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John Michael "Jack" Posobiec III (/pəˈsoʊbɪk/ pə-SOW-bik; born 1985) is an American alt-right internet troll and conspiracy theorist, known primarily for his controversial and pro-Donald Trump comments on Twitter.

Posobiec promoted the debunked Pizzagate conspiracy theory that high-ranking Democratic Party officials were involved in a child sex ring. He has also doubted Russian interference in the 2016 election and promoted a theory that the Democratic National Committee murdered Seth Rich in a coverup. Other conspiracy theories promoted by Posobiec include the white genocide conspiracy theory, which states that immigration from non-white majority countries, racial integration, miscegenation, low fertility rates, and abortion are being promoted in predominantly white countries to deliberately turn them minority-white and hence cause white people to become extinct through forced assimilation. Posobiec also originally praised white supremacist Richard Spencer as "indispensable" and remarked that “the media can’t get enough of” him, although later distanced himself. Posobiec in 2017 led similar rallies to the Unite the Right rally.

During the 2016 election, he was a special projects director of Citizens for Trump, a pro-Trump organization. For two months in 2017, he was a correspondent for The Rebel, a far-right Canada-based website. He was granted press access to the White House in April 2017, but he left the next month after allegations arose that he had engaged in plagiarism. According to Philadelphia magazine, during his short time in the White House press pool Posobiec "seems to have been charged in the press briefing room with haranguing legitimate journalists and running out the clock on press conferences with inane softball questions and Dear Leader obsequiousness."

Posobiec describes himself as a "Republican political operative". He has called his work "reality journalism—part investigative, part activist, part commentary", and has said: "I'm willing to break the fourth wall. I'm willing to walk into an anti-Trump march and start chanting anti-Clinton stuff—to make something happen, and then cover what happens." Will Sommer, an editor at The Hill, has said Posobiec "make stuff up, relentlessly", and that "there's no one at that level."

Education and early career

Posobiec was born and raised in Norristown, Pennsylvania. His parents were both Democrats. He attended Kennedy-Kenrick Catholic High School and then went to college at Temple University. While at Temple he rebelled against his parent's political views and became the chairman of the Temple University College Republicans and started a chapter of Students for Academic Freedom, an organization run by the David Horowitz Freedom Center. He also did a summer internship for Sen. Rick Santorum and volunteered for Rep. Curt Weldon's unsuccessful reelection campaign in 2006. He graduated with a double major in political science and broadcast journalism.

After graduation Posobiec worked for the United States Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, China. In 2008 he played a minor role in the film The Forbidden Kingdom. He later worked for WPHT, a conservative talk radio station and later for the campaign of Steve Johnson in the 2010 Pennsylvania lieutenant gubernatorial election.

Posobiec is a lieutenant junior grade naval intelligence officer. He served several tours in the Naval Reserves between 2010 and 2017, including a deployment at Guantanamo Bay. In March 2017 Posobiec resigned from his Office of Naval Intelligence position, saying that his support for Trump led to a "toxic work environment". As of August 2017 his security clearance was suspended and under review.

From 2012 to 2016, Posobiec ran a blog and podcast about Game of Thrones called AngryGoTFan.

Notable activities

This section is in list format but may read better as prose. You can help by converting this section, if appropriate. Editing help is available. (August 2017)

