True Pundit is a

far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...

fake news website Fake news websites (also referred to as hoax news websites) are websites on the Internet that deliberately publish fake news—hoaxes, propaganda, and disinformation purporting to be news, real news—often using social media to drive web traffic ...

known for publishing

conspiracy theories A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * ...

. According to ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...

'', True Pundit had "a well-known modus operandi, perfected during the 2016 U.S. election: running baseless stories and then asking

leading question A leading question is a question that suggests a particular answer and contains information the examiner is looking to have confirmed. The use of leading questions in court to elicit testimony is restricted in order to reduce the ability of the ex ...

s". True Pundit was "fluent in the paranoid language of 2016

social media Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the Content creation, creation, information exchange, sharing and news aggregator, aggregation of Content (media), content (such as ideas, interests, and other forms of expression) amongs ...

" and often credited false stories about the FBI and

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

anonymous sources Anonymous may refer to: * Anonymity, the state of an individual's identity, or personally identifiable information, being publicly unknown ** Anonymous work, a work of art or literature that has an unnamed or unknown creator or author * Anony ...

and claimed the mainstream media was covering it up. The website helped spread the Plandemic conspiracy theory. It was often promoted by

partisan Partisan(s) or The Partisan(s) may refer to: Military * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line ** Francs-tireurs et partisans, communist-led French anti-fascist resistance against Nazi Germany during WWII ** Ital ...

and conspiracy websites and prominent

pro-Trump Trumpism, also referred to as the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, is the political movement and political ideology, ideology behind U.S. president Donald Trump and his political base. It comprises ideologies such as right-wing p ...

figures, including

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

and Donald Trump Jr. True Pundit earned revenue by selling merchandise and advertising with Revcontent, a service that monetized fake news sites, and briefly worked with the ad firm Intermarkets.

Notable conspiracy theories

In October 2016 True Pundit was the source of the claim that Hillary Clinton asked, "Can’t we just drone this guy?" about

Julian Assange Julian Paul Assange ( ; Hawkins; born 3 July 1971) is an Australian editor, publisher, and activist who founded WikiLeaks in 2006. He came to international attention in 2010 after WikiLeaks published a series of News leak, leaks from Chels ...

. The conspiracy theory was amplified by

WikiLeaks WikiLeaks () is a non-profit media organisation and publisher of leaked documents. It is funded by donations and media partnerships. It has published classified documents and other media provided by anonymous sources. It was founded in 2006 by ...

, InfoWars, RT, Heat Street and

Fox News The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...

. WikiLeaks sent a private message to Donald Trump Jr. asking him to "comment on/push" the story. Trump Jr. replied that he "already did that". The website also published stories about Hillary Clinton possibly wearing an earpiece at a debate, using hand signals with debate moderators, and being drunk before a campaign rally. In 2016 and 2017 True Pundit promoted theories that mass shootings in Las Vegas and at the Orlando Pulse nightclub involved FBI

cover-up A cover-up is an attempt, whether successful or not, to conceal evidence of wrongdoing, error, incompetence, or other embarrassing information. Research has distinguished personal cover-ups (covering up one's own misdeeds) from relational co ...

s and a conspiracy theory related to Trump Tower wiretapping allegations. Years after True Pundit said FBI sources fingered the Pulse shooter as an FBI asset, Omar Mateen's family connections to the FBI was revealed. In February 2018 True Pundit promoted conspiracy theories about the

Parkland high school shooting On February 14, 2018, a mass shooting occurred when 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz opened fire on students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, part of the Miami metropolitan area, Parkland, Florida, killing 17 people and injuring 18 ot ...

. In August 2018 True Pundit was the first to imply a link between a Pizzagate conspiracy theorist's death and the

Clinton family The Clinton family is an American political family from New York who originate from Arkansas, who are related to Bill Clinton, the 42nd president of the United States (1993–2001), and his wife Hillary Clinton, the 67th United States secretar ...

. In 2020, True Pundit played a key role in boosting the Plandemic conspiracy theory.

History

The website for True Pundit was registered in March 2016 and launched that June. True Pundit was created by Michael D. Moore using the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

Thomas Paine and managed by True Pundit Media

LLC A limited liability company (LLC) is the United States-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability of a ...

. In 2017 Moore sarcastically said True Pundit was "flattered to be accused of participating in disinformation campaigns" for

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

and implied that mainstream media do the same for other governments. “We are flattered to be accused of participating in disinformation campaigns for government because as a start-up that's the exact time-tested model we have been emulating from the ''New York Times'', ''Washington Post'' and other mainstream media outlets," Paine said. The allegations were later proven false when reporters admitted th
claims were fabricated.
Left-wing critics of True Pundit, including the Washington Post, were forced to print numerous retractions. Business Insider admitted targets like True Pundit were manufactured and the original allegations were false.

Thomas Paine pseudonym

Michael D. Moore had a background in journalism, previously a contractor with FBI, when he created True Pundit in 2016 using the pseudonym, Thomas Paine. Moore's autobiography as Thomas Paine says he won the

Gerald Loeb Award The Gerald Loeb Awards, also referred to as the Gerald Loeb Awards for Distinguished Business and Financial Journalism, is a recognition of excellence in journalism, especially in the fields of business, finance and the economy. The award was e ...

, and claimed he was nominated for a

Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting Pulitzer may refer to: *Joseph Pulitzer, a 19th century media magnate *Pulitzer Prize, an annual U.S. journalism, literary, and music award *Pulitzer (surname) * Pulitzer, Inc., a U.S. newspaper chain *Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, a non-pro ...

twice and a George Polk Political Reporting award once. In YouTube appearances Moore has praised Infowars conspiracy theorist and

QAnon QAnon ( ) is a far-right conspiracy theories in United States politics, American political conspiracy theory and political movement that originated in 2017. QAnon centers on fabricated claims made by an anonymous individual or individuals kno ...

proponent Jerome Corsi. In 1996, Moore won the coveted Gerald Loeb Award for its series "Formula for Disaster: The Lodi Explosion" by Michael Moore, Bruce Locklin and Debra Lynn Vial. The series was the catalyst for the creation of th
U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board.
In 1996 Moore was co-winner of a Gerald Loeb Award for reporting about

TWA Flight 800 Trans World Airlines Flight 800 (known as TW800 or TWA800) was a regularly scheduled international passenger flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, United States, to Fiumicino Airport in Rome, Italy, with a stopo ...

. Moore said that in the late 1990s he left journalism to work in "intelligence" and started the company "Dig Dirt" with the tagline "investigative intelligence". When Moore's newspaper learned about Dig Dirt, they opened an internal investigation. The paper's editor said it "very clearly created the appearance and potential for a conflict of interest" but Moore was cleared of wrongdoing, but resigned from the newspaper.

References

External links

{{Disinformation Fake news websites Internet properties established in 2016 News media manipulation