Diane Winston, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
A religion scholar explains how Ronald Reagan invoked religion and shifted the American notion of a good society – a vision that might resonate with the politics of today.
A man wearing a T-shirt alluding to the QAnon misinformation campaign walks through the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 incursion.
AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta
Emilio Ferrara, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Twitter bots amplify conspiracy theories, including the so-called ‘collective delusion’ that is QAnon, making them appear more popular and able to reach more real humans.
People display Qanon messages on cardboards during a political rally in Bucharest, Romania on Aug. 10, 2020.
(Shutterstock)
The QAnon conspiracy movement is the latest in a long line of moral panics that emerge as a response to change. False theories are used to undermine claims to social justice raised by marginalized groups.
Donald Trump said followers of conspiracy theory ‘are very much against pedophilia.’ What he didn’t mention was the demonic imagery and language that peppers QAnon posts.
Romanian supporters of the QAnon conspiracy theories shout slogans against the government’s measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 infections, like wearing a face mask, during a rally in Bucharest in August.
(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Facebook and YouTube have brought in measures to stop the spread of dangerous QAnon conspiracies, but members of the Q community have found new ways to promote false theories on social media.
What was once the stuff of urban legends now spreads virally through social media claims the tunnels beneath our cities are used for child trafficking. The truth is both more mundane and important.
The fringe QAnon conspiracy theory has been creeping into the mainstream.
Rick Loomis/Getty Images
QAnon is gaining ground in Australia due to a growing distrust in the government and media, part of which is rooted in a perceived lack of transparency over the coronavirus response and restrictions.
Our desire to condemn and punish non-cooperative behaviour is strong. But we must also try to understand the complex emotional motivations of those refusing to wear masks.
QAnon conspiracists think Trump’s ‘secret war’ against an elite celebrity ‘deep state’ network will eventually lead to a day of reckoning where his opponents will fall.
A man holds a sign that reads ‘Q-Nited We Stand’ during a gun-rights rally held in Seattle in 2018. The QAnon community has moved from the fringes of the internet to mainstream politics in less than three years.
(AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Believers of QAnon fringe conspiracy theories have moved into the mainstream political arena, including several who will be running as Republican candidates in the U.S. elections this fall.
Obamagate is strongly linked to the QAnon conspiracy theory – on Twitter these hashtags are frequently used alongside each other.
QAnon, which fans the flames of wild and dangerous conspiracy theories, is being incorporated into some fringe religious movements.
Photo Illustration/The Conversation
The QAnon movement that’s based on conspiracy theories is now being used by some charismatic Christians as a way to interpret the Bible. It’s a dangerous mix of religion and false information.
Followers of the QAnon movement, shown here at a 2018 rally in Pennsylvania for President Donald Trump, use social platforms to spread conspiracy theories. False information from the QAnon community about the coronavirus pandemic is a public health hazard.
(AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
QAnon refers to the online community that believes in conspiracy theories about Donald Trump and the so-called deep state, and is spreading harmful misinformation about COVID-19.