Outlandish conspiracy theories circulated on X after a containership collided with a major bridge in Maryland, causing it to collapse, early Tuesday morning.
The ship hit a supporting structure of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which is located southeast of the Baltimore metropolitan area.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore declared a state of emergency and said the calamity that knocked down the bridge was most likely the result of an accident and not an act of terrorism. Moore told reporters that crew members of the Dali containership, which struck the Key Bridge on Tuesday morning, had notified authorities that they lost power.
As rescuers search for survivors, some online conspiracy theorists have attempted to uncover a nonexistent plot to explain the collision.
Major news events — like the pandemic, natural disasters and mass shootings — now consistently serve as fodder for fringe figures, many of them on the far right, to amplify their world views that often feature shadowy cabals or major unseen threats.
Once relegated to certain corners of the internet, these figures have flourished on X since Elon Musk acquired the platform and removed many of the rules that once tried to limit the spread of false claims. Musk has garnered backlash in the past for amplifying conspiracy theories and restoring accounts for known conspiracy theorists like Alex Jones. A spokesperson for X did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Some on Tuesday claimed that the shipping vessel came under “cyberattacks,” or that Covid-era lockdowns were to blame. There have been no reports suggesting that any of these conspiracies are remotely true. In response to some of the posts, X had a “readers added context” note/disclaimer, in which people fact-checked the posters.
But it’s not just so-called keyboard warriors who are posting the theories. Several conspiracies were elevated by public officials on TV and by those with massive followings on social media.
On Fox Business,…
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