Prism Metanews is a media company founded to help Americans become better consumers of the news as they consume the news. We have built an anti-misinformation ethos and commitment to improving our audience’s media literacy directly into our business model--from the ground up, not as an afterthought. Learn more about who we are and what we’re doing on our Substack page, follow us on Twitter, or like us on Facebook!
Hey there! A lot gone on this week; let’s get into it.
First, the audit in Arizona is wrapping up without much to show for it--aside from a good helping of confused messaging and unwarranted claims of victory by the election fraud camp, including especially the QAnon community and those adjacent to it.
Over in Washington, Republicans have taken to blaming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for the violence on January 6th and building an alternative narrative that relieves them and Donald Trump of responsibility. Two more police officers who held the line on that day took their own lives. The January 6th Committee hearing from last week churned up angry, conspiratorial reactions to the police officers who testified about their experiences with the mob, including newly minted allegations of “crisis acting.”
New reporting came out about Trump’s final days in office and his misinformation-fueled pressure campaign to wield the Department of Justice and other instruments of government in an effort to cast doubt on the election result and remain in power.
Politicians and government officials are partnering with local social media influencers and using old-fashioned town halls to combat vaccine hesitancy, to varying degrees of success. Many vaccine abstainers have come to regret the decision to not get the shot. Notably, there are fewer Republicans now who say they will never be vaccinated compared to four months ago.
In platform news, Instagram’s algorithm is coming under scrutiny for how it promotes misinformation and hateful content. Facebook suspended the accounts of a team of NYU researchers studying misinformation related to political ads. Twitter announced a partnership with AP and Reuters to further its fact-checking program. Google ads are helping Gateway Pundit to make vaccine misinformation profitable. Trump-affiliated GETTR has seen jihadists bring anti-Western propaganda in quantity right to its users’ eyeballs.
Oh, and the sale of an insanely expensive Chicken McNugget got conspiracists talking about the transaction being a front for a child sex trafficking operation. So that happened.
These stories, and a lot more, below. This is This Week in Misinformation.
-- Kevin
ARIZONA AUDIT
'Botched': Arizona GOP's ballot count ends, troubles persist (@jjcooper via Associated Press)
Cyber Ninjas leader ignored records contradicting his false claim (@jeremyduda and @Garrett_Archer via ABC 15 Arizona and AZ Mirror)
Maricopa County Board of Supervisors letter to Arizona Senate regarding legislative subpoena (maricopa.gov)
Dominion, Maricopa County refuse to comply with state Senate subpoenas in Arizona audit (@JosefChoi via The Hill)
Statement from Senate President Karen Fann on Maricopa County noncompliance (azsenaterepublicans.com)
QAnon personality Ron Watkins hypes the subpoena deadline, State Senator Kelly Townsend reposts his misinformation (@az_rww via Twitter)
QAnon personality Ron Watkins claims to have information related to the Arizona election from a whistleblower (@CullenHoback via Twitter)
Thread: Ron Watkins’ whistleblower hype bears the hallmarks of previous disclosures that disappointed his followers (@rothschildmd via Twitter)
State Senator Wendy Rogers says Maricopa County Board of Supervisors and election machine executives will go to “solitary confinement” (@PokerPolitics via Twitter)
More Wendy Rogers tweets (@az_rww via Twitter)
Arizona judge orders Senate to hand audit records over to watchdog group (@weareoversight via Twitter)
JANUARY 6TH
550 charged so far in Capitol riot case, while 27 have pleaded guilty (@ClareHymes22, @CMcD123, and @ellee_watson via CBS News)
Virginia couple sentenced to probation on Capitol riot charge (@PeteWilliamsNBC via NBC News)
Anti-vax Virginia couple gets home detention on Capitol riot charge (@JordanOnRecord and @EricFlackTV via WUSA 9)
Already Distorting Jan. 6, G.O.P. Now Concocts Entire Counternarrative (@llerer and @npfandos via New York Times)
Opinion: Yes, Trump tried to stage a coup. By denying it, the right is laying the groundwork for another one. (@MaxBoot via Washington Post)
Rep. Mo Brooks seeks immunity from suit accusing him of inciting Jan. 6 insurrection (Washington Post)
