Oprah Winfrey debunks conspiracy, denies being a part of sex trafficking ring
The Hollywood mogul was also rumored to have been arrested by law enforcement
American media mogul Oprah Winfrey took to Twitter on Wednesday to debunk reports that she had been raided and arrested by police for being a part of an elaborate human trafficking ring.
On Tuesday, Oprah's name began appearing as a top trend on Twitter leading people to think that she, like Tom Hanks may have tested positive for coronavirus. However, the trend was attributed to rumors that she, along with other Hollywood colleagues, had been arrested by law enforcement agencies for running a child sex trafficking ring.
After the 66-year-old exec caught wind of it, she immediately dispelled the discourse. "Just got a phone call that my name is trending. And being trolled for some awful FAKE thing," she tweeted.
Just got a phone call that my name is trending. And being trolled for some awful FAKE thing. It’s NOT TRUE. Haven’t been raided, or arrested. Just sanitizing and self distancing with the rest of the world. Stay safe everybody.🙏🏾
— Oprah Winfrey (@Oprah) March 18, 2020
"It’s NOT TRUE. Haven’t been raided, or arrested," she added. That's not all, she clarified further how she is "just sanitizing and self distancing with the rest of the world."
The whole saga seems to have been orchestrated by a well-known online group - QAnon - whose goal is to create and disseminate outrageous conspiracy theories on major social media platforms, according to Washington Post.
Their latest goal seemed to hit right on target as the Oprah conspiracy went viral on Twitter - to the point where people started creating links between Weinstein, a convicted rapist, and Oprah and how they may have worked together to run the pedophile ring.
One Facebook post - the actual source of the misinformation - claimed that a house in Boca Raton, Florida, (according to the post, Oprah's house) was seized and roped off with red tape, reported Washington Post. Oprah does not own a house in Florida.
That's not all, according to the elaborate hoax, coronavirus is only but a decoy created by US President Donald Trump to take down some of the world’s biggest names - we can't make this up.
Interestingly, QAnon's theories rarely ever get out of specific circles on social media, but this one seemed to escape and run amok on Twitter. This could be owing to the fact that many people are currently self-isolating and perhaps, have too much time on their hands - which also meant that countless memes were generated on Twitter before the news was debunked.
2020 burning australia, almost starting world war 3, creating a global pandemic, and getting oprah arrested for sex traffickingpic.twitter.com/LITzQQE8wM
— abbi (@abbipaperbag) March 18, 2020
https://twitter.com/KeezyTwoHundo/status/1240102024370442241
Saw Oprah trending and the first thing thought was I hope this lady ain’t got coron...
— sab (@stoleurdad) March 18, 2020
come to find out she got arrested for running an underground sex trafficking ring man you can’t make this shit up
pic.twitter.com/2KOTt0PLQ9
hold up, Weinstein told the feds Oprah was running a sex trafficking ring?? OMG 2020 is something else pic.twitter.com/Van2jOu5wI
— B (@baffoabaffoe) March 18, 2020
After Oprah quashed the conspiracy, many of her industry peers stepped in to call out the hoax. Director Ava DuVernay tweeted, "Trolls and bots began this disgusting rumor. Mean-spirited minds kept it going. #Oprah has worked for decades on behalf of others. Shame on all who participated in this."
https://twitter.com/ava/status/1240168399868551169
Huffington Post reporter Yashar Ali also chimed in, saying, "I can’t believe Oprah had to even acknowledge the existence of a QAnon hoax."
I can’t believe Oprah had to even acknowledge the existence of a QaNon hoax.
— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) March 18, 2020
I get why she did though...smh https://t.co/fyp6cXUYA1
Oprah is not the only Hollywood A-lister to come under the suspicious eyes of conspiracy theorists - Tom Hanks, who tested positive for coronavirus in Australia, according to one twisted theory, was actually arrested for pedophilia. It goes on to say that other A-list celebrities will soon be arrested.
At a time when 'fake news' is a huge problem, incidents like these highlight just how important it is to verify news from credible sources before disseminating them on social media.
Have something to add to the story? Share it in the comments below
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