Death of a Movement

11th September 2026

Today, 25 years ago, the United States of America was hit by the biggest terror attack in history, committed by Osama bin Laden and 19 members of al-Qaeda. Almost 3,000 people died, and the world was changed forever.

Following the attack, a grassroots movement consisting of conspiracy theorists arose, known as the Truth Movement. Members were convinced that the official account was a lie and embarked on a journey trying to find evidence that the truth lay elsewhere.

A quarter of a century later, it must be factually and objectively concluded that the Truth Movement has failed to achieve its stated goal of a so-called “new, independent investigation” of the events. The movement has also failed to find evidence that the official account is a lie. Additionally, numerous factions within the movement have emerged, each with their own alternative explanation. Not a single faction has succeeded in presenting a logical, coherent description of events that fits their own explanation. Without exception, all of the alternative explanations have lacked evidence and been riddled with inconsistencies.

All activities – and to be fair, quite a few have been instigated – have amounted to nothing. Many campaigns and demonstrations have been held, unknown amounts of money have been collected for projects, not all of which have been terribly transparent, an impressive number of videos and podcasts have been produced, and innumerable opinions of fluctuating quality have been posted on social media. All in vain.

It is not sufficient to proclaim that the official account of the terror attack on September 11, 2001 is a lie, no matter how persistently it is done. No professional organisation has been persuaded, no politicians have initiated new, large-scale investigations, and no police force on the planet has started new investigations due to the efforts of the Truth Movement.

At one point, the movement claimed thousands of new members daily, but these have never manifested themselves, and those that did exist have largely vanished over the years. At the time of writing, the movement has a credibility comparable to other attempts at alternative reality perceptions, such as the view that Earth is hollow, crop circles are created by telekinetic space aliens, and that the Nazis built military bases on the dark side of the Moon. In fact, one of the most outrageous alternative reality perceptions, that Earth is flat, has far more adherents.

Facts are relentless. Each passing day, the Truth Movement is further from reaching its goal. The level of activity is non-existent. Members have fled the movement. Faced with this harsh reality, it must be concluded that the race is over. The Truth Movement has suffered a crushing, even contemptible defeat. Not because of a claimed oppression by powerful groups in society but only due to a lack of evidence and convincing arguments.

As is the case for all historical events, there is a distant, theoretical possibility of new, groundbreaking material emerging that will completely upturn the official account. In that eventuality, the material must fulfill four criteria: it must explain the events at least as well as the current account, it must explain why the current account is not true, it must prove that the relevant authorities have known the truth but lied about it, and, finally, it must convince those who should be convinced, the experts in the various fields.

Given that there are no signs that such material will emerge, we therefore consider it natural to declare that the Truth Movement is dead.

Steen Svanholm, 911facts.dk / Skeptica.dk

Claus Larsen, 911facts.dk / Skeptica.dk