Believing 'virtually anything that they want': The rise of the flat earth movement

The Earth is round. Science has proved it. We, as a fact-based news organization, feel comfortable stating that fact. But there are people who would disagree. Those people are called "Flat-Earthers."

A new book by reporter Kelly Weill documents the rise of the flat earth movement — Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything.

“I focused on Flat-Earthers because when I first encountered them, I thought it might be a joke,” Weill said. “It was such a strange conspiracy theory, so much more so than any others I’ve encountered. Unlike a tamer conspiracy theory, like believing about chemtrails in the sky, Flat Earth asks you to believe something that is just so ludicrous, that I thought it would be a good case study for how people can believe virtually anything that they want.”

The popularity of conspiracy theories has blossomed in recent years, with online communities like QAnon being just the tip of the iceberg.

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But "Flat-Earthers" have been around much longer. In fact, they predate the internet. Flat-Earther origins go all the way back to the 1830s, when one man decided he personally needed to see that the earth was round to truly believe it.

That attitude has evolved over the years. Flat Earthers now have their own theories to explain how the flat world works, as Weill discovered while embedded in the Flat Earth community, researching for her book.

"It is often a very religious culture, a lot of people are quite evangelical, but it doesn't need to be; there is nothing inherently religious in Flat Earth theory," Weill said. "... and it is a very conspiracy-steeped community where people don't just believe in Flat Earth, they believe in a variety of fringe beliefs."

Weill adds that varying theories have a through line — they present an in-group versus out-group narrative. Believers know the "truth" and there are others working against the, trying to "dupe" them.

"Conspiracy theories aren't necessarily powerful because they make sense, they are powerful because they affirm a set of beliefs somebody already has. They support that person's priors."

Soundside host Libby Denkmann spoke to Weill about her new book. Click on the audio above to hear the full discussion.