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Steven Lee Myers, the aptly titled “misinformation and disinformation” writer for The New York Times, published a piece on Tuesday blaming conservatives for the anarchy in Los Angeles. He warns readers not to believe their eyes because, he claims, many social media posts about the rioting have “misleading” photos “rehashing old conspiracy theories and expressing support for President Trump’s actions.”
To bolster his point, he found a so-called expert, Darren L. Linvill, a researcher at the Clemson University Media Forensics Hub, which receives funding from the left-leaning John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
Linvill told Myers that “conservatives online were ‘building up the riots in a performative way’ to help bolster Mr. Trump’s claims that Los Angeles had been taken over by ‘violent, insurrectionist mobs.’” Linvill argued that as conservatives call attention to the rioting with social media posts, more protesters will show up, making the posts “a bit self-fulfilling.”
In Myers’ misinformation world, social media posts depicting lawless looting, flaming vehicles, and violence against law enforcement are “intended to stoke outrage toward immigrants and political leaders, principally Democrats.”
https://thefederalist.com/2025/06/10/nyt-disinformation-experts-blame-online-conservatives-not-rioters-for-la-riots/