Družbeni strahovi med znanostjo in kulturnim bojem: Teorije zarot v času pandemije COVID-19

This article looks at the rise of the conspiracy theories during the COVID-19 pandemic. Current social research on conspiracy theories points to two major factors which underline the spread and appeal of conspiracy thinking: social media and the rise of alternative truths; and the rising distrust in science. Both factors, no doubt, contribute to the current “epistemological crisis”, but cannot successfully explain a broader “anti-Enlightenment turn”. In order to better understand the appeal of conspiracy theories, the author brings into the picture the current rise of radical populism. A comparative look at the two structures of feeling, she argues, allows us to better understand the role of the neoliberal state which has triggered many social fears and, by undermining the idea of the common good, opened up a ground for the polarization of communities.Članek analizira porast teorij zarot v obdobju pandemije COVID-19. Glavnina študij, ki se v zadnjem času posvečajo tematiki teorij zarote, izpostavlja dva ključna dejavnika, ki prispevata k njihovemu razširjanju in privlačnosti: družbena omrežja in z njimi povezan razmah alternativnih resnic ter naraščanje nezaupanja do znanosti. Oba dejavnika lahko prispevata k razumevanju sodobne »epistemološke krize«, ne moreta pa v celoti pojasniti splošnejšega »protirazsvetljenskega obrata« v družbeni zavesti. Avtorica v tem prispevku k tematiki pristopa s primerjavo vzpona teorij zarot in razmaha skrajnega populizma. Primerjalna analiza struktur občutenja pri obeh, trdi, omogoča prepoznavanje vloge neoliberalne države, ki je sprožila vrsto socialnih strahov in, vzporedno, na mestu skupnega dobrega odprla prostor za polariziranje skupnosti