Conspiracy theories
FILE - In this Jan. 6, 2021, file photo rioters break into the Capitol in Washington. Far-right media personality Tim Gionet, who calls himself "Baked Alaska," will not face house arrest after being charged in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol after court officials raised concerns about his recent encounters with police officers in Arizona. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)
US intel report warns of more violence by QAnon followers

By Michael Kunzelman And Nomaan Merchant Jun. 14, 2021 03:00 PM EDT

FILE - In this Jan. 6, 2021 file photo, supporters of President Donald Trump, including Jacob Chansley, right with fur hat, are confronted by U.S. Capitol Police officers outside the Senate Chamber inside the Capitol in Washington. Many of those who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 cited falsehoods about the election, and now some of them are hoping their gullibility helps them in court. Albert Watkins, the St. Louis attorney representing Chansley, the so-called QAnon shaman, likened the process to brainwashing, or falling into the clutches of a cult. Repeated exposure to falsehood and incendiary rhetoric, Watkins said, ultimately overwhelmed his client's ability to discern reality. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)
Defense for some Capitol rioters: election misinformation

By David Klepper May. 29, 2021 09:00 AM EDT

Registered nurse Anna Yadgaro, left, hands Geidy Chirinos her vaccination card after inoculating her with the second dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, Wednesday, May 12, 2021, at the Joseph P. Addabbo Family Health Center in the Far Rockaway neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
In NYC's furthest flung neighborhood, vaccine a tough sell

By Arijeta Lajka May. 25, 2021 01:08 AM EDT

Republican barred from inviting guests into State House

May. 11, 2021 09:25 AM EDT
AUGUSTA, Maine — (AP) — A Republican lawmaker has been barred from inviting guests into the Maine State House after violating rules by hosting an out-of-state...

Regulator shares discredited conspiracy theories about COVID

May. 08, 2021 05:47 PM EDT
PHOENIX (AP) — An elected Arizona utility regulator has shared discredited conspiracy theories while trying to persuade energy and power providers not to...

A health worker takes photograph of a person holding a document confirming he has tested positive for COVID-19 at a government run hospital in Gauhati, India, Saturday, May 8, 2021. Infections have swelled in India since February in a disastrous turn blamed on more contagious variants as well as government decisions to allow massive crowds to gather for religious festivals and political rallies. ​(AP Photo/Anupam Nath)
The Latest: Utility regulator shares discredited theories

By The Associated Press May. 08, 2021 07:39 AM EDT

Wallace Wilson, top, cuts the hair of James McRae, Friday, April 9, 2021, in Hyattsville, Md. Wilson is a member of the Health Advocates In Reach & Research (HAIR) program, which helps barbers and hair stylists to get certified to talk to community members about health. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a team of certified barbers have been providing factual information to customers about vaccines, a topic that historically has not been trusted by members of black communities because of the health abuse the race has endured over the years. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Barbers, artists help defy vaccine myths for people of color

By Julie Watson And Anita Snow Apr. 15, 2021 12:59 PM EDT

Congressman Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., speaks at "Women for American First" event, Friday, April 9, 2021, in Doral, Fla. The House Ethics Committee has opened an investigation of Rep. Gaetz, citing reports of sexual and other misconduct by the Florida Republican. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
Gaetz vows to fight, tries to stay on offensive amid scandal

By Will Weissert And Adriana Gomez Licon Apr. 09, 2021 12:27 AM EDT

FILE - In this Dec. 4, 2019 file photo, Strasbourg chief Rabbi Harold Abraham Weill looks at vandalized tombs in the Jewish cemetery of Westhoffen, west of the city of Strasbourg, eastern France. Coronavirus lockdowns in 2020 shifted some anti-Semitic hatred online, where conspiracy theories blaming Jews for the pandemic’s medical and economic devastation abounded, Israeli researchers at Tel Aviv University's Kantor Center for the Study of Contemporary European Jewry in an annual report Wednesday, April 7, 2021. (AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias, File)
Report: Pandemic amped up anti-Semitism, forced it online

By Laurie Kellman Apr. 07, 2021 04:02 AM EDT

FILE - In this Sept. 19, 2020, file photo, a protester holds up a placard as they take part in a "Resist and Act for Freedom" protest against a mandatory coronavirus vaccine, wearing masks, social distancing and a second lockdown, in Trafalgar Square, London. Psychology experts offer several suggestions for talking to friends and family who believe conspiracy theories about COVID-19. Instead of lecturing or mocking, listen and ask them why they believe what they believe. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
How to talk to believers of COVID-19 conspiracy theories

