Are Birds Real or Are They? Inside a Gen Z Conspiracy Theory.


Most Birds Are Not Real members, many of whom are part of an on-ground activism network called Bird Brigade, have grown up in a world full of misinformation. Some have relatives fell victim to conspiracy theories. So for Gen Z members, the movement has become a way of grappling with these experiences collectively. McIndoe said they found community and kinship by imitating conspiracy theorists.

“The Birds Are Not Real is not a shallow satire of outsider conspiracies. It comes from the deep,” he said. “A lot of people in our generation feel the madness of all this, and Birds Aren’t Real has been a way for people to understand that.”

Cameron Kasky, a 21-year-old Parkland, Fla. activist who helped organize the March for Our Lives student protest against gun violence and was involved with Birds Are Not Real, said the parody “makes you stop for a moment and laugh.” . In a uniquely bleak time to grow old, it doesn’t hurt to have something to laugh about together.”

Mr. McIndoe has also been seasoned with conspiracies. For the first 18 years, he grew up outside of Cincinnati and then in rural Arkansas with his seven siblings in a highly conservative and religious community. Homeschooled, he taught that “evolution is a grand brainwashing plan by the Democrats and Obama is the Antichrist”.

He has read books like “Remote Control” about what are said to be hidden anti-Christian messages from Hollywood. In high school, social media provided a gateway to mainstream culture. Mr. McIndoe started watching Philip DeFranco and other popular YouTubers talking about current events and popular culture, and took to Reddit to find new perspectives.

“I was brought up by the Internet because I found most of my real-life education there through documentaries and YouTube,” Mr. McIndoe said. “My entire understanding of the world has been shaped by the internet.”



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