Long overlooked in the West, the Byzantine Empire has recently picked up interest among far-right and conspiracist circles. A historian of medieval culture explains what white supremacists get wrong.
The big question looming over QAnon: What happens after March 4?
Rick Loomis/Getty Images
Donald Trump didn't make a triumphant return on Jan. 20 and is unlikely to on March 4. How a 19th-century religion dealt with a similar disappointment may give clues on how QAnon supporters may react.
Google, Facebook, TikTok and Twitter have all agreed to a voluntary code of conduct targeting misinformation. But the only real commitment is to appear as though they're taking action.
A woman places painted rocks at a memorial to those killed in the 2018 Parkland, Florida, school shooting.
AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee
When many people believe the government is trying to take away their guns, events that make guns look bad can be misinterpreted as part of that nonexistent plan.
People who believe aliens have visited Earth are less likely to trust the 2020 election results.
Colin Anderson Productions pty ltd/DigitalVision via Getty Images
Americans who believe aliens have visited Earth are more likely than disbelievers to say that Joe Biden is not the legitimate winner of the 2020 presidential election.
A replica of Noah’s Ark from the biblical tale at the Ark Encounter theme park in Kentucky.
Lindasj22/Shutterstock
An inevitable part of the internet age, some conspiracy theories appear and then fade, but in the US particularly, creationism seems firmly embedded in religion, education and pseudoscience.
Theories that antibodies affect the placenta are completely unfounded.
Influencers and women without huge numbers of followers are more effective than others at debunking conspiracy theories on Chinese social media.
AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
The type and amount of misinformation closely tracks tensions in US-China relations. Effectively countering the misinformation comes down to who does the debunking.
Far-right groups like the Proud Boys, seen here marching in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 12, are increasingly organizing their activities on messaging services like Telegram.
Stephanie Keith/Getty Images
Prominent 'danger' signs are needed online to warn people about misinformation.
Protesters who claimed to be members of the far-right Proud Boys gather with other Trump supporters outside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Alex Edelman/AFP via Getty Images
Alex Newhouse, Middlebury Institute of International Studies
Millions of supporters of Donald Trump flocked to the far-right social media platform, where hate speech and calls for violence thrive. The US Capitol insurrection could be the platform's undoing.
The people who attacked the U.S. Capitol building lived up to their word to engage in violence.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images
Alex Newhouse, Middlebury Institute of International Studies
Trump supporters openly discussed forcing Congress and Vice President Pence to overturn the election results.
A supporter of President Donald Trump, seen wearing a QAnon shirt, is confronted by Capitol Police officers outside the Senate Chamber during the invasion of the U.S. Capitol.
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Conspiracy theories spread online are the backbone of Donald Trump's falsehoods about his loss in the U.S. election. The real world consequences of those conspiracies have now exploded.
A collapse in political legitimacy means people think the normal rules don't apply anymore, making the world a more difficult and even dangerous place for all of us.