Two more officers who responded to January 6 attack die by apparent suicide, bringing total to four (@cbszak via CBS News)
Fourth officer who responded to the US Capitol on January 6 dies by suicide (@MikevWUSA and @JordanOnRecord via WUSA 9)
QAnon Thinks Cop Suicides After the Capitol Riot Are a Cover-Up (VICE)
Right-wing personality Bill Mitchell suggests that Capitol Police officers are being killed before they can tell authorities that Antifa and BLM were the ones who attacked them on Jan. 6 (@az_rww via Twitter)
QAnon influencer DeAnna Lorraine claims the deep state is killing Capitol Police officers to cover up their knowledge that the Jan. 6 insurrection was really a "false flag" (@az_rww via Twitter)
What Mike Fanone Can't Forget (@mollyesque via Time)
Fact Check-D.C. officer Michael Fanone was not pictured carrying confederate flag at Capitol siege (Reuters)
These corporations just donated to a Republican group that helped create the January 6 mob (@JuddLegum via Popular Info)
THE 2020 ELECTION
Trump Pressed Justice Dept. to Declare Election Results Corrupt, Notes Show (@ktbenner via New York Times)
Trump’s aggressive efforts to overturn election results come to light (Vox)
DOJ officials rejected colleague's request to intervene in Georgia's election certification: Emails (@KFaulders and @alex_mallin via ABC News)
Analysis: The full picture of Trump's attempted coup is only starting to emerge (@zbyronwolf via CNN)
GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger says most Republicans in Congress privately don’t believe Trump’s election-fraud claims but repeat them in public anyway (@Finneganporter via Business Insider)
The Secret Source Who Helped Fuel Trump’s Big Lie (Mike Giglio via The New Yorker)
The Big Money Behind the Big Lie (@JaneMayerNYer via The New Yorker)
So, hey, it's August — is Trump being "reinstated" as president or what? (@ZTPetrizzo via Salon)
Kraken lawyers argue they shouldn't be sanctioned because “many Americans" believe the 2020 election wasn't fair (@KlasfeldReports via Twitter)
Mike Flynn lays out four election “outcome” scenarios, urges Trump supporters to get involved in local politics (@rothschildmd via Twitter)
Mike Lindell walks back promise to share “packet captures” with reporters at cyber symposium (@ZTPetrizzo via Twitter)
MyPillow to Pull Ads From Fox News in Disagreement With Network (@AlexaCorse and @BenMullin via Wall Street Journal)
Alex Jones uses lies about Dominion Voting Systems and the 2020 election to line his pockets (@timothywjohnson via Media Matters)
Trump’s false election fraud claims fuel Michigan GOP meltdown (@NolanDMcCaskill via Politico)
VACCINES, ETC.
To Fight Vaccine Lies, Authorities Recruit an ‘Influencer Army’ (@TaylorLorenz via New York Times)
Arkansas governor says he regrets signing ban on mask mandates (@Lexi_Lonas via The Hill)
Video: Anti-vaccine activists shout down Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson during a COVID-19 townhall meeting (Newsweek via Twitter)
'Very glad I was vaccinated': GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham tests positive for Covid (@Teaganne_Finn and @GarrettHaake via NBC News)
How Local Media Spreads Misinformation From Vaccine Skeptics (@sheeraf and @tiffkhsu via New York Times)
FSMB: Spreading COVID-19 Vaccine Misinformation May Put Medical License at Risk (Federation of State Medical Boards)
Polls show that the number of Republican saying they will never be vaccinated is down since April (@FrankLuntz via Twitter)
“I Don’t Believe Anything”: Among the Unvaccinated in One Central Texas Community (@mkerrhardy via Texas Monthly)
Take It From Them: Americans Hospitalized With Covid Regret Not Getting the Vaccine (@ryanbort via Rolling Stone)
Virginia Covid patient goes from 'invincible' to hospital-bed vaccine advocate (NBC News)
Father of 5 Dies After Texting Fiancée, 'I Should Have Gotten the Damn Vaccine' (@xanderlanden via Newsweek)
People in Missouri Are Getting the COVID Vaccine in Disguise, Doc Says (@blakersdozen via Daily Beast)
Leaked chats from this prominent anti-COVID vaccine group show members secretly share QAnon conspiracies (@clairenjax via Daily Dot)
New York Times article prompts vaccine opponent Joseph Mercola to take down his blogs (@sheeraf via Twitter)
A top spreader of coronavirus misinformation says he will delete his posts after 48 hours (@daveyalba via New York Times)
Charlie Kirk’s anti-vax campaign (@JasonSCampbell via Media Matters)
Twitter suspends vaccine opponent and frequent Fox guest Alex Berenson; Senator Ron Johnson outraged and boosts Berenson’s Substack (@SenRonJohnson via Twitter)
