Folklore is often positioned at the center of critical social issues. While folklorists have acknowledged this power and explored how folklore has been used for political ends, far less attention has been paid to the role folklorists and folklore scholarship can play in addressing contemporary social issues in public discourse. Folklore in the Public Square explores how folklorists apply their research to engage general audiences and address the challenging issues we face daily.

Folklore in the Public Square brings together folklorists working in the humanities and the social sciences committed to applying their research to help solve contemporary social challenges, formalizing an undercurrent of thought that has gained growing attention. Case studies apply ethical research to address pervasive questions about the environment, poverty, health and healthcare, political partisanship, war, tourism, stigma, racism, and conspiracy theories, among others. Building on conversations raised by folklorists who have contributed to public programming or conducted collaborative research in local communities, this book appeals to anyone interested in contemporary social issues, applied research, or collaborative and ethical fieldwork.

Whispers in the Echo Chamber: Folklore and the Role of Conspiracy Theory in Contemporary Society makes the case that conspiracy theories are fundamentally a folklore genre, akin to and often involving other belief narratives like rumor and legend. The editors and contributors show that studying conspiracy theories using the tools of folkloristics is a fruitful and necessary analytical exercise. The volume’s three parts lay out folkloristic approaches to conspiracy theories; ways folkloristics can help us understand how conspiracy theories are constructed; and how the genre of conspiracy theories interacts with particular, contemporary political contexts. 

This timely volume complements studies from political science, sociology, psychology, history, and more, while also crucially calling for the field of folklore studies to engage more assertively with conspiracy theories as a genre. Focusing on modern iterations of sometimes quite ancient conspiracy motifs and themes, the editors and contributors forcibly illustrate the crucial relevance of this prevalent and influential form of folklore in today’s interconnected world.

Contributors: Matthew D. Atkinson, John Bodner, Ian Brodie, Darin DeWitt, Bill Ellis, Jesse A. Fivecoate, Sandra Grady, David Guignion, Pavan Holur, Andrea Kitta, Afsane Rezaei, Vwani Roychowdhury, Lisa M. Ruch, Shadi Shahsavari, Timothy R. Tangherlini, Jeannie Banks Thomas, Anika Wilson