Thanks to the continued expansion of the internet, and the incredible impact that this has had on the way in which the world shares information, we are seeing in society today a vast blooming of conspiracy theories.
These hypotheses are varied in both their realism and in their complexity, with new and obscure theories being posited into the pop culture seemingly weekly.
Now, a new study seeks to determine which of these often-wild ideas is the favorite of each state in the union, and some of the results are shocking.
An odd study of online activity has produced an enlightening look at the most-searched conspiracy theories for each of the United States. The thought-provoking list was created by DirecTV dealer USDirect, who “combed through the mothership of all intrigue databases, Reddit,” to determine the most popular theories discussed by users. It then took that list and harnessed the power of Google Trends to figure out which of those nine conspiracy theories were the most searched for in each of the 50 states as well as the District of Columbia. Although not exactly a scientific study, the project resulted in some rather illuminating findings.
Some of the more popular theories were fairly predictable.
Topping the list with a whopping 27 states was the infamous New World Order conspiracy, which posits that a nefarious group of power brokers aim to take complete control of the planet. Interest in the concept topped searches in an array of different locations across the country including Texas, Florida, Hawaii, and Maine. Among the remaining conspiracy theories, chemtrails and the Flat Earth theory proved to be particularly popular, garnering five states each. The somewhat vague concept ‘black helicopters’ picked up four states, including California, Illinois, and Maryland.
There were some obscure conspiracy theories represented on the list as well, including the idea that Tupac Shakur is still alive and that the “New Coke” beverage of the 1980s was really a marketing plot designed to strengthen brand loyalty as Coca-Cola was shedding drinkers to the newer, hipper Pepsi products.
To see what sort of cockamamy conspiracy your state is most interested in, click here.
