Birds Aren't Real is a satirical conspiracy theory which posits that birds are actually drones operated by the United States government to spy on American citizens. [2] [3] [4] [5] In 2018, journalist Rachel Roberts described Birds Aren't Real as "a joke that thousands of people are in on." [3]
Peter McIndoe created the satirical conspiracy theory "on a whim" in January 2017. After seeing pro-Trump counter-protestors at the 2017 Women's March in Memphis, Tennessee, McIndoe wrote "Birds Aren't Real" on a poster and improvised a conspiracy theory amongst the counter-protestors as a "spontaneous joke". A video of McIndoe at the march went viral, which started the satirical movement. [2] [6] In 2017, he posted on Facebook: "I made a satirical movement a few months ago, and people on Instagram seem to like it a lot." He later disclaimed the post, saying it was written by a staffer who was fired, [3] and did not admit until 2021 that he did not truly believe the conspiracy. [2] [7]
The movement claims that all birds in the United States were exterminated by the federal government between 1959 and 1971 and replaced by lookalike drones used by the government to spy on citizens; the specifics of these theories are not always consistent, not unlike actual conspiracy theories. They claim that birds sit on power lines to recharge themselves, that birds defecate on cars as a tracking method, and that U.S. president John F. Kennedy was assassinated by the government due to his reluctance to kill all the birds. [4] [8] [9]
Some supporters have demonstrated with signs stating "Birds Aren't Real" and related slogans. [3] In 2019, a billboard was erected stating "Birds Aren't Real" in Memphis, Tennessee. [1] In 2021, some supporters demonstrated in front of Twitter's San Francisco headquarters demanding that the company change its bird logo. [2] In 2021, MSNBC said that the movement had hundreds of thousands of members. [10]
McIndoe has made multiple media appearances and done multiple interviews promoting the Birds Aren't Real movement. In 2021, he stated that he works full-time as a spokesperson for the movement, making money from sales of merchandise. [3]
In a 2019 interview with WREG-TV, McIndoe used bothsidesism to promote Birds Aren't Real, saying that he was offended by a question about whether the movement was satirical, as such a question would not be asked of the opposite opinion (that birds are real). [3] On January 6, 2022, McIndoe threw up during a live TV interview with the Chicago-based WGN9. [11] [12] Adweek called it an "apparent prank" [13] and McIndoe labeled it a "hit job". [14]
In January 2022, McIndoe featured in a profile of the movement for Vice , giving his first media interview while not in character. [15] In May 2022, he was interviewed by 60 Minutes . He started off the interview in character, but later broke character and described the purpose behind creating the satirical movement: "So it's taking this concept of misinformation and almost building a little safe space to come together within it and laugh at it, rather than be scared by it. And accept the lunacy of it all and be a bird truther for a moment in time when everything's so crazy." [16] [17] In April 2023 McIndoe held a TED Talk about the movement. [18]
The Bielefeld conspiracy is a satirical conspiracy theory that claims that the city of Bielefeld, Germany, does not exist, and is instead an illusion propagated by various forces to distract or mislead the German public. First posted on the German Usenet in 1994, the conspiracy has since been mentioned in the city's marketing, and alluded to in a speech by former Chancellor Angela Merkel.
NewsNation is an American subscription television network owned by the Nexstar Media Group, and is the company's only wholly owned, national cable-originated television channel. The channel runs a straight-news format for 24 hours on weekdays and eight hours on weekends, as well as entertainment programming taking up almost the entire weekend schedule. Known for most of its history as Superstation WGN before becoming WGN America in 2008, it relaunched on March 1, 2021, as a cable news network named after its flagship news program. The channel's relaunch came as part of a planned expansion of its news programming.
Karl Blau is an American indie rock and country vocalist, producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but originally from Anacortes, Washington. A member of the Knw-Yr-Own/K Records collective, he is known for his musical output, live shows, and self recording and distribution. Blau incorporates elements of folk, dub, R&B, bossa nova, grunge, hip hop, drone, country, & worldbeat.
WMC-TV is a television station in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with NBC. It is owned by Gray Television alongside low-power Telemundo affiliate WTME-LD. The two stations share studios on Union Avenue in midtown Memphis; WMC-TV's transmitter is located in northeast Memphis, near the suburb of Bartlett, Tennessee.
WREG-TV is a television station in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with CBS and owned by Nexstar Media Group. The station's studios are located on Channel 3 Drive near the Mississippi River on the west side of Memphis, and its transmitter is located near Bartlett, Tennessee.
