Some conspiracy theories induce laughter, while others create a sense of horror in societies. Since the groups like Qanon gained ground and started perpetuating their lies with the backing of some Republican lawmakers, the future of conspiracy theories looks even more significant in America.
Be it the lies circulating about the new year event of January 6 or the stories associated with the burning of the Fox News Christmas tree, the year 2021 had some very famous conspiracy theories that often led to perpetuating conservative political stories.
January 6 Conspiracies: Republicans Defending Right-Wing Extremist Groups
Right after one of the deadliest domestic terrorism events in the known history of America, conservative media outlets like Fox News and Newsmax started blaming left-wing groups like Antifa for the politically motivated attacks on the Capitol Hill building.
These media outlets used their spaces to create a counter-narrative against the true news that right-wing political outlets, including Qanon and Proud Boys, were involved in the incident. Fox News contributors even called the attackers “Antifa sympathizers,” only to learn later that the conservative groups were found guilty in investigations that followed.
This conspiracy theory even influenced Republican lawmakers, as Rep. Matt Gaetz made misleading claims that a facial recognition company had found “Antifa infiltrators” attacking Congress.
The same was the case with Paul Gosar and Mo Brooks, the two GOP lawmakers who tried to substantiate this conspiracy theory.
Republican lawmakers took their efforts of spreading lies to another level. For instance, Senator Ron Johnson claimed that attackers were unarmed people, a narrative that was also backed by right-wing media outlets.
However, court documents indicated that the police present at the scene confiscated arms, including handguns, from attackers, which also depicts the audacity of Republicans about telling lies regarding the event.
Satanic Activities: A Conspiracy Theory Targeting Politicians
Conspiracy theories in the presidential inauguration year are not new phenomena. This time the satanic panic of 2021 gained ground.
The so-called satanic ritual abuse that started in America in the 1980s never actually ended. However, it got traction in 2021 once again, when the conspiracy theory group Qanon perpetuated an idea that high profile politicians and business owners were running a child sex cartel, thus linking Joe Biden to the scandal.
According to the conspiracy theory, Joe Biden was running this cartel, and while the allegations started surfacing before the 2020 elections, they were carried forward by the likes of Qanon in 2021 as well.
But the so-called satanic abuse theories did not end here in 2021. When almost ten people died in Travis Scott’s concert stampede, right-wing theorists started claiming that this unfortunate episode was actually due to the satanic ritual, claiming that his stage was a portal to hell.
The liars perpetuated the notion that the t-shirt which Scott was wearing was looking like people were coming out of that shirt with horns on them, hence creating all the mess.
JFK’s Dead Son will Revive to be the Running Mate of Trump
Conspiracies attached to the death of the former US President John F. Kennedy have already created a mess in America since his murder.
However, this time his late son became the victim of those theories, as QaNon believed that his son, who was killed in a plane crash in 1999, would somehow reemerge and take part as the running mate of Donald Trump in the 2024 Presidential elections.
According to the conspiracy theory, John F. Kennedy Jr. would reemerge in Dallas, Texas, and the whole claims are perpetuated on some nonsense numerology.
According to some people, he never died and has been hiding in Pennsylvania for two decades, and he will emerge in the near future to be the running mate of Donald Trump in the next presidential elections.
Fox New Perpetuating Lies on Religion
Fox News has often led the efforts of expanding conspiracy theories in America, and this time they found an incident directly related to them.
A homeless man having severe mental health issues burned the Fox News Christmas tree outside the news network headquarters.
The media outlet, inspired by paranoid ideologies, started claiming that it was an “act of terror” against them, which was politically driven and was a hate crime against the religion.
Fox News staff members went as far as comparing the incident with the Pearl Harbor attack, which resulted in the death of more than 2,400 Americans and pushed the US into the Second World War.
But for someone like Fox News, it was an opportunity to perpetuate their lies, and so did they, saying that it was a part of the “War on Christmas.”
Final Thoughts
While these theories failed to get the deserving media coverage at the time of their happening, some other conspiracy theories were more evident all through the year.
Whether it was about Trump’s supporters claiming that the former president would take oath again in August 2021 or that the COVID vaccines install chips in human bodies, conspiracy theories impacted every aspect of the lives of Americans in the last year.
Eli is a Political Data Scientist with over thirty years of experience in Data Engineering, Analytics, and Digital Marketing. Eli uses his expertise to give the latest information and distinctive analysis on US Political News, US Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, and Racial Justice equipping readers with the inequivalent knowledge.