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'World Economic Forun is an open conspiracy': Internet reacts to 'bizarre' Davos theories that went viral

The World Economic Forum has become the target of conspiracy theorists online who have publicized some truly bizarre ideas in the past

DAVOS, SWITZERLAND : The World Economic Forum (WEF), which is held in the Swiss ski resort town of Davos, opened on Monday, January 16, to discuss pressing international issues. This year's theme, 'Cooperation in a Fragmented World,' discusses the tectonic shift in global markets and political relationships that have been disrupted and rewired since the pandemic. 

However, WEF has become the target of conspiracy theorists online who believe world leaders are up to no good, gathering to force certain agendas on the world's population. While this sort of theorizing is nothing new, there are quite a few truly bizarre theories that have done the rounds and gained mainstream traction -- like leaders forcing people to eat insects instead of meat in order to save the environment and Klaus Schwab encouraging legislation to decriminalize sex between aduts and minors. 

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According to AP, the theory popped up last month on a site reportedly known for spreading false news and misinformation called News Punch. It falsely claimed that a research paper presented at the forum described pedophilia as “nature’s attempt to cleanse the earth and ‘save humanity’ from itself.” Yann Zopf, the head of media for WEF, told the Associated Press, “This is of course completely made up,” referring to the claims.  

Conspiracy theorists believe the forum involves a group of elites manipulating global events for their own benefit. Experts say that what was once the domain of conspiracy theorists found on the Internet’s underbelly has now hit the mainstream. "This isn’t a conspiracy that is playing out on the extreme fringes," said Alex Friedfeld, a researcher with the Anti-Defamation League who studies anti-government extremism. “We’re seeing it on mainstream social media platforms, being shared by regular Americans. We're seeing it being spread by mainstream media figures right on their prime time news, on their nightly networks.”

For instance, one theory gained tremendous traction based on the theme of the 2020 World Economic Forum. The theme was 'The Great Reset' which led theorists to believe that the subsequen pandemic lockdowns, vaccine mandates, and other measure were tools to gain power while undercutting individual sovereignty. Alex Jones, who called the Sandy Hook school shooting a hoax, wrote the book "The Great Reset: And The War For the World." The book is described as an analysis of “the global elite’s international conspiracy to enslave humanity and all life on the planet.”

These theories do sound outlandish but many believers on the Internet think otherwise. One Twitter user posted a very interesting thread pointing out why he believes all these theories are true. In the first tweet of his thread he mentions, "all these theories originated in Davos from WEF’s own website. But now, WEF is deleting them." Another user says, "Those conspiracy theories are indeed true since most of the popular media companies are ruling out these theories; which is a clear signal these theories are a threat to the secrets these elites keep, because the media would never tell people the real truth about government affairs." A tweet read, "By “bizarre claims” do you mean the ones that they post on their website?" Commenting on a tweet by AP on the 'bizzare' theories, one conspiracy theorist remarked, "The only “bizarre” thing is you believe anyone still trusts you." Another user says, "It's literally what the WEF is and is doing. They say so themselves. The WEF is a conspiracy out in the open. There's no theory about it." One user retweeted a video of Klaus Schwab saying the biggest obstacle is the middle class, in his retweet the user said, "Here is Klaus Schwab saying the biggest obstacle is the middle class. Yet the AP tells us our concerns are bizarre."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.