Voices gathered in the family "how to deal with conspiracy theories ..." December 12 7:20

"I feel like I've given up on my mother" "It's hard for me to have a decent conversation with my wife anymore" After the broadcast of "Fake Busters," a program about a family whose parents were addicted to conspiracy theories, many similar voices were sent to NHK's "News Post"


submission form.
Conspiracy theories are generally ideas such as "this world is controlled by a dark organization" or "there is someone's conspiracy or other meaning behind things" that are difficult to prove or deny.

It is up to the individual to decide what to believe, but when I listened to them in detail, I found that they were placing a heavy burden on their immediate family and were suffering from various problems.
(Science and Culture Reporter Chiharu Kinukawa)

My mother, who lives far away... It's hard to meet

Akimi (pseudonym), who is in her 40s, said that her mother, who lives far away from her in her 60s, became obsessed with conspiracy theories.

The trigger was the epidemic of the new corona.

At first, my mother's tone suddenly changed, as she was worried about her family and texted her with "Disinfect with alcohol, and if masks weren't sold, I'd send them from here."

Akimi (pseudonym, 40s) "I used to call with a feeling of being overwhelmed with anxiety, saying, 'I wonder what will happen to us in the future with the new coronavirus, and it will be very painful not to see my grandchildren,' but one day the anxiety suddenly disappeared and I said,
'I was deceived. Corona was really created by great people. I don't have to worry about it.'"

After that, he began to talk about "this world is controlled by the deep state (dark organization)" and "the deep state kidnaps children and trafficks them," and around the fall of 2021, he became deeply inclined to the idea of the American conspiracy theory group "QAnon".

He listened to a recording of a phone call with his mother.

Mother (in her 60s):
"PCR tests are also dangerous, because the swabs you put in your nose have a microchip attached to them and fall through your nose into your intestines," "
There is a facility in Japan underground that traps kidnapped children, and the U.S. military attacks them from the sea to release them."

Akimi:
"Where did you hear about that?

Mother
: "YouTube and the Internet, because all the media in Japan is a dark organization."

Her mother has always liked to travel and often went to theme parks with Akimi's children (grandchildren).

With Corona calling for people to refrain from going out and reducing opportunities to meet people, Akimi says that while searching on her smartphone with an anxious feeling, she may have come across a video related to conspiracy theories.

Lately, it's hard for me to listen to her, so I don't see many phone calls or texts from my mother, and I avoid meeting her in person as much as possible.

On the other hand, there is something very disturbing.

My mother is dabbling in "foreign currency purchases".

An influencer who my mother used to watch often repeatedly preached that the battle between light and darkness would soon end with the victory of the light, at which time the value of the currency would change and the wealth would be returned, and she encouraged me to buy currencies such as Iraqi "dinars."

More recently, he has leaned towards another influencer who makes similar claims, locking in viewers with videos and events for paying subscribers to sell water purifiers and other items.

When her mother tried to find out where and how much of the "dinar" she bought, she wouldn't give details, saying she had been told not to tell her family about it.

Akimi:
"I think I got involved because I had a vague worry about money, and I think I spent about 100 million yen. My mother herself thought that I was investing, and she told me that she would give me money to buy an apartment because the value of the 'dinar' would be 1000,<> times higher."

Regarding Iraq's "dinars," the National Consumer Affairs Center has been warning for some time that "there have been a series of investment troubles in which people are solicited to purchase them at a rate higher than their actual value because they will increase their value in the future and make a profit."

Even now, it is a currency that is difficult to exchange for cash in Japan, and careful transactions are required.

My husband ... Worried about the impact on children's growth

Sakura (pseudonym), a housewife in her 40s, is troubled by her husband's behavior.

About three years ago, her husband got into debt after failing to invest, and he started watching videos on YouTube repeatedly, such as "The Great East Japan Earthquake is a man-made earthquake" and "All medicines are poisons created by doctors and pharmaceutical companies to make money."

The couple has children, but the husband is usually a good father, burdening the housework and talking with the children about games and part-time jobs.

I couldn't just turn on the newscast in the living room.

When I watch the news, I try to persuade my family, saying, "There is actually a flip side to this story...", and

about the social studies classes at my children's school, I say that "historical perception is manipulated, so you should be suspicious of textbooks."

Sakura wants children to think for themselves without preconceived notions.

I am worried that the parents' opinions are divided and the communication breakup will affect the development of the children.

