Michael Butter

Michael Butter is a Professor of American Literary and Cultural History at the University of Tübingen (since 2014). He holds a PhD (2007, University of Bonn) and Habilitation (2012, University of Freiburg). As Principal Investigator of the ERC-funded PACT (Populism and Conspiracy Theory) and co-PI of the CHANSE project REDACT (Researching Europe, Digitalisation and Conspiracy Theory), he leads interdisciplinary research on conspiratorial thinking and populist movements.

• Research Interests: Conspiracy theories, populism, heroism construction, cultural studies, American culture post-9/11, early American republic, and popular culture
• Publications: Author of five monographs including Plots, Designs, and Schemes and the award-winning Nichts ist, wie es scheint (translated as The Nature of Conspiracy Theories)
• Contributions: Regularly contributes to Die Zeit, Der Spiegel, and The Conversation, with 2021 Tübingen Prize for Knowledge Communication

Key Projects: Focus on populism-conspiracy intersections (PACT) and digital impacts on conspiratorial discourse (REDACT), with fieldwork in six countries. His work combines discourse analysis, ethnographic methods, and historical comparative approaches.