ This is an interesting question with important implications for understanding dangerous conspiracy theories。 This book provides a long list of potential reasons: Religion （literalist Christian interpretation of the Bible）， Grifters， YouTube/Google/Facebook/Twitter and their nefarious algorithms， Professional conspiracy theorists like Infowars/QAnon/Pizzagate， Charismatic liars and sociopaths， Political leaders like Trump legitimizing QAnon Why do people believe in something like the Flat Earth？ This is an interesting question with important implications for understanding dangerous conspiracy theories。 This book provides a long list of potential reasons: Religion （literalist Christian interpretation of the Bible）， Grifters， YouTube/Google/Facebook/Twitter and their nefarious algorithms， Professional conspiracy theorists like Infowars/QAnon/Pizzagate， Charismatic liars and sociopaths， Political leaders like Trump legitimizing QAnon and such， Clinical insanity， Russian internet trolls， Nazis and other Anti-Jewish bigots， Assorted troublemakers， Self-identified victims suffering from loss/weakness/isolation， Paranoia/fear， Anti-science/Anti-intellectualism/Anti-expertise of the willfully ignorant and malevolently deceitful， Addiction-proneness， Cult-like aspects， Closed minds， etc。The problem is that most of this is anecdotal， and with such a long list it's hard to know what is causal， and what is just another effect of an underlying cause。 There seems to be more Flat Earth sort of nonsense now here in America than in other times or places。 Is that true and if so， what does that imply？ I would have liked more of that and less of the biographical details of Flat Earthers。 The book works well as a history of Flat Earthiness and there are numerous good bits about how these sorts of ideas spread nowadays， e。g。 the Internet algorithms that drive people to the craziest sites so Google & co。 can make more money。 But that's not why disinformation finds a susceptible audience in the first place。 Anyway， there's not much in this book regarding what to do about the general problem of why people believe obvious and dangerous lies。 I've read a number of books about fighting bullshit， and they don't offer great answers either， because it doesn't seem feasible or acceptable to train everyone to be a scientist who looks up evidence on every topic。One of the most interesting hypotheses I've come across is that social inequality increases susceptibility to conspiracy theories。 In which case， the solution is to decrease inequality， increase social mobility and reinvigorate the American Dream。 The Broken Ladder: How Inequality Affects the Way We Think， Live， and Die 。。。more

Dawn Thomas ，

Off the Edge: Flat Earthers， Conspiracy Culture， and Why People Will Believe Anything by Kelly Weill255 PagesPublisher: Algonquin BooksRelease Date: February 22， 2022Nonfiction （Adult）， Science， Earth Studies， Conspiracy TheoriesThe author is a journalist and investigates the roots behind the Flat Earth Theory。 She attends a Flat Earth Theory convention and speaks with many attendees。 From their perspective， she makes connections to other conspiracy theories。 She discusses past events including Off the Edge: Flat Earthers， Conspiracy Culture， and Why People Will Believe Anything by Kelly Weill255 PagesPublisher: Algonquin BooksRelease Date: February 22， 2022Nonfiction （Adult）， Science， Earth Studies， Conspiracy TheoriesThe author is a journalist and investigates the roots behind the Flat Earth Theory。 She attends a Flat Earth Theory convention and speaks with many attendees。 From their perspective， she makes connections to other conspiracy theories。 She discusses past events including the Holocaust， moon landing and space travel， and JFK assassination。 From there， she moves to more recent event like 9/11 and a shadow government， Sandy Hook mass shooting， anti-vaccines， COVID pandemic， and the 2020 election and the people that speculate their veracity （e。g。 Alex Jones and Donald Trump）。When I first started reading this book， I stopped and reread the description as nonfiction。 I thought I was reading a Sci-Fi novel。 I restarted reading it and fell down the rabbit hole。 I was unaware people still believed the earth was flat。 After finishing this book， I conducted my own research and was amazed at the history and the people following this claim。 。。。more

Rebecca Butler ，

Fascinating historical dive into flat earth beliefs。 Was hoping for a bit more of the "why people will believe anything" but the book still delivers。 Well researched/sourced and digestible。 Fascinating historical dive into flat earth beliefs。 Was hoping for a bit more of the "why people will believe anything" but the book still delivers。 Well researched/sourced and digestible。 。。。more