• Posobiec posted an anti-semitic meme on Twitter in October 2016.
• Posobiec led a campaign in November 2016 to discredit anti-Trump protesters by planting a sign at a protest reading "Rape Melania". He later denied his involvement and said he had been questioned about it by the Secret Service.
• In December 2016, Posobiec claimed without evidence that Disney had re-written scenes in the Star Wars movie Rogue One to add "Anti Trump scenes calling him a racist", and called for a boycott of the Star Wars franchise. Disney denied the allegations.
• Posobiec was one of the biggest promoters on social media of the Pizzagate conspiracy theory, which falsely claimed that high-ranking officials were involved in a child-sex ring centered at a Washington, D.C. pizzeria. He live-streamed an investigation of the pizzeria and was asked to leave after attempting to broadcast a child's birthday party being held in a back room. Posobiec later said he had always thought the Pizzagate theory was "stupid" and had filmed his visit to debunk it.
• Posobiec was an organizer of the DeploraBall, an event held on January 19, 2017, to celebrate Trump's inauguration.
• Posobiec promoted e-mails and files leaked to 4chan of Emmanuel Macron shortly before the French presidential election in 2017.
• Posobiec falsely said that at a United States Senate hearing on May 17, 2017, former FBI director James Comey "said under oath that Trump did not ask him to halt any investigation". The claim was later repeated by the conservative media, including in prominent outlets such as InfoWars and Rush Limbaugh.
• Posobiec promoted the discredited conspiracy theory that Seth Rich had leaked e-mails from the Democratic National Committee to Wikileaks.
• On June 4, 2017, Posobiec tweeted, "There's never been a terrorist attack at a Nascar race. Nascar fans are all armed. Draw your own conclusions." His comment was widely ridiculed on social media.
• Posobiec promoted a hoax that CNN had published and then deleted an article defending Bill Maher's use of a racial slur.
• On June 14, 2017, shortly after Republican Representative Steve Scalise was shot during a baseball practice, Posobiec falsely tweeted that Loretta Lynch had previously called for "blood in the streets" and that Bernie Sanders had ordered his followers to "take down" Trump.
• On June 16, 2017, Posobiec disrupted a Shakespeare in the Park production of Julius Caesar that depicted the title character as a President Trump-like figure. Posobiec was prompted by Mike Cernovich, another alt-right conspiracy theorist, who had offered a $1,000 prize for anyone who interrupted the play. Posobiec was escorted from the event along with fellow protester Laura Loomer, who was arrested for disorderly conduct after refusing to leave the stage.
• Posobiec organized a "Rally Against Political Violence" in Washington, D.C. on June 25, 2017 that drew a sparse crowd. Richard Spencer, another alt-right figure who organized a separate, competing rally at the same time, ridiculed Posobiec's event and called it "pathetic".
• In July 2017, Posobiec handed out flyers thanking Democratic senators for "protecting our quality violent porn content", including "ritual Satanic porn videos". The flyers were distributed outside the U.S. Senate at a demonstration in support of net neutrality.
• In August 2017, following a "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia that led to violent clashes between white nationalists and anti-protesters, Posobiec said that the rally had become "massive propaganda" for the left and that the mainstream media was "fanning the flames of this violence." He said that Trump should have disavowed Black Lives Matter. Posobiec later tweeted that he had consistently disavowed white nationalism and violence. He also tweeted that he was "done with trolling" and that it was "time to do the right thing."
• On August 16, 2017, Posobiec participated in a small protest of a statue of Vladimir Lenin in Seattle, Washington, to have it removed.
• In October 2017, Posobiec and Cernovich formed a super PAC called #Rev18 and announced its support for Josh Mandel in the 2018 U.S. Senate election in Ohio.
• In November 2017, Posobiec encouraged his Twitter followers to target a woman at her workplace after she came forward with accusations that Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore had attempted to have sex with her when she was 14 years old.
• In December 2017, Posobiec, along with Cernovich, The Gateway Pundit, and InfoWars, promoted a false theory that a passenger train derailment near Dupont, Washington was linked to the Antifa anti-fascism movement.
• In January 2018, an account associated with Posobiec was removed from the Bumble dating app. Bumble's Twitter account said that he was banned for violating the company's values of "kindness, respect, integrity and equality." Posobiec denied having Bumble account and said he was going to file an identity theft complaint.
• In Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district special election, 2018 in March 2018, Posobiec supported Democrat Conor Lamb over Republican Rick Saccone. Posobiec described Lamb as a "Pro-Trump Dem veteran".

Personal life

Posobiec married Tanya Tay, a Belorusian, in November 2017. On January 24, 2018, the dating app Bumble removed Posobiec from its platform, after a user alerted the company. Although Posobiec denies ever having a Bumble account, the company linked the profile with his name to a Facebook account associated with the white nationalist propagandist.

