Scott Radnitz

Scott Radnitz is Herbert J. Ellison Professor of Russian and Eurasian Studies in the Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington. He is the author of Revealing Schemes: The Politics of Conspiracy in Russia and the Post-Soviet Region (2021) and coeditor of Enemies Within: The Global Politics of Fifth Columns (2022).

Where Conspiracy Theories Come From

There is nothing inherently menacing or antidemocratic about conspiracy theories. They can even be a source of amusement. The trouble comes when political elites weaponize them to invite violence.

April 2022, Volume 33, Issue 2

Why Democracy Fuels Conspiracy Theories

Conspiracy theories are not the sole preserve of dictatorships, but a global phenomenon. Worse, the political competition that is inherent to democracy is driving the spread of lies, fake schemes, and half-truths.

April 2006, Volume 17, Issue 2

What Really Happened in Kyrgyzstan?

The March 2005 “Tulip Revolution” that toppled President Askar Akeyev is often grouped with the “color revolutions” in Georgia and Ukraine, but in many ways the Kyrgyz case was unique.