Carollyne Haynes ，

While 'Off the Edge' is an interesting and informative read， it becomes somewhat repetitive after a while。 Also， the emphasis is on the 'flat edgers' i。e。 those who believe the earth is flat [really？ in this day and age？？ but apparently these people do exist！！]。 It would have been interesting to know more about other conspiracy theories， how they originate， and what makes people fall for 'fake news stories' which are so blatantly ridiculous 。。。 at least to many mainstream thinkers。 While 'Off the Edge' is an interesting and informative read， it becomes somewhat repetitive after a while。 Also， the emphasis is on the 'flat edgers' i。e。 those who believe the earth is flat [really？ in this day and age？？ but apparently these people do exist！！]。 It would have been interesting to know more about other conspiracy theories， how they originate， and what makes people fall for 'fake news stories' which are so blatantly ridiculous 。。。 at least to many mainstream thinkers。 。。。more

Michael ，

Interesting。Both sides can't prove shit， lol。 Interesting。Both sides can't prove shit， lol。 。。。more

Sylvia ，

The first half is a little slow， but the background is interesting。 The second half left me feeling scared and dismayed--but I'm glad I read it。 It explains a lot of what is going on today。 The first half is a little slow， but the background is interesting。 The second half left me feeling scared and dismayed--but I'm glad I read it。 It explains a lot of what is going on today。 。。。more

Dick Darden ，

Very well written， at least to my tastes。 Conversational and easy to read while still containing and covering lots of interesting information。 Broadly speaking， it’s about conspiracy theories and how people end up at the “ends of the earth” of reasonable thought and sailing their boat off the edge into the abyss of farfetched conspiracy theories， and uses Flat Earth beliefs in the specific while still touching on things like QAnon and Covid-19 conspiracies and the countless antisemitic fascist c Very well written， at least to my tastes。 Conversational and easy to read while still containing and covering lots of interesting information。 Broadly speaking， it’s about conspiracy theories and how people end up at the “ends of the earth” of reasonable thought and sailing their boat off the edge into the abyss of farfetched conspiracy theories， and uses Flat Earth beliefs in the specific while still touching on things like QAnon and Covid-19 conspiracies and the countless antisemitic fascist conspiracy theories。I flew through it in two sittings。 Would highly recommend if that sort of thing is interesting to you at all。 The history of Flat Earth belief was especially cool to learn about。My only complaint is that it left me wanting more。 I love hearing about crazy batshit conspiracy theories and could have taken another 200 pages of craziness。 。。。more

Kenzi ，

People really be believing anything the see on Facebook。

Molly ，

Much of the "why people will believe anything" part I was already familiar with， being a fan of the "You are not so smart" podcast and social psychology in general。 So I would have liked more about Flat Earthers and less about the credulous in general。 However the background of the movement is established with an unbelieving shake of the head and a mildly uncomfortable chuckle。 Nobody is really clear as to what is true belief in flat earth and what is some kind of ironic attestation gone awry。 S Much of the "why people will believe anything" part I was already familiar with， being a fan of the "You are not so smart" podcast and social psychology in general。 So I would have liked more about Flat Earthers and less about the credulous in general。 However the background of the movement is established with an unbelieving shake of the head and a mildly uncomfortable chuckle。 Nobody is really clear as to what is true belief in flat earth and what is some kind of ironic attestation gone awry。 So many of us， being lonely and lost， shuffle off this mental toil of logic and embrace fancy。 It can only be hoped that most people are level-headed enough most of the time that we won't completely disregard objective reality， and I left this book hopeful， as many of the characters were so outrageous that they are clearly anomalies。 。。。more

André ，

Shallow。

Bruce Boeck ，

Interesting history of the flat earthers and various related theories。 I'd hoped for more about contemporary theories。 Interesting history of the flat earthers and various related theories。 I'd hoped for more about contemporary theories。 。。。more

Emma ，

C/W:（view spoiler）[death by suicide， family estrangement， racism， antisemitism （hide spoiler）]Off the Edge had some interesting tidbits but felt unfocused。 It's part Flat Earth history， part memoir， and part sociological look at why people are willing to believe in conspiracy theories。 These elements had the potential to work well together if they had been tied together more cohesively。 Instead each chapter felt distinctly different from the one that came before -- more like reading a lot of lon C/W:（view spoiler）[death by suicide， family estrangement， racism， antisemitism （hide spoiler）]Off the Edge had some interesting tidbits but felt unfocused。 It's part Flat Earth history， part memoir， and part sociological look at why people are willing to believe in conspiracy theories。 These elements had the potential to work well together if they had been tied together more cohesively。 Instead each chapter felt distinctly different from the one that came before -- more like reading a lot of longform news articles than narrative non-fiction。 。。。more

Richard Archambault ，

This book is so sad。 It’s sad and frustrating to learn about people believing the most illogical and crazy things。 My faith in humanity’s future is shaken。

