A journalist who specializes in conspiracy theories draws on interviews with QAnon converts and victims as well as psychologists, sociologists and academics to explain the origin and growth of the movement, its embrace by right-wing media and politicians and why it's important to understand it rather than mock it.
An American journalist specializing in technology and conspiracy theories, Rothschild has been investigating QAnon since 2018 ... In clear, punchy prose Rothschild explains how the movement that started on a message board for white supremacists, antisemites and fans of hard-core porn moved into the mainstream, capturing the hearts of Instagram influencers as well as nearly 90 Republican candidates for the House of Representatives ... The Storm Is upon Us is an impressive piece of research and a gripping read. Unfortunately the storm is upon us, in the form of a vast online army that’s still here, and mad as hell.
In clear, punchy prose Rothschild explains how the movement that started on a message board for white supremacists, antisemites and fans of hard-core porn moved into the mainstream ... The story of QAnon has so many twists and turns, it’s sometimes hard to keep track. But Rothschild’s book reads like a thriller, with cliffhangers that leave you eager for the next episode ... Rothschild writes with compassion about some of those who have been sucked into it ... What he doesn’t quite do is explain the psychological leap that enables perfectly ordinary people to believe that liberals and Jews are child-trafficking paedophiles. Perhaps no one really can ... The Storm Is Upon Us is an impressive piece of research and a gripping read.
The book examines the internet-based conspiracies that led to the assault on the Capitol in forensic detail ... a profoundly sobering read for anyone who retains faith in the inevitable progress of human reason, or a belief that in a free-speech environment where all opinions are given equal weight, Enlightenment views will necessarily prevail over violent untruths ... His book examines all the theories about QAnon’s original identity, without needing to come to a conclusion.
