CV / Resume

AREAS OF SPECIALISATION

Epistemology
Conspiracy theory theory
Philosophy of Science

AREAS OF COMPETENCY

Ethics
20th Century French Philosophy
19th Century German Philosophy

EDUCATION

PhD (Philosophy), University of Auckland, 3/2008-9/2012 (Viva held on 13/2/2012; passed with minor revisions)

  • Thesis title: In defence of conspiracy theories
  • Thesis supervisors: Drs. Jonathan McKeown-Green (Auckland) and Justine Kingsbury (Waikato)
  • Thesis examiners: Associate Professor Charles Pigden (Otago) and Dr. David Coady (Tasmania)
  • Academic field of interest: social epistemology, conspiracy theory theory

MA (Philosophy), University of Auckland, 3/1999-2/2001, Second Class Division with Honours

  • Disseration title: Omega and Geist: a comparison of the emerging mind of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin and G. W. F. Hegel
  • Disseration supervisor: Associate Professor Robert Wicks

BA (Double Major: Anthropology and Philosophy), University of Auckland, 3/1996-11/1998

  • Senior Prize in Philosophy

Postgraduate Diploma in Teaching (Primary), Massey University, 1/2014-11/2014

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

New Europe College, Bucharest, 1/3/2018-current

  • Fellow – Research project title: Towards an epistemology of secrecy

Institute for Research in the Humanities, University of Bucharest, 15/9/2016-15/9/2017

  • Fellow – Research project title: The Ethics of Investigation: When are we obliged to take conspiracy theories seriously?

Editor, Littlefield and Rowman, 11/2017-current

  • Editor of the forthcoming volume Taking Conspiracy Theories Seriously, 2018

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS AND COMMITMENTS

  • COST Action COMPACT (Comparative Analysis of Conspiracy Theories) – Romanian Representative
  • Social Epistemology and Reply Collective – Full member
  • Diametros – Reviewer
  • Journal of Cyber Policy – Reviewer
  • Philosophy of the Social Sciences – Reviewer
  • Political Studies – Reviewer
  • Social Epistemology – Reviewer

PUBLICATIONS

PEER-REVIEWED ARTICLES

“A (naive) view of conspiracy as collective action,” Filosofia e Collettività, 22, 2018, pp. 61-71

“The Problem of Conspiracism,” Argumenta 3(2), 2018, pp. 327-343. DOI: 10.23811/58.arg2017.den

“Expertise and conspiracy theories,” Social Epistemology, 32(3), 2018, pp. 196-208. DOI: 10.1080/02691728.2018.1440021

“Conspiracy theories on the basis of the evidence,” Synthese, 2017, DOI: 10.1007/s11229-017-1532-7

(with Martin Orr) “Conspiracies and Secrecy,” Episteme, 15(4), 2018, pp. 433-450, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/epi.2017.9

“The problem of fake news,” Public Reason, 8(1-2): 65-79, 2016

“When inferring to a conspiracy might be the best explanation,” Social Epistemology, 30(5), 2016, pp. 572-591, DOI: 10.1080/02691728.2016.1172362

BOOKS

Taking Conspiracy Theories Seriously (ed. M R. X. Dentith), Rowman and Littlefield, 2018, ISBN: 978-1-78660-828-4

The Philosophy of Conspiracy Theories, Palgrave Macmillan, 2014, ISBN: 978-1-137-36315-2

BOOK CHAPTERS

“What particularism about conspiracy theories entails” in Taking Conspiracy Theories Seriously (ed. M R. X. Dentith), Rowman and Littlefield, forthcoming 2018

“Taking conspiracy theories seriously and investigating them” in Taking Conspiracy Theories Seriously (ed. M R. X. Dentith), Rowman and Littlefield, forthcoming 2018

(with Martin Orr) “Clearing up some conceptual confusions about conspiracy theory theorizing” in Taking Conspiracy Theories Seriously (ed. M R. X. Dentith), Rowman and Littlefield, forthcoming 2018

(with Brian L. Keeley) “The applied epistemology of conspiracy theories” in The Routledge Handbook on Applied Epistemology, (eds. David Coady & James Chase), Routledge, 2018

“The Philosophy of Conspiracy Theory: Bringing the Epistemology of a Freighted Term into the Social Sciences” in Conspiracy Theories and the People Who Believe Them (ed. Joe Uscinski), Oxford University Press, 2018

“Have you Heard? – The Rumour as Reliable” in Rumours and Communication in Asia in the Internet Age (ed. Greg Dalziel), Routledge, 2013

OTHER

“Between Forteana and Skepticism,” Social Epistemology Review and Reply Collective, 7(11), 2018, https://wp.me/p1Bfg0-43y

“Conspiracy theories and their Investigator(s),” Social Epistemology Review and Reply Collective, 6(4): 4-11, 2017, http://wp.me/p1Bfg0-3xS

(with Martin Orr) “Clearing Up Some Conceptual Confusions About Conspiracy Theory Theorising,” Social Epistemology Review and Reply Collective, 6(1): 9-16, 2017, http://wp.me/p1Bfg0-3oY

