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The Daily Dot

Anna is a freelance writer with far too much time on her hands. When she&#8217;s not writing about memes and internet slang, she can be found running TTRPGs online.

Anna Good Author Photo

Anna Good

Left: Mug shot of Jeffrey Epstein made available by the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Department in 2006. Right: : Child holding cell phone with Fortnite game loading.

jeffrey epstein fortnite conspiracy

Culture

No, Jeffrey Epstein is not alive and grinding Fortnite from Tel Aviv. But here’s why people think he is

Screenshot from a 2000 episode of "The Simpsons." It is a close-up of Homer's computer screen, typed on which are the words: "Attention: Some crazy creeps on an island somewhere are secretly running the world."

simpsons island episode epstein

An old “Simpsons” episode about “crazy creeps on an island” is fueling conspiracy chatter

Rachel Kiley is a writer who sometimes writes things and sometimes is based in L.A., but is definitely always on Twitter @rachelkiley.

Rachel Kiley Author Photograph

Rachel Kiley

AI-generated image of a Leviathan in the ocean - sort of a mix between a whale and a huge monster. Text overlay reads, ""OMG the Leviathan is waking up near Virginia," reads one such post. "This is why they are creating a FAKE snow storm."

leviathan 2026 waking up near virginia

Conspiracy theorists think a “Leviathan” is waking up…and the snow is part of the cover-up

Jamie Jirak has been working as an entertainment journalist since 2017. In addition to The Daily Dot, you can find her latest work at SlashFilm and That Hashtag Show. Jamie resides in Los Angeles and co-hosts two podcasts, Phase Hero and Love in the Time of Hydra. She loves moderating panels and has done so for Marvel, Disney, Netflix, and more. Follow her on Letterboxd: @JamieJirak.

jamie jirak author photo

Jamie Jirak

stranger things conformitygate doesnt happen

stranger-things-conformitygate-doesnt-happen.png

Entertainment

“Stranger Things” fans begin to realize that #conformitygate isn’t real, and another episode was never going to happen

conformitygate-stranger-things.png

Explaining the “Stranger Things” #conformitygate, and why some fans aren’t convinced the show is really over

Rebekah is a freelance reporter for the Daily Dot.

Rebekah Harding

spotify-shuffle-feature-theory.png

“Only took 10 years”: Spotify adds new “fewer repeats” shuffle after years of user complaints

Alexandra Samuels is a national political reporter and contributor to the Daily Dot, where she started as an intern covering politics in the summer of 2016. She enjoys all things Marvel, keeping up with the latest TikTok trends, long walks with her pup, and reading murder-mystery novels.

Alexandra Samuels

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“I would do anything to get one”: Schuylkill notes resurface after years of strange appearances in box of Goodles pasta

wikipedia-philosophy.png

“Foundationalizes all things”: Does every Wikipedia link lead back to the Philosophy page?

mountain-dew-new-flavor-theory.png

“I think we know who to blame”: Explaining the Mountain Dew flavor conspiracy theory

Left: AI-generated video of President Donald Trump sitting in the Oval Office above Fox News Chyron reading "MedBed Hospitals." Right: AI-generated photo of Donald Trump with an American Flag painted across his face.

trump-medbed-.jpg

Viral Politics

“Unfathomable level of boomerism”: Trump shares AI clip promoting “Med Bed” conspiracy before quietly deleting it

President Trump drives to the next Tee at the start of the LIV practice rounds held at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster,NJ. Tweet text overlay reads, "Gruden’s Instagram and the AP archives confirm the picture President Trump posted is over a week old. Look at the matched clothing, and time and date stamps."

trump-gruden-golfing-.jpg

Donald Trump resurfaced with a golf photo amid health rumors, but sleuths immediately claimed the timeline was off

Left: Protestor in front of Chicago's The Bean statue holding a sign reading "Cloud gate is locked." Caption overlay reads "The man in the bean must stay." Right: Protestors holding signs in front of Chicago's The Bean statue. Caption overlay reads "Chicago, there's a man trapped inside the bean?"

chicago-bean-man-inside-protest.png

Protestors claim there’s a man trapped inside Chicago’s Bean sculpture. Why?

3 Panel: Middle: Jeffrey Epstein. Left and Right: Grainy orange shape seen ascending stairs to Jeffrey Epstein's prison cell

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New Epstein video shows unexplained “orange blob” before his death, and everyone’s making the same joke

conspiracy pyramid image next to ID of Shane Tamura and the number 33

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“Holy psyop”: Conspiracy theorists fixate on “Masonic” 33rd floor after deadly Manhattan shooting

organ-donation-conspiracy-theory.png

“As someone who needs a new kidney, this is horrific”: The internet’s organ donor conspiracy theory turns out to have some truth to it

Conspiracy Theories