Category: Media
-
From Pizzagate to QAnon: how one conspiracy theory spawned a movement
QAnon didn’t appear from nowhere. Tracing the direct line from Pizzagate’s 2016 emergence reveals the architecture that turned a debunked rumor into a movement.
-
Whitney Webb and the independent reporters filling in the gaps
Independent investigative journalists like Whitney Webb are doing deep reporting the mainstream press can’t or won’t. Here’s the model and the tradeoffs.
-
Scientology and celebrity: why Hollywood became a recruiting ground
Scientology’s celebrity strategy isn’t accidental. The Celebrity Centre, targeted recruitment, and famous defectors reveal a deliberate plan to weaponize fame.
-
Comet Ping Pong: how a D.C. pizza restaurant became the target of a global conspiracy
Comet Ping Pong became the focus of one of the internet’s most consequential conspiracy theories. The restaurant, its owner, and its staff are still living with the consequences.
-
Survival Shows Create Unrealistic Expectations
Reality survival shows make wilderness mastery look attainable in a weekend course. The actual skills take years and the failures kill people.
-
Where 9/11 conspiracy theories actually came from
A timeline of the first 24 months after 9/11 traces how grief, gaps in official information, and early internet forums produced a durable conspiracy ecosystem.
-
Notable public figures who’ve flirted with 9/11 conspiracies — and what happened next
From actors to athletes to elected officials, several prominent figures have flirted with 9/11 conspiracy theories. The professional consequences vary widely.
-
The hijackers-are-still-alive claim and how the BBC retraction got distorted
A 2001 BBC story said some named 9/11 hijackers were alive. Conspiracy circles cite it constantly. The actual record is more complicated.
-
Popular Mechanics vs. the truther movement: revisiting the landmark 2005 debunking
In 2005, Popular Mechanics dismantled the major 9/11 conspiracy claims point by point. Twenty years on, here’s why that piece still matters and where it’s aged.