On May 3, U.S. Secretary of State George Pompeo, speaking on ABC’s “This Week” program, repeated claims that the COVID-19 virus originated in a Chinese laboratory, despite intelligence officials’ repeated statements that no such link had been established.  In April, poison control centers around the country saw an uptick in bleach poisoning incidents after President Trump suggested that ingesting bleach could combat the COVID-19 virus.  When baseless conjecture is repeated as fact with the trappings and authority of government, it becomes hard to resist.  Mike Wagner is a professor of Journalism at the University of Wisconsin, and he has studied conspiracy theories and political communication.