Maggie Maloney / September 13, 2024 / MCO427
Blog Assignment #3
For this week’s blog, we’re going evaluate Trumps debate statements around pets being eaten in Springfield, Ohio.
I first learned about these claims on social media via memes. Memes started flooding my feeds around claims that people in Ohio were eating pets.
Looking deeper into where these claims originated from, I learned statements were made by Former President Trump and Republican Nominee during the presidential debate.
This information could be verified by numerous reputable new platforms including BBC, Reuters and WSJ (Wall Street Journal). In reviewing the information on the WSJ, I was able to access a full transcript of the debate on the Wall Street Journal Fact Check Analysis Transcript.
The transcript did provide the exact words shared by Former President Trump during the debate: “In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs. The people that came in. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating—they’re eating the pets of the people that live there. And this is what’s happening in our country. And it’s a shame.”
Beyond the verifying that this information was in fact mentioned during the presidential debate, the WSJ Fact Check Analysis Transcript provided additional detail as to where the rumors originated and how they began to spread.
In digging deeper into its origan, was able to further verify that the spread of this misinformation started prior to the Presidential Debate. In fact, JD Vance the Vice-Presidential Nominee started amplifying rumors prior to the Presidential Debate targeting Haitian immigrants. This information was verified from an NPR article: JD Vance spreads debunked claims about Haitian immigrants eating pets.
In searching for the post from Vance I was able to locate the X Post Vance that was referenced in the NPR News Article. This verified that this information was in fact being shared by the Vice-Presidential Nominee.
Digging deeper into the claims was able to locate the alleged post that started the entire spread of misinformation. The originating Facebook post claimed that a neighbor’s missing cate was seen hanging from a branch in the yard of a Haitian family. Images and rumors quickly spread on social media to support these claims.
In reviewing the information and various sources, this is what I can conclude. The idea that immigrants, Haitians or people in Ohio are eating pets is in fact misinformation. Though Former President Trump did not specifically single out Haitians during the presidential debate, post from Vice-President Nominee JD Vance do indicate that this is misinformation that is being spread to target immigrant groups in Ohio. The misinformation originated from a Facebook post about a neighbor’s missing cat and claims of what was seen.
Overall, this social media mania is a good example of how misinformation can spread very quickly when reputable individuals start to share and support untrue claims. As a political figure from the state of Ohio, it is not surprising that individuals have latched on to JD Vance’s claims supporting the spread of this misinformation. This also demonstrates how important it is to utilize the resources to verify the information you are consuming on social media.
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