Conspiracy theories are everywhere. Rumors, hidden messages, clues, and traces weave together into compelling stories of misused power and hidden influences; these networks of discourse call into question the accepted order of things, suggesting that the truth will set us free when, in fact, these theories call into question the very nature of truth itself. We want to believe. This class will explore the form and function of conspiracy theories in modern media and culture. Exploring the aesthetics of paranoia, our seminar will explore how media technologies from cinema to social media frame and disseminate the excessive meaning inherent to conspiracy theories and false idols. We will look at case studies and examples ranging from CIA operations, communist takeovers, UFO cover-ups, and shadowy deep-state agents to Satanic rituals, presidential assassinations, flat-earthers, and lizard people (to name only a few). To explore these instances of paranoid forms in our discourse networks, we will consider why conspiracy theories seem to flourish in American culture, particularly in the 21st century and ask how conspiracy works at the intersections of race, gender, sexuality, and class.