D.C. police arrest suspect with an assault rifle at Comet Ping Pong restaurant @NWDCScoop @wusa9 @DMVFollowers https://t.co/p0vd2ZAl48
— bruce johnson (@brucejohnson9) December 5, 2016
“This was our worst fear,” [Little Red Fox owner Matt Carr] said, “that someone would read all this and come to the block with a gun. And today it happened.” – Washington Post account of the events of December 4th, 2016
“It” was a man who walked into Comet Ping Pong to investigate a conspiracy theory he’d read online. He arrived armed. He fired a couple of shots. Surrounding businesses went on lockdown. After a standoff, he was taken away in handcuffs.
The story began weeks ago, and it got some local and national coverage as online allegations spread and the believers called, emailed and posted their threats to Yelp, Facebook, Twitter and other sites.
“If it stays like this for the next month or two, I’m going to be shutting down. It’s not a joke. These people, just calling, they don’t know what they’re doing, they are ruining our life, our business.” – Besta Pizza owner Abdel Hammad, in an interview with WAMU
Other businesses on the block have vowed to stay, no matter what. And they have the enthusiastic backing of customers near and far. Politics and Prose co-owner Lissa Muscatine and ANC 3F Chair Malachy Nugent spoke to the Kojo Nnamdi Show about the official and neighborhood response to the gunman.
What can you expect from @PoliticsProse in the days after the gun scare at @cometpingpong? https://t.co/Qslo9oY7Zn pic.twitter.com/PmDwaj6KSc
— The Kojo Nnamdi Show (@kojoshow) December 6, 2016
Official response extended to the national level.
But who is spreading these conspiracies?
Another crowd also came out to show their support – for Comet, for Terasol, for Jake’s, for Politics and Prose…
“I used to think conspiracy nuts were kind of harmless,” [Bruce] Guthrie says, “but now it’s like, ‘No, you’re not. You’re crazy.’” – WAMU interview with the man who was first in line for the community-led #StandWithComet event Friday, December 9th
Comet Ping Pong gets 3-4x the business during #StandWithComet https://t.co/Kkf6h3VZha pic.twitter.com/7OA09OZ3cx
— WUSA9 (@wusa9) December 10, 2016
The Pizzagate conspiracy nuts are casting their nets even wider now, ensnaring pizza places as far away as New York City and Austin, Texas, and a certain talk show host.
If any good has come of this, it’s that it is shining a light on media literacy across the U.S., or the lack thereof. Some educators are meeting the challenge head-on.
Adrian Salsgiver says
Hillary Clinton has been diagnosed with Kuru disease.
Tracy J. says
Adrian, there’s enough false information out there. Future comments need to be fact-based or they will be deleted. Thank you.
James Marshall says
Many comments sections and bulletin boards have an “Ignore” button. Is it possible to add one to the FHC Comments section?
Tracy J. says
Great idea, James. Also, all comments are moderated ’til further notice.