Have you heard the Ukrainian biolabs conspiracy? If not, apologies for dragging you into this. Here’s the gist: The United States has been funding a “military-biological program” in Ukraine where they are developing chemical and biological weapons. Depending on the version you heard, it might tie in Hunter Biden (he’s the one running them!) or Hillary Clinton (she set them up in the first place!) or Anthony Fauci (he’s behind the research!). If you sneak in something about George Soros, you’ll get right-wing bingo.
Here’s the truth: There are no U.S.-run biolabs in Ukraine, and certainly not any that are developing weapons of war. And while conservative media has run with the story, they didn’t get it from U.S. intelligence sources or Ukrainian sources or even from Russian disinformation. Nope: According to Vice, they got it from a former wine bar manager. Per their reporting, Jacob Creech, also known by his online aliases WarClandestine and BioClandestine, started the nonsensical rumor about biolabs — and the how of it all is an illuminating illustration of just how conspiracy theories spread.
