Hacker News with Generative AI: Conspiracy Theories

Try asking ChatGPT about "David Mayer" (ycombinator.com)
I saw this on a conspiracy theory forum, and just tested it out myself. For some reason ChatGPT has an error and says "I'm unable to produce a response."

Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT, Conspiracy Theories

37 points by calibas 2 days ago | 13 comments

An Idaho County Will Publish Everyone's Ballots to Combat Mistrust (nytimes.com)
After enduring a host of election conspiracy claims in recent years, Ada County believes it has found a way to restore confidence in the vote-counting system.

Politics, Elections, Transparency, Idaho, Conspiracy Theories

9 points by pcl 10 days ago | 15 comments

An Idaho County Will Publish Everyone's Ballots (nytimes.com)
After enduring a host of election conspiracy claims in recent years, Ada County believes it has found a way to restore confidence in the vote-counting system.

Elections, Voting, Transparency, Idaho, Conspiracy Theories

8 points by aiz0Houp 10 days ago | 2 comments

Microsoft and My Tinfoil Journey (bobbytables.io)
Either Microsoft support is wildly incompetent or there's a large scale fraud operation going on.

Microsoft, Software, Technology, Security, Conspiracy Theories

21 points by btables 17 days ago | 12 comments

Judge orders hearing to review Onion's purchase of Alex Jones's InfoWars (theguardian.com)
A judge has intervened and ordered a hearing to review the purchase of the conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’s InfoWars site by the satirical news site the Onion.

Law, Media, Satire, Conspiracy Theories

23 points by SamWhited 18 days ago | 7 comments

The Onion wins Alex Jones' Infowars in bankruptcy auction (nbcnews.com)
The Onion, the satirical news company that repeatedly spoofed conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, has won the bankruptcy auction for control over his media empire — most notably InfoWars, the far-right, conspiracy-minded website that served as Jones' primary online platform.

Media, Bankruptcy, Satire, Conspiracy Theories

112 points by elsewhen 19 days ago | 2 comments

The Onion buys Infowars (nytimes.com)
The Onion, a satirical publication that skewers newsmakers and current events, said on Thursday that it had won a bankruptcy auction to acquire Infowars, a website founded and operated by the conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

Satire, Media, Conspiracy Theories, Acquisitions, Bankruptcy

1901 points by coloneltcb 19 days ago | 1233 comments

US Congress to hold second hearing on UFOs in attempt to 'pull back curtain' (theguardian.com)
The United States Congress will hold a hearing on Wednesday to discuss the topic of UFOs that some lawmakers are hopeful will lead to new information on a subject that is the focus of many conspiracy theorists but has also recently attracted serious attention from government officials.

UFOs, Government, Politics, Conspiracy Theories

10 points by c420 20 days ago | 5 comments

Election Fraud Conspiracy Theories Are Already Thriving Online (wired.com)
Election workers in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, are not destroying mail-in ballots cast for former president Donald Trump. The Department of Defense did not issue a directive last month giving US soldiers unprecedented authority to use lethal force against Trump supporters who riot if the former president loses next week. And no, 180,000 Amish people did not register to vote in Pennsylvania—given there are only 92,600 Amish living in the state, including minors.

Elections, Conspiracy Theories, Misinformation

16 points by hn1986 35 days ago | 16 comments

Musk and Friends Are Smothering the Internet's Truth Seekers (bloomberg.com)
Not long after Hurricane Helene wrought destruction across the southern US, a more bewildering storm blew through: Officials with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) bumped up against angry residents and armed militia in Tennessee and North Carolina, people who’d been riled up by rumors that the officials were there to take their homes.

Social Media, Conspiracy Theories, Disinformation

22 points by srameshc 36 days ago | 1 comments

Peter Todd Was 'Unmasked' as Bitcoin Creator Satoshi Nakamoto Now He's in Hiding (wired.com)

Bitcoin, Cryptography, Security, Conspiracy Theories, Satoshi Nakamoto

26 points by LorenzoGood 42 days ago | 10 comments

Amazon Removed Download and Transfer Option for New Kindles (the-ebook-reader.com)
Here’s something that’s going to set off some conspiracy theories. As people are getting the new Kindles that were released last week, they are finding out that the new models are mysteriously missing the download and transfer via USB option for purchased ebooks from the content page at Amazon.

