Conspiracy Theorists Believe Pizzagate Has Reached Etsy Based on Some Odd Pictures for Sale

Dec. 13 2023, Published 2:56 p.m. ET

The Gist:

• QAnon supporters tweeted about photographs of pizza being sold on Etsy for 1000's of dollars.
• This was being in comparison to pizzagate and the 2020 Wayfair conspiracy theory.
• The conspiracy has since unfold to different platforms.
• Several of the Etsy shops have since shut down.

In 2020, QAnon conspiracy theorists started spreading an unfounded story about Wayfair, which is a retail furniture store. According to the BBC, a "well-known activist tweeted about the high price of storage cabinets being sold," by means of the company. What set them off used to be the truth that all of the cupboards had been indexed with girls' names. This resulted in the belief that Wayfair used to be using this as a child-trafficking front as there were instances of lacking kids within the U.S. with similar names.

Shades of this conspiracy theory are found in every other state of affairs that has hit the e-commerce corporate Etsy in December 2023. Standalone footage of pizza in addition to pictures of children preserving pizza and wings were being sold for hundreds of dollars. It's unquestionably extraordinary, however is one thing extra sinister going on? Here's what we know about the Etsy pizza picture conspiracy.

The Etsy pizza pictures conspiracy theory is surely atypical.

On Dec. 10, 2023, a QAnon supporter tweeted out an Etsy listing for a "picture of pizza." The image, which was once being offered for $9,000, showed two pizzas and a cell phone. "Don’t let them gaslight you anymore," tweeted @NiQole1776. "Who in their right mind pays $9,000 for a download of a PICTURE of pizza?" They then directed people to zoom in on the screenshot, but that didn't yield any questionable results.

Other identical examples have been dropped into the replies, like this one from @baybgurrl. "Just found this. Where can I report this?" she requested relating to a "digital download of an encrypted megafile." Once once more, the screenshot used to be of a record for a picture of pizza. This one was on sale for $3,000 from the YummyYumPizza Etsy retailer, which was once additionally promoting images of children eating pizza and chicken wings.

The initial tweet won traction as extra QAnon conspiracy theorists picked it up. Pizzagate supporter and columnist Liz Crokin got wind of it, spreading the theory to her just about 300,000 followers on Twitter. Crokin alleged that pizza is a "pedophile code" after which claimed the "FBI, DOJ, other law enforcement documents and mainstream media articles such as the Wall Street Journal" have reported this. She is also indignant at Etsy for now not allowing her to sell Child Lives Matter products on their site.

The pizza pictures conspiracy theory has unfold from Etsy to different platforms.

Media Matters For America reported that the pizza pictures conspiracy theory was also discovered on "far-right message boards and right-wing platforms, such as 4chan, Gab, TheDonald, a major QAnon forum, and on Truth Social, along with far-right figures on Telegram, with some users on these platforms calling it 'the new Wayfair.'" It's additionally being shared on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and Reddit’s r/conspiracy subreddit.

This conspiracy theory even discovered its technique to disgraced U.S. nationwide security marketing consultant to President Donald Trump, retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn who on "several occasions peddled conspiracy theories about Islamic Sharia law coming to the United States," consistent with CNN. He retweeted Crokin's long-winded tweet, which brought about a "Thank you General," reply from Crokin.

As of the time of this writing, several of the shops selling the pizza images on Etsy were shut down. It is not transparent whether or not they had been removed from Etsy or the true sellers.

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