Ms. Sakura (pseudonym, 40s) "My youngest child is going to be in a rebellious phase from now on, so I'm worried about how it will affect the way he interacts with his father and how he develops emotionally," "
If I were a friend, I would take it as 'yes, yes' even if I brought up a conspiracy theory, but if it's my husband who sees me every day,
I will reflexively interrupt him. The stress and fear of the past has accumulated, and I don't have room in my heart."

My wife ... It's as if the human core has been shattered

Satoshi (pseudonym), who is in his 50s, is heartbroken by the change in his wife's attitude.

I met my wife in a university laboratory, and we literally worked together to work and raise children.

My wife is a part-time high school teacher.

He said it all started when a colleague at work told him about the background to the attack on Capitol that took place during the U.S. presidential election three years ago.

My wife, who had a longing for a colleague who was returning to the United States, was inclined to talk about her colleagues, saying, "I know what I don't know."

The world is ruled by the Deep State! I'm not going to lose."

Even during housework and commuting, I started watching videos about conspiracy theories on YouTube.

On the family group line, he began posting a number of videos such as "Milk and yogurt cause cancer" and "Japan people should not eat bread" along with messages such as "Do you eat dinner at home today?"

Satoshi kept telling his wife, "You are free to watch whatever you want, but please stop sending me links to videos one after another."

On the other hand, his wife has been acting as if Satoshi is not there for the past month or so.

Satoshi (pseudonym, 50s) "I guess he gave up because he couldn't say anything to me, and I stopped having a decent conversation with my husband and wife,
and I wonder what the accumulation was all about."

Satoshi is now worried that his wife has forgotten what he said and did in the past.

Three years ago, when the coronavirus pandemic was just beginning, they searched for masks and disinfectants together, and last year, they and their spouse cleaned the house together, and they don't seem to remember anything at all, saying, "Did that happen?"

On the contrary, he began to view himself as hostile because he did not believe what his wife said, and he began to openly ignore himself even in the presence of children.

Satoshi is beginning to worry that he will pretend that he has never been married.

Satoshi:
"Normally, I think that human beings have a single streak or core running through them, but my wife has the impression that the original core has been shattered, and two or three new cores have been formed for each thing she wants to believe. It seems to me that I am keeping myself alive by forgetting about the inconvenient."

The key word is "symbiosis"

Kimiaki Nishida, a professor at Rissho University who is familiar with mind control related to cult religions and malicious business methods, points out the characteristics of conspiracy theories and the mechanism of the mind that becomes addicted to them as follows.

1 Conspiracy theories say that when you find yourself in a difficult situation, such as feeling self-blockage, being angry at your
failures, or not being recognized by your family or those around you, you will be able to say that "it is not your fault" and "the world is actually unfairly distorted" and that "the painful situation is not your fault."

2 Self-absorption in the secret of a world where
self-esteem and self-esteem are satisfied, saying that "other people are not aware of it" and "only you are saying it".

3 I feel like I have been given social recognition and affirmationI want people around me to know how amazing I am,
and I want to contribute to society by telling people around me what is good. When they are denied by people close to them, they connect and group up on the Internet, further strengthening their narcissism.

The new view of society created in this way (= view through conspiracy theories) is strong, and it is not easy to return to the original state.

So, how should we deal with a family that is addicted to conspiracy theories and has lost communication?

The key word that Mr. Nishida mentions is "symbiosis."

It is a way of treating people who accept them as people with different values, do not deny them, and on the contrary, ask them to stop imposing on them.

In addition, it is necessary to look at what the "pain" mentioned in 1 that led to the infatuation of conspiracy theories was brought about.

He points out that if the connection with the people around you, rather than conspiracy theories, fills the "pain" and brings about the "self-affirmation" described in 2, it may be a chance to break through the situation.

Professor Kimiaki Nishida, Rissho
University: "It may not be easy to respect those who impose your ideas on you, but it is important to try to coexist with people who have different social perspectives and to continue to interact with them with an attitude of 'come back to me anytime' to prevent family disconnection."

(Scheduled to be broadcast on "Asaichi" in December)

News Post

We are looking for stories from people close to us who have become addicted to conspiracy theories.

Chiharu Kinukawa, Reporter
of the Science and Culture Department, joined
the Wakayama Bureau in 2016 and the Kyoto Bureau before joining the current
department.
From 2023, he will be in charge of the Consumer Affairs Agency and IT/Internet-related topics.