Senior editor at Reason on Twitter’s action against Berenson (@robbysoave via Twitter)
Analysis: Actually, Sen. Johnson, being consistently and dangerously misleading is not courageous (@pbump via Washington Post)
Thread: Misleading and irresponsible headlines in mainstream media are contributing to the pandemic misinformation problem (@CT_Bergstrom via Twitter)
Tucker Carlson praises Alex Jones’ COVID commentary (Media Matters)
Opinion: Can Fox News Really Be Sued for Vaccine Misinformation? (@DanNovack via Hollywood Reporter)
Debunking claims that anti-vaccine protesters in California are paid actors (@QOrigins via Twitter)
Getting the ‘vaccine mandates’ story right (@Jon_Allsop via Columbia Journalism Review)
New York City to require vaccination for indoor activities, restaurants, gyms (@NateWeixel via The Hill)
QANON & COMPANY
QAnon followers distance themselves from the movement's most bizarre conspiracy theories as they rebrand (@willcarless with @travis_view, @rothschildmd, @jaredlholt, and @mmfa via USA Today)
QAnon believer to plead guilty to attacking soldiers (@billmiston via Fox 6 Milwaukee)
‘Devolution’ is in fashion with QAnon, but its main promoter says he doesn’t know much about Q (@PokerPolitics via Twitter)
In Wisconsin, GOP Rep. Timothy Ramthun fundraises for an Arizona-style forensic audit by posting a Q-inspired video (@daithaigilbert via Twitter)
QAnon influencer QAnon John announces that Michael Flynn will be attending the next QAnon conference in Las Vegas (@AlKapDC via Twitter)
Video: The 1:17 clip that Ron Watkins assured his followers would prove all the election fraud, but which does nothing of the kind (@2021_Karma via Twitter)
QAnon influencer Ghost Ezra polls followers on whether the FDA will approve the COVID vaccine (@PokerPolitics via Twitter)
8kun owner Jim Watkins suggests Q, inactive since December anyway, could leave /qresearch/ channel on the platform (@AlKapDC via Twitter)
PLATFORMS
Spotting Misinformation On Social Media Is Increasingly Challenging (@PeterSuciu via Forbes)
Opinion: Section 230 critics are forgetting about the First Amendment (@mathewi via Columbia Journalism Review)
Malgorithm: How Instagram's algorithm publishes misinformation and hate to millions during a pandemic (Center for Countering Digital Hate)
Thread: NYU Ad Observatory researcher explains her and her colleagues’ Facebook accounts were suspended as they sought to identify misinformation related to political ads on the platform (@LauraEdelson2 via Twitter)
Facebook Just Suspended the Accounts of Some of Its Biggest Critics (@daithaigilbert via VICE)
Facebook and academics row over data access (BBC)
Research Cannot Be the Justification for Compromising People’s Privacy (Facebook)
NYU Ad Observatory permits users to voluntarily donate information about only the ads they received from advertisers, doesn’t ‘scrape’ user data (@ashk4n via Twitter)
More on the lead up to Facebook’s action: researchers told the company it was beginning to look at January 6th (@justinhendrix via Twitter)
Facebook shuts out NYU academics’ research on political ads (@BarbaraOrtutay via Associated Press)
Facebook: Damian Collins and US politicians criticise data ban (BBC)
Facebook’s Reason for Banning Researchers Doesn’t Hold Up (@GiladEdelman via WIRED)
She risked everything to expose Facebook. Now she’s telling her story. (@_KarenHao via MIT Technology Review)
Survey Examines COVID-19 Misinformation on Facebook (@EvanRGarcia via Window To The World)
Twitter works with news sites to tackle disinformation (@Beth_LeahT via BBC)
Twitter Partners With AP, Reuters to Battle Misinformation on Its Site (Newsmax)
Twitter partners with AP and Reuters to address misinformation on its platform (@sarahintampa via TechCrunch)
Reuters partners with Twitter to help identify and contextualize emerging narratives on social media (Reuters)
How ‘Gateway Pundit’ Used Vaccine And Election Misinformation To Earn $1.1 Million In Google Ad Revenue (@xabramdu via Forbes)
Jihadists flood pro-Trump social network with propaganda (@markscott82 and @tina_nguyen via Politico)
GOVERNMENT/PUBLIC POLICY
Social Media: Misinformation and Content Moderation Issues for Congress (crsreports.congress.gov h/t @fbaker)
Democrats Want To Hold Social Media Companies Responsible For Health Misinformation (@shannonpareil via NPR)
Thread: Commentary on misinformation from elected officials (@NovelSci via Twitter)
GENERAL/OTHER
Infowars is evading its ban on Roku (@AlKapDC via Media Matters)
A $100,000 Chicken McNugget Triggered a Child-Sex-Trafficking Conspiracy Theory (@ejdickson via Rolling Stone)
Why the Bourdain Fake Audios are a Problem for Journalism (@dicktofel via Substack)