Angel Bathory ，

I should not have done this as an audiobook。 There is just way too much information very succulently packed。 I can tell the author is a journalist by how she maximizes the use of every sentence。 I'd like to get this as reference book。 Rather deep dive into the history of Flat Earth theory and the rise of conspiracy culture with the role the internet and how search algorithms and profit-driven social media fed the problem。 Highly recommend for those interested in that sort of thing， which you sho I should not have done this as an audiobook。 There is just way too much information very succulently packed。 I can tell the author is a journalist by how she maximizes the use of every sentence。 I'd like to get this as reference book。 Rather deep dive into the history of Flat Earth theory and the rise of conspiracy culture with the role the internet and how search algorithms and profit-driven social media fed the problem。 Highly recommend for those interested in that sort of thing， which you should be。 。。。more

Johnny Williams ，

Don't let my rating get under your skin-- I really liked the book。 My feeling is the author could have chosen some better ways to get the message across。 The message that one can get others to believe anything and how to go about it is a great theme。 To dwell so long on the flat earth believers and its history weighed the book down considerably。The tie into current events was good but needs more examples and a tie back to specific others who used the same tactics and how Trump and/or his boys co Don't let my rating get under your skin-- I really liked the book。 My feeling is the author could have chosen some better ways to get the message across。 The message that one can get others to believe anything and how to go about it is a great theme。 To dwell so long on the flat earth believers and its history weighed the book down considerably。The tie into current events was good but needs more examples and a tie back to specific others who used the same tactics and how Trump and/or his boys could have lifted these examples from history and applied them today would be a terrific enhancement。 。。。more

Caroline ，

I am fascinated by why people believe conspiracy theories， so this book was an obvious pick for me。 It covers flat Earth history （in much more depth than I expected， but I enjoyed it）; flat Earth conferences， social media algorithms， and crossover between flat Earth and fascism。 Good companion read to "Republic of Lies" by Anna Merlan。 I am fascinated by why people believe conspiracy theories， so this book was an obvious pick for me。 It covers flat Earth history （in much more depth than I expected， but I enjoyed it）; flat Earth conferences， social media algorithms， and crossover between flat Earth and fascism。 Good companion read to "Republic of Lies" by Anna Merlan。 。。。more

Cathy ，

The thing that gets me over and over is that none of these people are of low intelligence。 They’re regular or even very bright people。 Like Shelley Lewis， the flat earth turned qanon believer who screamed at the supermarket manager that she didn’t have to wear a mask because hippa and her disability because she believed that movie about the “Pandemic” by discredited former scientist Judy Mikovitz。 She went to West Point。 Had to discharge because of lupus。 Doctors couldn’t or wouldn’t help her mu The thing that gets me over and over is that none of these people are of low intelligence。 They’re regular or even very bright people。 Like Shelley Lewis， the flat earth turned qanon believer who screamed at the supermarket manager that she didn’t have to wear a mask because hippa and her disability because she believed that movie about the “Pandemic” by discredited former scientist Judy Mikovitz。 She went to West Point。 Had to discharge because of lupus。 Doctors couldn’t or wouldn’t help her much & her depression and desperation led her to the Internet。 I have a similar situation。 I guess it’s lucky I’m not a Facebook user？ Anyway， it’s super interesting and often surprising， recommended。 。。。more

Brian ，

If you're at all familiar with flat earth or the conspiracy theories that have permeated American politics there is nothing new or useful here。 If you're at all familiar with flat earth or the conspiracy theories that have permeated American politics there is nothing new or useful here。 。。。more

Jenae ，

For full context， I was excited to read this since I saw it referenced in an article I was reading and sounded super interesting （esp given that I’m a social scientist）。 However， I only read the first bit of the book because it didn’t feel cohesive and jumped around a lot。 I also thought it would be more grounded in psychology than it was （at least at the beginning of the book） but I lost interest when I realized a lot of it was just history of the flat earth movement。

Paula ，

Takes you through the up and down history of flat earthers and the groups that embraced them to grow and deceive people today。

Laura ，

It was pretty interesting， but the question of why people will believe anything wasn't really answered。 She basically said in uncertain times people turn to crazy ideas。。。 doesn't really answer the question of how someone can watch a random person on youtube and decide that thousands of years of science has all been a hoax。 If you are wondering about the Flat Earthers， though， this book gives a really good history and description of the current movement。 It was pretty interesting， but the question of why people will believe anything wasn't really answered。 She basically said in uncertain times people turn to crazy ideas。。。 doesn't really answer the question of how someone can watch a random person on youtube and decide that thousands of years of science has all been a hoax。 If you are wondering about the Flat Earthers， though， this book gives a really good history and description of the current movement。 。。。more

