crisis actor

[krahy-sis ak-ter]

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.

Word History and Origins

Origin of crisis actor¹

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

To her, the concept of Pallywood is no more credible than the “crisis actor” conspiracy theories used to deny mass shootings in America, like the one at Sandy Hook.

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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.

Read more on Salon

It claimed that a patient interviewed after the attack - who was standing and appeared uninjured - and the woman on the stretcher were the same person and that she had been a crisis actor.

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It claimed that a patient interviewed after the attack — who was standing and appeared uninjured — and the woman on the stretcher were the same person and that she had been a crisis actor.

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Ms. Kelly has asserted that the Biden administration is “on a destructive crusade to exact revenge against supporters of Donald Trump” and has accused Mr. Fanone, who was beaten unconscious by the rioters at the Capitol, of being a “crisis actor.”

Read more on New York Times