Charlie Kirk looked furious. Hurricane Helen floods affected Asheville, North Carolina, and surrounding areas, killing at least 72 people in Buncombe County. But perhaps what most upset the right-wing influencer was a text message he received from an anonymous acquaintance alleging Federal Emergency Management Agency officials are taking a laissez-faire attitude when it comes to disaster relief. Ta.
“Charlie, my source is [western North Carolina] Kirk allegedly tweeted to X’s 3.5 million followers on Friday that FEMA workers are housed in one of the nicest hotels and only work until 5 p.m. I want you to tell me that. “And they don’t work on weekends. My family has been told that if they don’t call us by 5pm today, they’ll have to wait until Monday.”
“Is this true @FEMA?” Kirk added. “Americans are dying and FEMA workers are treating their jobs like a 9-to-5 government job!?”
is this true @FEMA?Americans are dying and FEMA workers treat their jobs like a government 9-to-5 clock-punching job?!? pic.twitter.com/HezMNi8thR
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) October 5, 2024
Slate reached out to FEMA, which has been responding to a flood of conspiracy theories about these claims in recent days from former President Donald Trump and others. I haven’t heard from the agency yet, but they seem to be a little busy. Or you can trust the man who is texting Charlie Kirk.
This tweet format has become noticeably popular on the red circle internet. The equation is simple: 1) post a screenshot of a text message that appears to be genuine, 2) express your anger, 3) ask if it’s true without worrying about whether it’s true, and 4) investigate the matter further. do not. This is a new form of the classic chain mail. If we don’t communicate it, no one will know the “truth”.
J. Brian Lowder
What is it like being in Asheville now?
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Elon Musk is a fan of the format and has been constantly tweeting about FEMA over the past week. “I just received this memo from SpaceX engineers supporting us on the ground in North Carolina,” Musk posted Friday. The memo, which does not include any documents or even screenshots of emails, says FEMA is blocking shipments to Asheville, seizing the goods and claiming them as its own. There is.
“It’s very real and frightening how much control they have in place to prevent people from helping,” the engineer was quoted as saying. “Currently, new Starlink shipments are being blocked until fire department escorts arrive. But that may not be enough.”
I received this memo from a SpaceX engineer assisting on the ground in North Carolina. @FEMA Not only are they not adequately helping those in need, they are actively discouraging citizens who are trying to help.
“Hi Elon, stay up to date with our site in Asheville, North Carolina. Two powered up…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 4, 2024
CLAIM: FEMA is blocking Elon Musk’s Starlink system from helping people access the internet. “FEMA does not accept donations or food from survivors or volunteer organizations. FEMA does not accept donations or food from survivors or volunteer organizations. Donations of goods are handled by voluntary organizations that specialize in storing, sorting, cleaning and distributing donated items.”
This Twitter outrage format has also been used to spread misinformation about the election. Sequoia Capital partner and venture capital investor Sean Maguire once tweeted that an anonymous friend in California found an empty house with 600 ballots stuffed inside the mailbox. “How is that possible?” Maguire asked. He went on to suggest that Antifa may be using a single address to register hundreds of people to vote. (Why would Democrats need to rig votes in safe, blue California? The mystery continues.)
We’re not prepared for what Hurricane Milton is going to do to Tampa Bay You should stop trusting Google and Instagram with your photos This book helped save the planet, but… It has created a very harmful myth. This is the most controversial diagnosis in child psychiatry. The instructions to the patient may be incorrect.
Right-wing media criticism is based on the unifying idea that journalists lie, fabricate, and push their narratives regardless of their veracity. In the real world, professional journalists employed by mainstream news outlets are required to verify information. They can’t just accept an anonymous individual’s text message and declare its truth as a way to launder inflammatory bullshit to the public, or just believe it and ask, “Is this real?” . Many reporters on the right are lying, but random guys emailing Charlie Kirk and Elon Musk are telling the truth.
Although these mysterious text messages from anonymous senders are easy to fake, journalists are often fired, shamed, and relegated to another industry for fabricating false stories. That’s natural. But there are no practical consequences for influencers who promote fear or spread lies.
Of course, they don’t care what’s true and what’s not. No one who takes facts seriously would take a text message of questionable authenticity and then send it to millions of people to verify its accuracy. They don’t care if it’s true or not. I just want you to think that way.