ENG 102-Holland
Welcome
Hello Dr. Holland's students! I'm Dr. Ted Chodock, the Lead Librarian for CSN's Charleston Campus. I'm based on that campus and you can find me there most days of the week. Please see the CSN Library Hours page for open hours for each campus and the online library help hours. I've listed some of the library resources that will work best for your conspiracy theory research. Dr. Holland has excellent examples of each type of paper that you are required to submit in Canvas so be sure to take a look at them.
I will help you navigate the library's website and find credible information from books and ebooks, films, and articles from databases. I'll also explain how to use the tools found in databases so that you can limit results, print the articles, and get an MLA formatted citation.
If you have any questions about using library resources, please email your question (please allow 24 hours for email responses during the week and 48 hours on the weekend). If you need help quickly you can use our Online Chat service to get help Monday to Thursday 8 am to 10 pm, Friday 8 am to 4 pm, Saturday 9 am to 5 pm, and Sunday 5 pm to 11 pm.
If you need help with organizing or writing your paper please use Brainfuse to get help. The link is available in the menu in your Canvas Course.
Library Resources
Here is a step-by-step guide to accessing CSN Libraries' resources - books, articles, and films - for your assignment. You can search all the resources at one time by using the large search box on the CSN Libraries home page. If you are working off campus you will have to log in to access these resources. Use your Canvas login and password.
Use the large search box on the homepage to try out searches and see what kinds of results you might get. In this search you can use longer phrases and keywords; use advanced search to separate keywords with connecting words such as "and" "or" "not". Use "conspiracy theories" to get results for this broad subject. You may want to use terms to reflect why people believe in conspiracy theories such as: conspiracy theories and belief. Maybe even try: conspiracy theories and "why people believe".
Use the Find Books tile to look for print books to check out in the library and ebooks to access from home. Use the filters on the left hand side to limit by print (available in the library) or ebooks (full text online). You can also limit by campus or publication date. Find Articles and Find Films work the same way. The results come from several different collections and you can use the filters on the left-hand side for publication date and scholarly articles.
Click on Browse Databases tile to find an alphabetical list of databases for different subject areas and topics. Choose ones that relate to your topic.
Use Gale Virtual Reference Library (Gale Ebooks) to find a basic overview of your topic, including the definition, history, and important persons. Use keywords "conspiracy theories" or "conspiracy theory and pizzagate".
Use ProQuest and EBSCO to find scholarly articles along with newspaper and magazine articles. Click on the Full Text option and put your search terms in the search box or use Advanced Search to separate terms with AND, NOT, OR . Add your topic terms and "conspiracy theory" to the search terms. You can use the filters on the left hand side of the page to narrow the list of articles. Click on the article to see the full text and use the tools provided to print, email the article, or get a formatted citation.
What's the difference between popular and scholarly articles? and How do I evaluate a website? are some FAQs that will help you understand what type of information you are finding and how to make sure the information is credible when searching the Internet.
Conspiracies and Conspiracy Theories in American History by ISBN: 9781440858116Publication Date: 2019-05-24This up-to-date introduction to the complex world of conspiracies and conspiracy theories provides insight into why millions of people are so ready to believe the worst about our political, legal, religious, and financial institutions. Unsupported theories provide simple explanations for catastrophes that are otherwise difficult to understand, from the U.S. Civil War to the Stock Market Crash of 1929 to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. Ideas about shadowy networks that operate behind a cloak of secrecy, including real organizations like the CIA and the Mafia and imagined ones like the Illuminati, additionally provide a way for people to criticize prevailing political and economic arrangements, while for society's disadvantaged and forgotten groups, conspiracy theories make their suffering and alienation comprehensible and provide a focal point for their economic or political frustrations. These volumes detail the highly controversial and influential phenomena of conspiracies and conspiracy theories in American society. Through interpretive essays and factual accounts of various people, organizations, and ideas, the reader will gain a much greater appreciation for a set of beliefs about political scheming, covert intelligence gathering, and criminal rings that has held its grip on the minds of millions of American citizens and encouraged them to believe that the conspiracies may run deeper, and with a global reach.
Conspiracy Theories by ISBN: 9781440877704Publication Date: 2024-05-02Provides a comprehensive guide to the history and current shape of conspiracy theories in American life, including the findings of research seeking to understand their origins, type, function, and widespread appeal. This all-in-one resource provides an accessible overview of conspiracy theories past and present in all their many forms. Taking an even-handed, scholarly approach, the book outlines the longer history of conspiracy theories, starting with Ancient Greece and Rome and continuing the story up to the present day, including analysis of 9/11, anti-vaccine, COVID, and QAnon theories. It surveys an array of current books and articles to try to understand why people believe in and act on outlandish and evidence-free conspiracy theories. Notably, this resource also outlines the problems created by untrue conspiracy theories in terms of their negative impact on public debate, trust in others, and efforts to nurture an informed and educated citizenry. Instead, many conspiracy claims have become sources of misinformation, cynicism, and polarization. This book will benefit anyone who seeks a pathway through our current "epistemic crisis" in which the lines between fact and fiction--and between truth and falsehood--have become blurred.
Conspiracy Theories: A Primer by ISBN: 9781538121214Publication Date: 2020Conspiracy theories are a part of the human condition. Everyone believes at least one, but given the number of conspiracy theories, it is more likely that everyone believes a few. Some people have a worldview defined by them. Conspiracy theories are just another reminder that people disagree about many things, including truth. These disagreements have always existed and always will. We have to live with conspiracy theories and with the people who believe them. The only way to do this is have compassion and tolerance for others, and to hold our own beliefs to high standards. This book introduces students to the research into conspiracy theories and the people who propagate and believe them. In doing so, it addresses the psychological, sociological, and political sources of conspiracy theorizing.
