In online drone panic, conspiracy thinking has gone mainstream (Tatum Hunter, 12/17/24, Washington Post)
[P]urported drone witnesses from Connecticut to Virginia — and as far west as Ohio — have taken to social media to share photos or videos of their sightings, which typically look like faraway orbs or blinking lights. Some have offered rank speculation: Did the government’s lax response to the drone reports indicate that authorities were somehow involved?
“This is the reason the government wants TikTok banned, so we can’t see what they’re doing,” said one TikTok comment with 20,000 likes on an unconfirmed news clip about dozens of drones emerging straight from the ocean.
Trump has fueled the frenzy, suggesting on Truth Social that the government is hiding information about the drones. “Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, shoot them down!!!” he posted Friday.
He repeated the claim during a Monday news conference at Mar-a-Lago. “The government knows what is happening,” he said. “For some reason, they don’t want to comment.”