‘Deep State’ conspiracies thrive in our messy and divisive cultural wars

Deep state fears gnaw at the anxiety and paranoia of the day. We are in a post-truth, alternative-fact nation driven by social media and divisive politics. Allegations of fake news have become a dangerous motif, keeping us unsure and off balance, which is where conspiracies, real and imagined, thrive. Our unease is often tied to larger agendas, from Facebook’s sharing of personal data to Edward Snowden’s leaks of classified information detailing how the National Security Agency runs surveillance on Americans. They move like chimeras, fleeting, gone until another revelation arises.