Resumen de Paranoid style and subtextual form in modern conspiracy rhetoric
This essay argues that the traditional approach to conspiracy rhetoric, grounded in Richard Hofstadter’s concept of the paranoid style, is limited in understanding as to how such fringe discourse is produced to resonate with mainstream audiences. Using the 9/11 conspiracy theory and the work of 9/11 scholar David Ray Griffin as a case study, I propose the existence of a subtextual form in conspiracy rhetoric that is anti-establishment, critiques dominant political myths, and offers a broad-based political ideology. After exploring how this approach relates to the 9/11 conspiracy theory, the essay considers the implications that this analysis has for understanding modern conspiracy discourse.
