Posting fake emails perpetuates QAnon conspiracy theory

Posting fake emails perpetuates QAnon conspiracy theory

by
Chelsey Cox

| USA TODAY

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The claim: WikiLeaks has discovered a coded email involving Clinton, Obama in child sex trafficking

A recent Facebook post revisits a years-old conspiracy theory of pedophilia over a number of high-democrats and celebrities.

According to the founder, Julian Assange, according to the founder, Julian Assange, on the organization’s website an apparent scan of an e-mail published by WikiLeaks, a ‘giant library of the world’s most persecuted documents’ has.

The “email”, dated January 25, 2011, was allegedly sent by Hillary Clinton to former President Barack Obama. Clinton warns Obama that he is operating ‘the pizza arrangement’ at the ‘whitehouse’, calling the invitation ‘hot dogs’. A headline on the post read: “This is what Seth Rich died for. This is where it started to have pizza holes.”

Clinton, or ‘Hillary’ according to the signature, copied former assistant Huma Abedin; former White House Chief of Staff John Podesta; actor Ben Affleck and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the email.

USA TODAY reached the poster for comment.

The QAnon Conspiracy Theory

The conspiracy theory QAnon predicts the mass arrest of a ‘satanic cult’ of pedophiles and cannibals during an event called ‘The Storm’. It is believed that some democratic politicians and left-wing celebrities are elite cult members, USA reported TODAY.

The terms “pizza” and “sausage rolls” are code words for child prostitution. “Hot dogs” refers to boys and pizza, to girls, according to USA TODAY.

More: Fact test: Barack Obama did not spend $ 65,000 on prostitutes, codenamed ‘pizza’ and ‘hot dogs’.

Conspiracy theorists derived the code words from Alex Jones, the judge expert. He introduced the concept of ‘FBI code words for sex with children’ during a recording of his television program on August 1, 2018.

USA TODAY uncovered a series of QAnon conspiracy theories, including Pizzagate, that surfaced during the 2016 presidential campaign. The theory is that WikiLeaks e-mails discovered a ring for child sex trafficking run by then-Democratic presidential candidate Clinton from the basement of a pizza restaurant in Washington, DC.

More: Fact check: Reports mention fake records website to claim that Schiff, Pelosi was arrested

Who’s Seth Rich?

Seth Rich, the former Democratic National Committee associate mentioned in the Instagram post, was shot dead during a robbery attempt on July 10, 2016, according to USA TODAY.

WikiLeaks released thousands of hacked DNC emails later that month. Assange suggests that accusations from high-ranking members of the Democratic Party – including Hillary Clinton – that Russians helped WikiLeaks obtain the email suggested that Rich could be the source of the leaks in August 2016, the USA reported TODAY. His proposal launched several conspiracy theories.

As a guest on Fox News, Dallas businessman Ed Butowsky falsely attributed statements to Rich about the alleged email exchange with WikiLeaks. According to USA TODAY, a story about the allegations was removed from Fox News’ website a week after publication. The news network settled a case with Rich’s parents in November 2019, CNN reported this month.

Butowsky and Matt Couch, a self-proclaimed researcher and political analyst, according to his Twitter bio, retracted statements they made about Rich’s ties to WikiLeaks. The withdrawal was part of a settlement reached in 2018 with Aaron Rich, brother of Seth Rich, CNN reported. Couch advocates former President Donald Trump on his website, The DC Patriot.

Conservative newspaper The Washington Times also withdrew false claims according to CNN when he settled with Aaron Rich in October 2018.

A report compiled by Robert Mueller, the special advocate who had to investigate allegations of foreign interference in the 2016 election, revealed that Assange Rich had falsely implicated in the DNC email leaks, The New York Times reported in 2019.

Our rating: false

We rate this claim FALSE, based on our research. An Instagram post from an alleged email from Hillary Clinton is false and based on a fabricated conspiracy theory. Furthermore, an investigation into foreign interference during the 2016 presidential election revealed that Seth Rich, a late associate of the DNC, did not leak internal emails to WikiLeaks.

Our sources for fact checking:

  • WikiLeaks, 3 November 2015: “What is WikiLeaks”
  • Ballotpedia, visited on January 21: “Antoine Tucker”
  • Tucker for the US Senate, visits on January 22: “Let’s bring courage back to DC”
  • Twitter, visited on January 22: “Antoine Tucker for US Senate”
  • USA TODAY December 20, 2020: “Fact Check: Posts Mention False Records Website To Claim Schiff, Pelosi Arrested”
  • USA TODAY, August 23, 2020: “Fact test: Barack Obama did not spend $ 65,000 on prostitutes, codenamed ‘pizza’ and ‘hot dogs'”
  • Media Affairs for America, August 1, 2018: “Alex Jones: President Obama ‘had sex with 10 guys a day’ during taxpayer’s time
  • WikiLeaks The Global Intelligence Files, October 19, 2012: “RE: Get Ready for” Chicago Hot Dog Friday “
  • CNN, February 2, 2009: “Malveaux: Inside Obama’s Super Bowl Party”
  • September 17, 2020: “Debunked QAnon conspiracy theories flow into mainstream social media. Do not be fooled.”
  • USA TODAY, August 1, 2017: “Pack: Fox News, White House Collaborates on False News Story in Seth Rich’s Death”
  • USA TODAY 25 July 2016: “Experts: difficult to prove Russians behind DNC hack”
  • CNN, January 14: “Seth Rich conspiracy theorists withdraw and apologize for false statements if they resolve lawsuit”
  • USA TODAY May 23, 2017: “Fox removes website report on murdered DNC staff Seth Rich”
  • Twitter, visited on January 22: “Matt Couch”
  • The New York Times, April 20, 2019: “Seth Rich was not the source of leaky DNC emails, Mueller report confirms”
  • The DC Patriot, visits on January 22: “THE DC PATRIOT REAL NEWS IN REAL TIME”

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Our fact-checking work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook.

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