1

Escape from the rabbit hole: the conspiracy theorist

who abandoned his dangerous beliefs
For 15 years, Brent Lee spent hours each day consuming ‘truther’ content online. Then he
logged off. Can he convince his former friends to question their worldview?

Amelia Gentleman The Guardian Wed 4 Oct 2023 06.00 CEST

Brent Lee struggles to explain why he used to believe that a cabal of evil satanic pedophiles
was working to establish a new world order. He pauses, looks sheepish, and says: “I cringe
at all this now.”
For 15 years, Lee collected signs that so-called Illuminati overlords were controlling global
events. He convinced himself that secret societies were running politics, banks, religious 5
institutions, and the entertainment industry and that most terrorist attacks were actually
government-organized ritual sacrifices.
He was also inclined to believe in UFOs, and that Stanley Kubrick staged and directed the
filming of the moon landing. He saw satanic symbols in the London 2012 Olympics opening
ceremony and spent most of his time discussing these theories with an online 10 community of
fellow believers. But in 2018 something shifted, and he began to find the new wave of conspiracy
theories increasingly implausible. “I was sick of it. I felt, I can’t deal with hearing this anymore
because it’s no longer what I believe, so I just logged off the internet,” he says.
Now Lee is trying to help other conspiracy theorists question their worldview. He will 15 address
a conference in Poland on disinformation in October and has launched a podcast unpicking why
he held these beliefs so fervently and why he was so deluded. ……
…… As a former conspiracist, Lee hopes he will be better equipped to help people still caught up
in these beliefs. Rather than antagonizing them, he is able to take a more empathetic approach.
“These ideas aren’t alien to me – they are second nature. Most conspiracists 20 want a better
world. They think something bad has happened, and they want to expose it. I think if you can
lean into that with them, and say: ‘Yes, I understand why that would worry you, but perhaps it’s
not actually what’s happening.’ I think that’s a better way to approach it.”
He says it takes time and energy to help people dismantle the many layers of complex 25
theories. Concerned about the implications for free speech, he is not certain that greater online
regulation is part of the answer. “I usually tell friends and family members: ‘You are the best
person to do it. They will trust and respect you more than any stranger who challenges them, so
you are going to have to familiarize yourself with their beliefs. You also know how far you can
push them before they get annoyed, don’t cross that line. 30 Keep them close, be respectful, and
remind them that you value their concerns.”
So far, Lee’s attempts to save others have had limited success. He has been ostracized
by his former online community. “My first intention was just to bring my friends back
out of the rabbit hole – that backfired on me. They have completely cut me off, and
treated
me like a pariah.” Some have suggested that he has been paid off by “the elites”, but he 35 is
determined to persist. “There are friends and family of people caught up in this who contact me
to say: ‘Thank you for sharing this: you really believed in all this craziness, you were super deep
but you came out – and this gives us hope.’”

© David Ripley & Joe O’Callaghan, InThinking

http://www.thinkib.net/englishb
Vocabulary
In the following MCQs, choose the option which is the most correct meaning in the context.
1. When Brent Lee looks “sheepish” (l.2), this means he looks
A reluctant
B embarrassed
C frightened
2. When the Illuminati overlords are described as “so-called” (l.4), this indicates that
A the name has been given to them
B the name is a false cover
C they have given themselves this name
3. When Lee found conspiracy theories “implausible” (l.12), this suggests that he
A started to believe other ideas
B was persuaded by other people
C was no longer convinced by them
4. When Lee wants to avoid “antagonising” people (l.19), this means that he doesn’t want to
A disturb their world view
B make enemies of them
C make them upset
5. When his first intention “backfired” on him (l.34), this means that
A it had a negative effect
B it had no useful effect
C it had a great impact

Detailed understanding
In the following questions, mark whether the statement is True or False, and support your decision
with a precise (short) quotation from the text.
1. Lee thinks that the best way to help conspiracy theorists is to imagine how they see the world
True / False
TRUE
2. Most conspiracy theorists have an aggressive attitude towards the real world True / False
TRUE
3. Lee rejects online regulation because he doesn’t think it will work True / False
FALSE
4. Family and friends need to try to understand conspiracy theories True / False
FALSE
5. It is important to show conspiracy theorists that you can see why they are worried True /
False
TRUE
6. Lee still has friends among conspiracy theorists
True / False
FALSE

© David Ripley & Joe O’Callaghan, InThinking

http://www.thinkib.net/englishb