In early February 2019, a number of outlets began reporting on the “Peppa effect,” a purported trend causing American preschoolers who watched the show to speak in British accents. The claims were virtually guaranteed to achieve viral traction, probably owing to the number of parents across the United States whose young children watched the often …
Is ‘Peppa Pig’ Giving American Kids British Accents? Read More »
In the wake of the days-long Covington Catholic controversy, rumors spread about its central figures, Native American rights activist Nathan Phillips of the Omaha Nation and student Nick Sandmann. As the story continued to unfold, pushed along by a toxic social media brew of rumors, backtracking, and the usual swarms of bots and paid trolls, claims appeared about Phillips …
Is Nathan Phillips Lying About His Military Service in Order to Raise Money? Read More »
In late December 2018, the Facebook page for Yahoo! Now shared a link to an article with a comment that two-thirds of millennials “don’t know what Auschwitz was.” The post linked to an article aggregated to Yahoo! from Newsweek on April 12 2018, “One-Third of Americans Don’t Believe 6 Million Jews Were Murdered During the …
Do Two-Thirds of Millennials Not Know What Auschwitz Is? Read More »
In late December 2018, a screenshot of a tweet attributed to a Twitter user who goes by “@MAGA_diane” began circulating on social media: The tweet appeared with a link to a GoFundMe campaign to fund a border wall between the United States and Mexico (created and pushed by Brian Kolfage, who has a history of …
A highly publicized caravan of people traveling from Central America in order to turn themselves in at the United States border to request asylum — one of many groups who have done so over the years — has been dogged from start to finish by false stories and threats spurred by that disinformation. One large …
From Central America to the United States Border, a Journey of Lies Read More »
On November 29 2018, Twitter user @Plant_Phillips shared a transcribed image of a quote attributed to Charles Darwin: Even the most famous scientists have rough weeks. Charles Darwin, for example: “But I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything.” pic.twitter.com/o03pBG4ScI — Alyssa Phillips (@Plant_Phillips) November 30, 2018 A version was …
Did Charles Darwin Say He Hated ‘Everybody and Everything’ on a Difficult Day? Read More »
Special Counsel Robert Mueller has referred a possible scam to the Federal Bureau of Investigation after a number of reporters were contacted by someone apparently shopping a story about him sexually assaulting unidentified women: 13 days ago I received this tip alleging an attempt to pay off women to make up accusations of sexual misconduct …
Special Counsel’s Office Asks FBI to Investigate Smear Scheme Read More »
An unsettling week of threats and bombs sent to various high-profile political figures and pundits culminated in the arrest of a suspect in south Florida, a reckoning online, and a whole slew of conspiracy theories around the bombs and the culprit. Cesar Sayoc, Jr. already had a long list of convictions by the time he …
Suspect in Attempted Bomb Attacks Had History of Crime, Conspiracy Theories Read More »
Where mass communication is used to spread lies and disinformation and smear political enemies, stochastic terrorism follows.
Imagine, if you will: A presidential election in which even the most basic facts are riddled with confusing disinformation, a far-right candidate appealing to authoritarians and repulsing many women with misogynistic comments, and connections to political aspirants such as Marine Le Pen and Steve Bannon. This is Brazil in 2018, and the person who was …
Brazil Holds Election Amid Disinformation, Propaganda Crisis Read More »