“In defence of particularism: A reply to Stokes,” Social Epistemology Review and Reply Collective, 5(11): 27-33, 2016, http://wp.me/p1Bfg0-3jU

(with Lee Basham) “Social Science’s Conspiracy-Theory Panic: Now They Want to Cure Everyone,” Social Epistemology Review and Reply Collective, 5(10): 12-19, 2016

“Treating Conspiracy Theories Seriously: A Reply to Basham on Dentith,” Social Epistemology Review and Reply Collective, 5(9): 1-5, 2016, http://wp.me/p1Bfg0-3ak

(with Lee Basham) “Bad thinkers? Don’t be so gullible!,” 3 Quarks Daily, 2015, http://www.3quarksdaily.com/3quarksdaily/2015/08/bad-thinkers-dont-be-so-gullible.html CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS AND INVITED

TALKS & LECTURES

Institute for Research in the Humanities Seminar, “What is fake about fake news,” 6/2018

COST Action COMPACT Talk (Bilderberg), “Romanian conspiracy theories from the perspective of an outsider,” 5/2018

New Europe College Seminar, “Secrecy and Privacy,” 5/2018

Boise State University Public Lecture, “Investigating Conspiracy Theories: The case for treating conspiracy theories seriously, even the (apparently) ridiculous ones,” 11/2017

Munroe Center for Social Inquiry Seminar Series, CONSPIRACY THEORY – CONSPIRACY FACT: Understanding a perplexing social phenomenon, “Investigating Conspiracy Theories: The case for treating conspiracy theories seriously, even the (apparently) ridiculous ones,” 11/2017

Centrul de Cercetare in Etica Aplicata Seminar, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Bucharest, “What makes ‘fake news’ ‘fake’ news?,” 4/2017

CELFIS Seminar, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Bucharest, “Expertise and Conspiracy Theories,” 3/2017

Workshop on the Pathologies of Public Discourse, University of Copenhagen, “On Conspiracy Theories in Public Discourse,” 12/2016

Science and Conspiracy (SCIECONS), University of Padova, “Expertise and Conspiracy Theories: On the improvised nature of conspiracy theories and conspiracy theorising,” 12/2016

The Ethics of Conspiracy Theory Workshop, Deakin University, “Conspiracy Theories and the Ethics of Investigation,” 9/2016

Philosophy Society of Lund Seminar, Lund University, “Rationality and Conspiracy Theories,” 3/2016

Workshop on Conspiracy Theories, University of Turku, “When inferring to a conspiracy theory might be the best explanation,” 3/2016

Conference on Conspiracy Theories, University of Miami, “The Unknown Known and disagreements about conspiracy theories,” 3/2015

TEDxChristchurch, Christchurch, “Just because it’s a conspiracy theory doesn’t mean it’s not true,” 11/2014

The Centre for Excellence in National Security, Singapore, “Should we trust the Police? – A New Zealand Case Study,” 8/2013

Influence and Persuasion in the Formation and Sustainment of Social-Fringe Groups Workshop, Department of the US Airforce, Invited Attendee, 3/2012

The Centre for Excellence in National Security, Singapore, “Have Your Heard: The Rumour As Reliable,” 2/2010

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Professional Teaching Fellow, School of Psychological Medicine, University of Auckland, 3/2008-6/2013

  • Lecturing the small (approx. 18 students) third year Medical Humanities class, ‘Philosophy of Medicine’
  • Curriculum and assessment redesign for ‘Philosophy of Medicine’

Professional Teaching Fellow, Department of Philosophy, University of Auckland, 1/2009-6/2013

  • Lecturing the large (400+ students) undergraduate class ‘Introduction to Critical Thinking’
  • Curriculum and assessment redesign for ‘Introduction to Critical Thinking’
  • Tutoring the following papers: Introduction to Ethics; Metaphysical Structures of the World; Philosophy of Biology; Philosophy of Social Science; Problems in Epistemology

Tutor, Centre for Continuing Education, University of Auckland, 3/2008-6/2014

  • Course convenor and lecturer for adult education classes ‘Conspiracy Theories – Philosophy and Critical Thinking’ and ‘Introduction to Critical Thinking’

SELECTED MEDIA APPEARANCES

Co-host of The Podcaster’s Guide to the Conspiracy, 2014-current, http://conspiracism.podbean.com

Interviewed for Digi24, 2017, http://www.digi24.ro/opinii/cum-functioneaza-teoriile-conspiratiei-din-romania-pana-in-sua-interviu-cu-cercetatorul-matthew-dentith-731087

Interviewed for Scena9, 2017, http://www.scena9.ro/article/conspiratii-fake-news-matthew-dentith

Interviewed for Maszol, 2017, http://www.maszol.ro/index.php/hatter/78357-soros-fia-ciolo-es-tarsai-osszeeskuveselmelet-szakert-t-kerdeztunk

Interviewed for Fort Myer’s Florida Weekly, 2015, http://fortmyers.floridaweekly.com/news/2015-08-26/Top_News/conspiracy__theory__files.html

Interviewed for Media Take, 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2o1Mo1a5aM&feature=youtu.be

Interviewed for Media 3, 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAg-hECWQ8I&feature=youtu.be