Within minutes of the news of a shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, people claimed on social media that the incident was “STAGED." To be clear — these were conspiracy theories, not supported by what we know about the suspect. 

The most common of these theories claim the shooting was orchestrated in an effort to boost President Trump’s plans for a new White House ballroom.

It isn’t surprising that rampant speculation would instantly surround an act of apparent politically-motivated violence, but this incident suggests that voices on the left are increasingly engaged with conspiracy theories. 

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This episode was produced by Tyler Bartlam and Karen Zamora.

It was edited by Patrick Jarenwattananon and Courtney Dorning.

Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.


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