Mark Rimelspach ，

This book follows the history of people who believe the world in flat when science says differently dating back over one hundred years to the present where now conspiracy theories on social media are driving more and more believers into these cult like groups。

Mark Schiffer ，

I love examinations of online communities。

Sirah ，

Just the other day， I was asking a good friend how people could believe the earth was flat。 Well， here's my answer。 I admit I was expecting a bit more psychology， but I got that as well as quite a bit of history， some information on data science， and some current info that I hadn't realized was as big of a deal as it apparently is。 This book was told in a really personal way， which really helped when we got to the main point at the end。 Just the other day， I was asking a good friend how people could believe the earth was flat。 Well， here's my answer。 I admit I was expecting a bit more psychology， but I got that as well as quite a bit of history， some information on data science， and some current info that I hadn't realized was as big of a deal as it apparently is。 This book was told in a really personal way， which really helped when we got to the main point at the end。 。。。more

Thomas ，

The first half of this book， in which Weill discusses the history of the flat earth conspiracy and its echos in the modern political landscape， is fascinating。 The back half is more about the modern conspiracy movement and conspiracy theories in general。 It’s much less focused。Still， this is a really interesting book and anyone who wants to understand how so many people seem to live on a different planet would do well to give this a read。

Susan Miller ，

In depth narrative about the beginnings of the Flat Earth theory/conspiracy and how it spread into a worldwide "cult"。 The book also includes how the internet has led to the growth of this conspiracy theory and a mirid of others which have affected countries and cultures throughout the world。 A factual book which includes a bit of humor and a lot of truth。Donated this book to the Berkley Public Library， Berkley， MI。 In depth narrative about the beginnings of the Flat Earth theory/conspiracy and how it spread into a worldwide "cult"。 The book also includes how the internet has led to the growth of this conspiracy theory and a mirid of others which have affected countries and cultures throughout the world。 A factual book which includes a bit of humor and a lot of truth。Donated this book to the Berkley Public Library， Berkley， MI。 。。。more

Sara Goldenberg ，

It wasn't good。 It wasn't good。 。。。more

Dave Reads ，

We are used to accusations of conspiracies and stories about stolen elections and other deceptive practices in politics。 Still， the phenomena isn't limited to current events， nor are they new。 Kelly Weill is a journalist who has covered disinformation and extremism on the internet for the Daily Beast。 Her book， "Off The Edge: Flat Earthers， Conspiracy Culture， and Why People Believe Anything" focuses mainly on those who refuse to believe the earth is round。 She uses those examples and stories to We are used to accusations of conspiracies and stories about stolen elections and other deceptive practices in politics。 Still， the phenomena isn't limited to current events， nor are they new。 Kelly Weill is a journalist who has covered disinformation and extremism on the internet for the Daily Beast。 Her book， "Off The Edge: Flat Earthers， Conspiracy Culture， and Why People Believe Anything" focuses mainly on those who refuse to believe the earth is round。 She uses those examples and stories to explain more broadly the willingness of more people to think about today's political and social conspiracy theories。"I focused on Flat-Earthers because when I first encountered them， I thought it might be a joke，" Weill said。 "It was a strange conspiracy theory， much more so than any others I've encountered。 Unlike a tamer conspiracy theory， like believing about chemtrails in the sky， Flat Earth asks you to believe something that is just so ludicrous that I thought it would be a good case study for how people can believe virtually anything that they want。"Weill defines a conspiracy theory as "an unproven allegation of a secret， deliberate， and malevolent plot， like a scheme to conceal the true shape of the world。 Conspiracy theories are ways to construct order and meaning in times of uncertainty， and they let us shape our fears into something we understand。"She introduces us to individuals who believe these theories even though they know that most people disagree with their logic。 It is a subject we all can relate to， as we all probably have a friend or a relative who doesn't believe that Covid-19 exists or that there is a new world order controlling governments across the earth。 Yet， conspiracy theories have been around well before the internet。Weill makes the point that conspiracies are not intellectual but emotional。 Fear and uncertainty play a role in holding these theories。 Because we live in an era where nearly everyone has easy access to sharing their views widely and frequently （i。e。， Twitter）， it is easy to see how disinformation can be spread to those who become willing believers。 。。。more

Delia Turner ，

Thorough， thoughtful， and well written。 Begins with a history of the Flat Earth idea， progresses to the idea’s manifestations in current times， and finishes with a disturbing overview of the way the belief has been promulgated by the Internet and the ways in which it is linked with conspiracy theories and hate groups。For another overview of how the USA became the country of determined delusion， I also recommend Kurt Anderson’s Fantasyland: How America Went Haywire。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0