Conspiracies - How Important ARE they in human history ?

Question:

Conspiracies - How Important ARE they in human history ?

The mass media is keen that we do not believe in conspiracies. And yet 'official' conspiracies are sold to us over and over. How important ARE conspiracies in human history and why are we discouraged from believing in their reality ?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: As other answers have pointed out the word conspiracy can cover a lot of activities. However if you are asking about the "conspiracy" theories that seek to explain the world in terms of secret societies or groups within the government that are actually in control, the answer is the reporters in the media do not find them very believable. It is a form of wishful thinking to believe that some clever powerful group is actually running things instead that we are at the mercy of the stupidities and incompetence of our leaders and subject to the random events that determine history. The media fears that people who believe in such conspiracies will not pay attention to the problems that can be corrected by an informed public and will ignore real issues that effect our everyday lives, like corporate and government corruption that is the "small conspiracies".