CBC-TV documentary 'Conspiracy Rising," which interviews David Smith, is set to air March 8th

Livingstone Smith, Ph.D., associate professor of philosophy, is interviewed in a CBC-TV documentary 'Conspiracy Rising' that is re-scheduled to air in Canada  March 8, 2011. 

Set against the global socio-political landscape, 'Conspiracy Rising' uses science and psychology to investigate the causes of conspiracy theories, why we are wired to believe them, and how as a society it is imperative that we separate the fantasies from the real threats. Although originally scheduled to air Oct. 20, 2011, it was postponed because of coverage of the death of Muammar el-Qaddafi.

Smith was quoted in an October Winnipeg Free Press review of the film that included a large photo of Smith looking over the ongoing construction on the former World Trade Center site.

In the review Smith says: "It looks like being certain - even of something which is very terrible and very frightening - may be psychologically preferable - at least, to many people - to being in doubt (and) being uncertain. Because if you're uncertain, you're suspended (and) you don't know what stance to take."

Smith is the author of The Most Dangerous Animal: Human Nature and the Origins of War, Less Than Human: Why We Demean, Enslave, and Exterminate Others, and Why We Lie: The Evolutionary Roots of Deception and the Unconscious Mind. Smith recently discussed his book Less than Human on NPR's Talk of the Nation and on WCSH6 TV's 207 news magazine.  Read more.

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