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Appeals To Ignorance In Conspiracy Theories

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To understand the draw of conspiracy theories, we must first understand the role of appeals to ignorance. An appeal to ignorance is a form of abductive argument which assumes a conclusion based on lack of evidence refuting it. This is generally seen in the form of arguments such as ‘you can’t prove that Bush didn’t do 9/11 so it must mean that he did.’ These arguments are particularly compelling in the context of conspiracy theories due to their secretive nature. As deception and covert action are inherent to conspiracies, one would not expect for there to be evidence left behind by conspirators. In other words, a good conspiracy would leave behind no evidence of it ever having occurred. For this reason, theorists use appeals to ignorance

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