Apr. 06, 2021 11:28 AM EDT

Daniel Roberts poses for a picture Monday, April 5, 2021, in McMinnville, Tenn. Roberts received a COVID vaccine over the objections of his family, who are against being vaccinated. “Five hundred thousand people have died in this country. That’s not a hoax,” Roberts said, speaking of the conspiracy theories he hears from family and friends. ”I don't know why I didn’t believe all of it myself. I guess I chose to believe the facts.” (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Viral thoughts: Why COVID-19 conspiracy theories persist

By David Klepper Apr. 06, 2021 11:23 AM EDT

FILE - In this July 9, 2020, file photo, a correctional officer closes the main gate at San Quentin State Prison in San Quentin, Calif. Prison guards are refusing coronavirus vaccines at alarming rates. That's causing some public health experts to worry about the prospect of controlling the pandemic both inside and outside of prison. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File)
US prison guards refusing vaccine despite COVID-19 outbreaks

By Nicole Lewis Of The Marshall Project And Michael R. Sisak Of The Associated Press Mar. 15, 2021 06:00 AM EDT

FILE - In this Dec. 16, 2020 file photo, BrazilIan President Jair Bolsonaro poses for photos with the mascot of the nation's vaccination campaign, named "Ze Gotinha," or Joseph Droplet, during a ceremony to present Brazil's National Vaccination Plan Against COVID-19, at Planalto presidential palace in Brasilia, Brazil. The Brazilian internet spent the last few days wondering about his apparent disappearance after Brazil's former President Lula joked that he may have been shoved aside due to political motivations. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres, File)
Brazil wonders about whereabouts of vaccine mascot

By Marcelo Silva De Sousa Mar. 14, 2021 05:17 PM EDT

FILE - In this Sept. 14, 2020 file photo, President Donald Trump arrives for a Latinos for Trump Coalition roundtable at Arizona Grand Resort & Spa in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)
From vote to virus, misinformation campaign targets Latinos

By Will Weissert Mar. 07, 2021 10:35 AM EST

FILE - In this Sept. 24, 2020, file photo, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson speaks in Detroit. Michigan's 250 audits around the state of the 2020 general election found that it was was secure and accurate, Secretary of State Benson said during a news conference Tuesday, March 2, 2021. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
Michigan official: Audits show state had a secure election

By Anna Liz Nichols Mar. 02, 2021 02:14 PM EST

Editorial Roundup: Florida

By The Associated Press Feb. 17, 2021 04:18 PM EST
Recent editorials from Florida newspapers: ___ Feb. 13 The Miami Herald on marking three years...

FILE - In this Jan. 6, 2021 file photo, rioters try to break through a police barrier at the Capitol in Washington. People charged in the attack on the U.S. Capitol left behind a trove of videos and messages that have helped federal authorities build cases. In nearly half of the more than 200 federal cases stemming from the attack, authorities have cited evidence that an insurrectionist appeared to have been inspired by conspiracy theories or extremist ideologies, according to an Associated Press review of court records. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)
Dozens charged in Capitol riots spewed extremist rhetoric

By Michael Kunzelman And Amanda Seitz Feb. 16, 2021 12:24 AM EST

FILE - In this June 19, 2009 file photo, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei delivers a sermon with a picture of the late spiritual leader Ayatollah Khomeini in the background, during Friday prayers at the Tehran University campus in Tehran, Iran. Khamenei was among the first and most powerful world leaders to suggest the coronavirus could be a biological weapon created by the U.S. (Meisam Hosseini/Hayat News Agency via AP, File)
The superspreaders behind top COVID-19 conspiracy theories

By David Klepper, Farnoush Amiri And Beatrice Dupuy Feb. 15, 2021 12:10 AM EST

FILE - In this Sept. 4, 2020 file photo, Russian national Igor Nikulin speaks during a news conference in Moscow, Russia. Nikulin argues the U.S. created the virus and used it to attack China. Nikulin says he is a former U.N. arms inspector, but the man who would have been his boss said he's never heard of him. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, File)
COVID conspiracy shows vast reach of Chinese disinformation

By Erika Kinetz Feb. 15, 2021 12:04 AM EST

FILE - In this March 19, 2020 file photo, biological science specialists, background, wear biosafety protective clothing for handling viral diseases at U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command at Fort Detrick in Frederick, Md. On March 9, 2020, a public WeChat account called "Happy Reading List" reposted an essay claiming the U.S. military created SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, at a lab in Fort Detrick and loosed it in China during the Military World Games, an international competition for military athletes, held in Wuhan in October 2019. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Anatomy of a conspiracy: With COVID, China took leading role

By Erika Kinetz Feb. 15, 2021 12:03 AM EST