How old is the phrase ‘conspiracy theory’?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s a century older than you might think.

 

Between 11 PM and 3 AM I sometimes listen to the Coast-to-Coast AM radio show for entertainment rather than information. It’s a conversation piece for victims of insomnia. The January 17, 2025 show was titled Decoding Dreams/Conspiracy Culture. The webpage says:

 

“In the second half, David Samuels, the editor of County Highway, explored the rise of conspiracy theories in contemporary society and their detrimental effect on public trust. He pointed to the rumors swirling around during the COVID-19 pandemic as a prime example, remarking, ‘COVID did more to destroy public trust in institutions than any other single event of my lifetime.’

 

Samuels highlighted the stark decline in society’s trust in the media, mentioning that it had plummeted from over 50% to a mere 22%. He also insisted on having a critical mindset in today’s information-saturated world, stating, ‘You got to kind of question everything in this day and age.’

 

The conversation touched on the origin of the term ‘conspiracy theory.’ Samuels explained that its roots are found in the Warren Commission report following President Kennedy’s assassination. According to him, ‘This country is founded on a conspiracy theory,’ noting that the American revolution was sparked by the perceived tyranny of King George III.”  

 

Did ‘conspiracy theory’ really first come out in the 1964 Warren Commission report? I thought it might be much older, and looked up that phrase both in the EBSCOhost databases at my public library, and at Google Books.

 

At EBSCOhost I found an article by Howard J. Graham in the Yale Law Journal for 1938 (Volume 47, pages 371 to 403) titled The “Conspiracy Theory” of the Fourteenth Amendment.

 

At Google Books I found an 1881 book by James D. McCabe titled Our Martyred President: The Life and Public Services of Gen. James A. Garfield. On page 556 it specifically says that:

 

“There is more and more doubt of the conspiracy theory.”

 

What about another obvious source, which you would expect the show to have consulted?  The Wikipedia page on Conspiracy theory has a section on Origin and usage which points to a January 11, 1863 letter in The New York Times. And it also explains:

 

“Whether the CIA was responsible for popularising the term ‘conspiracy theory’ was analyzed by Michael Butter, a Professor of American Literary and Cultural History at the University of Tubingen. Butter wrote in 2020 that the CIA document Concerning Criticism of the Warren Report, which proponents of the theory use as evidence of CIA motive and intention, does not contain the phrase ‘conspiracy theory’ in the singular, and only uses the term ‘conspiracy theories’ once, in the sentence: ‘Conspiracy theories have frequently thrown suspicion on our organisation (sic) for example, by falsely alleging that Lee Harvey Oswald worked for us.’ “

 

The surprised cartoon came from Openclipart.