Elon Musk’s Soap Operas for Conspiracy Buffs
Online fantasies are now an excuse to take apart the government.
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Illustration by Michael Houtz. Source: Chesnot / Getty Rumors on X Are Becoming the Right’s New Reality
The site formerly known as Twitter has become the center of a fantastical political culture.
Illustration by The Atlantic My Encounter With the Fantasy-Industrial Complex
Online conspiracy theorists turned me into “CIA Renee.”
Illustration by Paul Spella / The Atlantic. Source: Getty. The Twitter Files Are a Missed Opportunity
No one really knows what Elon Musk’s company is doing to free speech.
Joshua Lott / Getty Arizona’s ‘Tricky Voting Machines’ Sounds Suspiciously Familiar
In political conspiracy theories, as in television shows, the plot elements are always the same.
Shutterstock / The Atlantic Elon Musk Is Fighting for Attention, Not Free Speech
The social-media platform isn’t a public square. It’s a gladiatorial arena.
Adam Maida / The Atlantic The Ukraine Crisis Briefly Put America’s Culture War in Perspective
When something real happened, Americans found a way to pay attention.
Adam Maida / The Atlantic; Getty It’s Not Misinformation. It’s Amplified Propaganda.
You don’t need fake accounts to spread ampliganda online. Real people will happily do it.
Getty; The Atlantic Institutional Authority Has Vanished. Wikipedia Points to the Answer.
The crowdsourced reference site can teach the CDC how to communicate in an era of rumors and shifting information.
The Atlantic The Anti-Vaccine Influencers Who Are Merely Asking Questions
Institutional experts haven’t adapted to today’s media ecosystem. Other commentators are filling the gap.
Adam Maida / The Atlantic / Getty
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