QAnon is a far-right American political conspiracy theory and political movement that originated in 2017. QAnon centers on fabricated claims made by an anonymous individual or individuals known as "Q". Those claims have been relayed and developed by online communities and influencers. Their core belief is that a cabal of Satanic, cannibalistic child molesters is operating a global child sex trafficking ring that conspired against Donald Trump. QAnon has direct roots in Pizzagate, an Internet conspiracy theory that appeared one year earlier, but also incorporates elements of many other theories. QAnon has been described as a cult.
Theodore L. Gunderson was a Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent In Charge and head of the Los Angeles FBI, an American author, and a conspiracy theorist. Some of his FBI case work included the Death of Marilyn Monroe and the Assassination of John F. Kennedy. He was the author of the best-selling book How to Locate Anyone Anywhere Without Leaving Home. In later life, he researched a number of topics, notably including satanic ritual abuse.
The MATA Trolley is a heritage streetcar transit system operating in Memphis, Tennessee. It began operating on April 29, 1993. Service was suspended in June 2014, following fires on two cars. After nearly four years and repeated postponements, the reopening of the Main Street Line took place on April 30, 2018. The system's two other lines remained suspended as of December 2022, but with reopening of both planned. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 365,400.
Zoological conspiracy theories involving Israel are occasionally found in the media or on the Internet, typically in Muslim-majority countries, alleging use of animals by Israel to attack civilians or to conduct espionage. These conspiracies are often reported as evidence of a Zionist or Israeli plot.
Benjamin Swann is an American television news anchor, investigative journalist, and political commentator. He became a TV sports producer, and later a news journalist and producer, and managing editor on network affiliates, FOX, and RT America of the Russian state-owned TV network RT.
The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting occurred on December 14, 2012, in Newtown, Connecticut. The perpetrator, Adam Lanza, fatally shot his mother before murdering 20 students and six staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School, and later committed suicide. A number of fringe figures have promoted conspiracy theories that doubt or dispute what occurred at Sandy Hook. Various conspiracy theorists have claimed, for example, that the massacre was actually orchestrated by the U.S. government as part of an elaborate plot to promote stricter gun control laws.
"Pizzagate" is a conspiracy theory that went viral during the 2016 United States presidential election cycle, falsely claiming that the New York City Police Department (NYPD) had discovered a pedophilia ring linked to members of the Democratic Party while searching through Anthony Weiner's emails. It has been extensively discredited by a wide range of organizations, including the Washington, D.C. police.
JP Sears, known online as AwakenWithJP, is an American conservative YouTube comedian. Sears produces satirical YouTube videos where he parodies lifestyle gurus, wellness coaches, and government policies while providing comedic advice.
Katrina Robinson is an American former politician who served in the Tennessee Senate from the 33rd district from 2019 to 2022 as a member of the Democratic Party. She was the first sitting member of the state senate to be indicted since Operation Tennessee Waltz and later became the first person to ever be expelled from the state senate.
Marjorie Taylor Greene, also known by her initials MTG, is an American far-right politician, businesswoman, and conspiracy theorist who has been the U.S. representative for Georgia's 14th congressional district since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, she was elected to Congress in 2020 following the retirement of Republican incumbent Tom Graves and was reelected in 2022.
A conspiracy theory states that Canadian singer Avril Lavigne died in 2003, shortly after the release of her successful first album, Let Go, and was replaced by a body double named Melissa Vandella. Evidence used to support the theory include changes in Lavigne's appearance between 2003 and the present, supposed subliminal messaging in her follow-up effort, Under My Skin, and a photoshoot in which Lavigne has the name "Melissa" written on her hand. The theory is the subject of the BBC Sounds podcast Who Replaced Avril Lavigne?.
Q: Into the Storm is an American documentary television miniseries directed and produced by Cullen Hoback. It explores the QAnon conspiracy theory and the people involved with it. It consisted of six episodes and premiered on HBO on March 21, 2021. The series received mixed reviews, with some critics praising its insight into the conspiracy theory, and others finding it to be overlong and lacking in analysis of the impacts of QAnon. Some reviewers have criticized the series for not following best practices outlined by extremism researchers for reporting on extremism and conspiracy theories.
Real America's Voice is a right-wing to far-right streaming, cable and satellite television channel founded in 2020 and owned by Robert J. Sigg. The network and online presences have promoted right-wing and far-right conspiracy theories, including COVID-19 misinformation, 2020 election conspiracies, and QAnon. The network is a sister channel to WeatherNation TV. It is of no relation to the former National Empowerment Television of the late 1990s, which rebranded to America's Voice in its final years.
Forest Hill Cemetery is a cemetery in Memphis, Tennessee. It consists of three separate cemeteries: Forest Hill Cemetery Midtown, Forest Hill Cemetery East and Forest Hill Cemetery South.