In the minutes and hours after a 20-year-old repeatedly shot at former president Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, social media platforms, message boards, and encrypted chat groups lit up with conspiracies about the shooting. From wild claims that the incident was a “deep state plot” …
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After President Joe Biden’s disastrous debate, speculations that Vice President Kamala Harris may fill the void are everywhere. Today on WIRED Politics Lab, how the far right is already pushing racist and misogynistic conspiracies that question Harris’ ability to be president. Plus, why RFK Jr. is looking to capitalize on …
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When Tigran Gambaryan was first invited in February to meet with the Nigerian government in order to settle a dispute with his employer, the cryptocurrency exchange Binance, Nigerian officials detained him against his will, stripped him of his passport, and told him he was a “guest” of the state. He's …
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The supposed Silicon Valley revolt happened even before the disastrous presidential debate. “The Blue Wall of tech is crumbling before our very eyes,” Ryan Selkis, the founder and CEO of Messari crypto, wrote on X last month. He was referencing a then-upcoming event: Just days after Donald Trump was convicted …
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Hey, everyone! It’s Makena. I’m back after a charming getaway to the Adirondacks. A lot has happened since I’ve been gone. Namely, what the heck is happening with Joe Biden and the Democratic nomination? Luckily, I spoke with Reid Hoffman, LinkedIn cofounder and Democratic mega-donor about Biden and whether Silicon …
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The presidential debate on June 27 between President Joe Biden and former president and convicted felon Donald Trump was widely panned as a shit show. Trump lied about issues like abortion, taxes, and the Capitol riot on January 6, while Biden struggled to respond to questions and appeared lost or …
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Over the past 18 months, Elon Musk’s X has become a hive of disinformation, particularly around breaking news events, such as the Gaza conflict and the Baltimore bridge collapse. But after Thursday’s presidential debate between President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump, the expected torrent of disinformation and conspiracies …
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Tonight, President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump will face off in what has traditionally been one of the most important events of each election cycle—the first presidential debate. For decades, these major television events have driven news cycles and provided the largest opportunities for candidates to speak directly …
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In recent weeks, as so-called cheapfake videoclips suggesting President Joe Biden is unfit for office have gone viral on social media, a Kremlin-affiliated disinformation network has been promoting a parody music video featuring Biden wearing a diaper and being pushed around in a wheelchair. The video is called “Bye, Bye …
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Today, the Supreme Court ruled in a 6–3 decision that the plaintiffs who'd sued the US government for allegedly violating the First Amendment—by communicating with social media companies about misleading and harmful content on their platforms—did not present enough evidence to prove that they had standing to sue. The case …
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