Fabricated headline falsely links journalist child porn conviction to pizzagate | Fact check

BrieAnna J. Frank, USA TODAY
Updated ·3 min read
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The claim: Image shows New York Post headline on disgraced journalist who debunked ‘pizzagate’

A Dec. 1 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) includes an image of a supposed New York Post headline about a journalist and a long-running conspiracy theory.

“Award winning ABC journalist who ‘debunked’ Pizzagate, pleads guilty in horrific child porn case,” reads the headline.

Another version of the post received more than 1,000 likes on Instagram before it was deleted. Elon Musk also shared a version of the claim on X, formerly Twitter.

More from the USA TODAY Fact-Check Team:

Our rating: Altered

The image is fabricated. The New York Post published no such article, and the journalist pictured did not debunk the "pizzagate" conspiracy theory.

Journalist's 2017 article references 'pizzagate' but didn't debunk theory

The image shows James Gordon Meek, a former ABC News reporter who pleaded guilty to transporting and possessing child pornography in July. He was sentenced to six years in prison in September.

No such headline tying Meek to the "pizzagate" conspiracy theory, which claims Hillary Clinton and other Democrats ran a child sex trafficking ring from a Washington, D.C. pizza restaurant, can be found on the New York Post’s website. The term “pizzagate” does not appear in the news outlet's articles about Meek.

New York Post spokesperson Iva Benson also told USA TODAY the outlet "didn't write this story."

In addition, the supposed screenshot does not match numerous elements of the New York Post's layout and style. Post headlines are not in all caps like the post, and they use single quotes rather than double quotes and generally don't include periods. Real Post stories also include a byline and publication date under the headline, which the fabricated screenshot does not.

Meek co-wrote a 2017 ABC News article referencing the “debunked ‘Pizzagate’ conspiracy theory,” but the article itself did not debunk it.

Fact check: FBI didn't say 'Pizzagate' is real; post distorts details of Texas arrest

USA TODAY reached out to users who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

USA TODAY has debunked an array of fabricated news reports, including false claims that The Independent reported the U.S., the U.K. and Israel declined a Gaza ceasefire in 2023, that an Irish news outlet reported Ireland suffers from "asymptomatic global warming" and that Fox News reported Deutsche Bank filed a foreclosure notice on former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

AFP Fact Check, Reuters and PolitiFact also debunked the claim.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Image of headline on disgraced ABC reporter is fabricated | Fact check