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full screen Marie Grusell. Photo: Karin Malmhav / TT
Almost as soon as the shots fell silent at the campaign rally in Butler, a wave of conspiracy theories washed over the Internet.
Everything from claims that Biden is behind it to the shooting being fake spread like wildfire.
– This is just the beginning, there will be a tsunami wave of false rumors on social media, says media researcher Marie Grusell.
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Law enforcement officials quickly launched an investigation into the shooting of Donald Trump on Saturday night as an attempted murder, without providing any details. A stream of unsubstantiated theories flooded social media and other channels shortly after the incident.
In the current political environment where Americans can increasingly rarely agree on a common set of facts, the dynamic is only getting worse, experts say. It leads to more and more people existing in alternative and separate realities, reports the Washington Post.
TikTok user with 1.2 million followers: “Guys, don’t forget, this is what the left can do”
Right-wing social media profiles and elected Republicans suggested that high-ranking officials were behind, directly or indirectly, the attempt. Republican politician Mike Collins posted on X that “Joe Biden sent the orders,” garnering over 4 million views, and later called for Biden to be charged with “inciting a murder.”
More broadly on social media, a TikTok user who posts under the username @theoldermillenial.1 told his 1.2 million followers, “I guess since the court cases didn’t go so well, they decided to try another route. Guys, forget no, this is what the left can do”.
Many others believed that Biden, the left wing and the media were responsible for the act.
The word “staged” appeared on X, as people online speculated that the scene was made up. Thousands of people shared unsubstantiated claims that the shots came from a BB gun.
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fullscreenJoe Biden. Photo: Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP
ChatGPT completely denied the shooting
AI chatbots had not yet caught up to the events of Saturday night when a Washington Post reporter tried to ask it questions.
When asked if someone tried to shoot Trump, ChatGPT said “there has not been a recent attempt to shoot the former president”.
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full screenTrump after the shooting. Photo: Gene J. Puskar / AP
Experts: “Please exercise empathy and caution”
Now experts are urging the public not to share unverified information online.
“In any fast-moving event, there is inevitably a large influx of false or unverified information, especially on social media,” writes Graham Brookie, the Atlantic Council’s vice president of technology programs and strategy, in a post on X. “Please exercise empathy and caution as events unfold.”
The rumors have only just begun
The rumors and theories have already started, but according to Marie Grusell, media researcher at Gothenburg University, it is only the beginning.
– As I understand it, the shooter is a Republican, but he has donated money to the Democrats. This is just the beginning, more rumors will be created.
In a few days we will read about even more conspiracy theories.
– What differs from previous assassination attempts on presidents or presidential candidates is that there are so many more pictures and videos. They will be used to substantiate rumors and conspiracy theories.
A consequence of the shooting is that the media and media reporting will be reviewed, and security measures will be tightened.
– It is shocking. It creates a lot of emotions. I myself am shocked by what has happened, says Grusell.