Amazon, E-Readers, Conspiracy Theories

42 points by DavideNL 44 days ago | 15 comments

The Shroud of Turin: History and Legends (michaelshermer.substack.com)
Religious and spiritual people say that everything happens for a reason and nothing happens by chance. I’m beginning to think they might be on to something. On May 15, 2024, I posted on X a reply to Naomi Wolf’s posted image of the famed Shroud of Turin—believed by many people to be the burial cloth of Jesus—noting that it was…

History, Religion, Art, Conspiracy Theories

62 points by royalroad 47 days ago | 156 comments

Twitter Barred Them. What Happened When Elon Musk Brought Them Back? (nytimes.com)
After Hurricane Helene, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, the hard-right conservative from Georgia, shared on X the widely debunked claim that government scientists could control the weather. “It’s ridiculous for anyone to lie and say it can’t be done,” she wrote in one post.

Social Media, Politics, Conspiracy Theories, Censorship, Elon Musk

7 points by rbanffy 52 days ago | 1 comments

Amid hurricanes, the chemtrail conspiracy theory has its moment in the sun (cnn.com)

Hurricanes, Conspiracy Theories, Weather, Climate Change

6 points by ChumpGPT 53 days ago | 2 comments

US meteorologists face death threats as hurricane conspiracies surge (theguardian.com)
Meteorologists tracking the advance of Hurricane Milton have been targeted by a deluge of conspiracy theories that they were controlling the weather, abuse and even death threats, amid what they say is an unprecedented surge in misinformation as two major hurricanes have hit the US.

Weather, Misinformation, Conspiracy Theories, Climate Change, Journalism

16 points by n1b0m 53 days ago | 9 comments

HBO Documentary Suggests Bitcoin Creator Satoshi Nakamoto Is Peter Todd (bloomberg.com)
A new HBO documentary about the origins of Bitcoin suggests that Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of the original cryptocurrency, is likely Canadian software developer Peter Todd.

Bitcoin, Cryptocurrencies, Documentary, Technology, Conspiracy Theories

62 points by pat2man 56 days ago | 147 comments

Why trolls, extremists, and others spread conspiracy theories they don't believe (theconversation.com)
There has been a lot of research on the types of people who believe conspiracy theories, and their reasons for doing so. But there’s a wrinkle: My colleagues and I have found that there are a number of people sharing conspiracies online who don’t believe their own content.

Social Psychology, Misinformation, Online Behavior, Conspiracy Theories

14 points by thunderbong 57 days ago | 3 comments

CNN and USA Today have fake websites, I believe Forbes Marketplace runs them (larslofgren.com)
What if I told you that Forbes Marketplace, the affiliate company operating on Forbes.com ALSO had agreements with CNN and USA Today?

Media, Journalism, Fake News, Advertising, Conspiracy Theories

760 points by greg_V 67 days ago | 265 comments

"Dead Internet theory" comes to life with new AI-powered social media app (arstechnica.com)
On Monday, software developer Michael Sayman launched a new AI-populated social network app called SocialAI that feels like it's bringing that conspiracy theory to life, allowing users to interact solely with AI chatbots instead of other humans.

Artificial Intelligence, Social Media, Internet Culture, Conspiracy Theories

4 points by OkGoDoIt 76 days ago | 4 comments

Chatbots can persuade people to stop believing in conspiracy theories (technologyreview.com)
Now, researchers believe they’ve uncovered a new tool for combating false conspiracy theories: AI chatbots.

Artificial Intelligence, Conspiracy Theories, Language Models

12 points by Duximo 79 days ago | 2 comments

Chinese children were most likely infected by a lab leaked poliovirus in 2014 (twitter.com)

Public Health, China, Polio, Viruses, Conspiracy Theories

7 points by haltingproblem 83 days ago | 0 comments

Right-wing US influencers say they were victims of alleged Russian plot (bbc.com)

Right-wing Politics, US Politics, Russia, Conspiracy Theories, Social Media

9 points by klingoff 88 days ago | 1 comments

Birds aren't real – how to create your own "bird" (lampysecurity.com)