crisis actor

American  

[krahy-sis ak-ter] / ˈkraɪ sɪs ˌæk tər /

noun

1. a professional or volunteer actor who plays a role in a staged drill in order to prepare or train first responders for a specific emergency scenario.

2. (in a false flag conspiracy theory) a person pretending to be a victim in a hoax attack.

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Etymology

Origin of crisis actor

First recorded in 1975–80 in the sense “independent person, group, or state that engages in disruptive or hostile verbal or physical behavior in international relations”; crisis actor defs. 1, 2 were first recorded in 2010–15

Example Sentences

In the aftermath of the Sydney attack, online users circulated an authentic image of one of the survivors, falsely claiming he was a "crisis actor," disinformation watchdog NewsGuard reported.

From Barron's • Dec. 16, 2025

The day after the shooting he accused one of the grieving parents who made a televised statement on behalf of the families, Robbie Parker, of being a crisis actor.

From Salon • Mar. 26, 2024

Soto Parisi described seeing social media comments claiming that she was a crisis actor, that her sister wasn’t shot or didn’t exist, and that the massacre never happened.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 14, 2022

She was born in Louisiana, raised in Minnesota, and now lives in Texas - a set of facts that leads internet conspiracy theorists to accuse her of being a "crisis actor" and a hoaxer.

From BBC • Jul. 10, 2017

“I’m getting hang up calls, I’m getting some calls, I’m getting emails with, not direct threats, but accusations that I’m lying, that I’m a crisis actor, ‘how much am I being paid’?”

From Salon • Jan. 15, 2013