Conspiracy Theory Poll Results

On our national poll this week we took the opportunity to poll 20 widespread and/or infamous conspiracy theories.  Many of these theories are well known to the public, others perhaps to just the darker corners of the internet.  Here’s what we found:

-          37% of voters believe global warming is a hoax, 51% do not. Republicans say global warming is a hoax by a 58-25 margin, Democrats disagree 11-77, and Independents are more split at  41-51. 61% of Romney voters believe global warming is a hoax

-          6% of voters believe Osama bin Laden is still alive

-          21% of voters say a UFO crashed in Roswell, NM in 1947 and the US government covered it up. More Romney voters (27%) than Obama voters (16%) believe in a UFO coverup

-          28% of voters believe secretive power elite with a globalist agenda is conspiring to eventually rule the world through an authoritarian world government, or New World Order.  A plurality of Romney voters (38%) believe in the New World Order compared to 35% who don’t

-          28% of voters believe Saddam Hussein was involved in the 9/11 attacks.  36% of Romney voters believe Saddam Hussein was involved in 9/11, 41% do not

-          20% of voters believe there is a link between childhood vaccines and autism, 51% do not

-          7% of voters think the moon landing was faked

-          13% of voters think Barack Obama is the anti-Christ, including 22% of Romney voters

-          Voters are split 44%-45% on whether Bush intentionally misled about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. 72% of Democrats think Bush lied about WMDs, Independents agree 48-45, just 13% of Republicans think so

-          29% of voters believe aliens exist

-          14% of voters say the CIA was instrumental in creating the crack cocaine epidemic in America’s inner cities in the 1980’s

-          9% of voters think the government adds fluoride to our water supply for sinister reasons (not just dental health)

-          4% of voters say they believe “lizard people” control our societies by gaining political power

-          51% of voters say a larger conspiracy was at work in the JFK assassination, just 25% say Oswald acted alone

-          14% of voters believe in Bigfoot

-          15% of voters say the government or the media adds mind-controlling technology to TV broadcast signals (the so-called Tinfoil Hat crowd)

-          5% believe exhaust seen in the sky behind airplanes is actually chemicals sprayed by the government for sinister reasons

-          15% of voters think the medical industry and the pharmaceutical industry “invent” new diseases to make money

-          Just 5% of voters believe that Paul McCartney actually died in 1966

-          11% of voters believe the US government allowed 9/11 to happen, 78% do not agree

Full results here

Comments

[David]

Thanks for the tipoff on the lizard people. I had been completely unaware of them.

[Earlyjam]

What percentage of 'educated' people believe statistical data presented to them without reading the actual study parameters, methods, style, etc.?

[Jdam]

As much as 1/3 of all "conspiracy theories" have been proven TRUE in later years. An additional 10% might also be true, without enough proof to back them up.

[Stella]

Your question 9/11 was an epic fail, because it is PROVEN that Bush lied.

Please, rephrase next time as follows:
Do you believe that the terrorists were manipulated by Americans, if yes:
-highest level US government official
-mid level (CIA/NSA/FBI)
-corporate America, mercenary companies.
-leftwing groups
-rightwing groups

Like many have said, your question on Aliens was a missed opportunity
Next time rephrase like this:
-Do you believe some sort of Alien life, even bacteria, exists? (My guess 99% yes)
-Do you believe that sentient life exists somewhere in te universe? (my guess 80% yes)
-Do you think we will see it in the next 100 years? (my guess 100% no)

[Anon]

@ZoeBrown - Actually the influenza vaccine contains mercury. And many others still do too. Since the 1930s some vaccines have contained the preservative thiomersal, which is metabolized or degraded to ethyl mercury.

[Captain Yossarian]

Public Policy Polling is widely known to be an owned
subsidiary and action arm tool of the Illuminati,who
are simply trying to deflect attention from themselves
onto a series of glittering distractions so that their
management of the human race can continue unobstructed.
100% of the reptile people will affirm this fact under
oath.

[Paul Rael]

Actually, there is some hard evidence to support the contention that the CIA was involved in trafficking crack in LA, that's not just wild speculation. You can start by watching the Director of the CIA John Deutch hold a town hall in LA about this very thing in the 90's. US Congressmen were there, too. Gary Webb won a Pulitzer Prize for breaking this story. Considering the fact that Reagan and CIA were busted red-handed trafficking arms to Iran to prop up the Contras, this one shouldn't be dismissed as just another conspiracy theory.