> People want to believe a conspiracy because it reinforces their worldview

> I did not expect them to be so ready to state that people agree with them. I thought that they would overestimate, but I didn't think that there'd be such a strong sense that they are in the majority.

> In 2015, Pennycook made headlines when he co-authored a paper demonstrating how certain people interpret "pseudo-profound bullshit" as deep observations

To be fair, the person doing the observing and the analysis shouldn’t be so biased. You don’t start a study with your thumb on the scale.

Much like the conspiracy theorists, Pennycook obviously has his own model of the world. One that’s shamelessly subjective and fueled by self-gaslighting. Someone in Pennycook’s position should know better; and the media should be more transparent about such shortcomings.

The irony would be funny if it wasn’t so embarrassing.