References

1. Lewis, Becca; Marwik, Alice (June 9, 2017). "Megyn Kelly fiasco is one more instance of far right outmaneuvering media". Columbia Journalism Review.
2. Karma Allen (August 15, 2017). "Trump retweets alt-right activist who pushed 'Pizzagate' conspiracy". ABC News.
3. Cillizza, Chris (August 18, 2017). Donald Trump retweeted an alt-right conspiracy theorist. Here's why. CNN. Retrieved: August 31, 2017.
4. * Peters, Jeremy W. (June 10, 2017). "A Pro-Trump Conspiracy Theorist, a False Tweet and a Runaway Story". The New York Times.
   • Colleen Shalby (August 14, 2017). "Trump retweets alt-right media figure who pushed 'PizzaGate' and Seth Rich conspiracy theories". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035.
   • "Trump retweets alt-right conspiracy theorist amid Charlottesville fallout". Business Insider. August 15, 2017.
5. Peters, Jeremy W. (2017-11-03). "Alternative Narrative Emerges in Conservative Media as Russia Inquiry Widens". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-11-04.
6. "Everything President Trump has tweeted (and what it was about)". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
7. Thomsen, Jacqueline (2018-01-13). "Trump retweets far-right activist". TheHill. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
8. ^ "Trump retweeted an alt-right figurehead who has praised white supremacist Richard Spencer". Newsweek. 2017-08-15. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
9. ^ Lytvynenko, Jane (May 29, 2017). "Pro-Trump Media Figure And Conspiracy Theory Peddler Jack Posobiec Is Out At The Rebel". BuzzFeed.
10. ^ Valania, Jonathan (September 16, 2017). "How Jack Posobiec Became the King of Fake News". Philadelphia. Cite error: The named reference "philly" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
11. ^ Schmidt, Samantha (August 15, 2017). "Trump retweets right-wing provocateur known for pushing false conspiracy theories". The Washington Post.
12. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-france-cyber-activist-idUSKBN187008
13. ^ Peters, Jeremy W. (10 June 2017). "A Pro-Trump Conspiracy Theorist, a False Tweet and a Runaway Story" – via NYTimes.com.
14. ^ Marantz, Andrew (May 7, 2017). "The Far-Right American Nationalist Who Tweeted #MacronLeaks". The New Yorker.
15. ^ Lamoureux, Mack (May 17, 2017). "How This 'Game of Thrones' Blogger Made His Way Into the White House". Vice.com.
16. ^ Kube, Courtney (August 16, 2017). "Right-Winger Jack Posobiec, Retweeted by Trump, Is Navy Intel Officer". NBC News.
17. Watkins, Eli; Sciutto, Jim (August 16, 2017). "Security clearance under review for right-wing activist Trump retweeted". CNN.
18. Hayden, Michael Edison (January 25, 2018). "White Supremacist, Neo-Nazi Accounts Still Active on Twitter After a So-Called Purge". Newsweek.
19. https://www.facebook.com/callum.borchers. "How one deplorable sign at an anti-Trump protest foreshadows the fight over fake news". Washington Post. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help); External link in |last= (help)
20. "From Alt Right to Alt Lite: Naming the Hate". Anti-Defamation League.
21. Holpuch, Amanda; Rawlinson, Kevin (15 August 2017). "Trump's erratic early morning Twitter retweets include one calling him fascist" – via The Guardian.
22. Nickalls, Sammy (December 8, 2016). "Now Trump Supporters Are Boycotting Star Wars Based on No Evidence". Esquire.
23. Fisher, Marc; Cox, John Woodrow; Hermann3, Peter (December 6, 2016). "Pizzagate: From rumor, to hashtag, to gunfire in D.C." The Washington Post.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
24. Weiner, Rachel (December 15, 2016). "Clarendon Ballroom gets harassing calls after declining to host Trump backers' 'DeploraBall'". The Washington Post.
25. Boult, Adam (June 5, 2017). "Would arming the public prevent terror attacks? Pro-gun commentator prompts mass derision". The Telegraph.
26. Evon, Dan (June 5, 2017). "Did CNN Delete an Article Defending Bill Maher's Use of a Racial Slur?". Snopes.com.
27. Shalby, Colleen (June 14, 2017). "How fake news starts: Trump supporters tie Bernie Sanders to Alexandria shooting using a fake quote". Los Angeles Times.
28. Wang, Amy B (June 17, 2017). "Pro-Trump protester arrested after rushing stage at controversial 'Julius Caesar' production in New York". The Washington Post.
29. Resnick, Gideon (June 25, 2017). "Alt-Right Boss Attacks Trump's 'Repulsive and Creepy' Fanboys". The Daily Beast.
30. Collins, Ben (12 July 2017). "Alt-Right Claims Net Neutrality Promotes 'Satanic Porn' in Planted Flyers". The Daily Beast.
31. O’Brien, Kirsten; Cohen, Stephen (August 17, 2017). "Small group calls for removal of Fremont's Lenin statue". Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
32. Koff, Stephen (October 2, 2017). "Backing Josh Mandel, controversial figures launch super PAC". The Plain Dealer.
33. "Roy Moore's accuser's photo and workplace were spread on Twitter by a far-right conspiracist". Newsweek. 2017-11-10. Retrieved 2017-11-12.
34. Hayden, Michael Edison (December 18, 2017). "Antifa' Falsely Linked to Amtrak Train Derailment by Right-Wing Conspiracy Peddlers". Newsweek.
35. ^ Notopoulos, Katie (January 24, 2018). "Bumble Just Kicked Off A Pro-Trump Media Personality As Part Of Its "Stance Against Hate"". BuzzFeed.
36. Nguyen, Tina (March 13, 2018). ""The G.O.P. Is Full of Morons": Even the Pro-Trump World Gave Up on Rick Saccone". Vanity Fair.
37. Musaddique, Shafi. "Bumble dating app boots white nationalist leader Jack Posobiec in crack down on hate speech". Independent. Independent. Retrieved 17 April 2018.
38. Musaddique, Shafi. "Bumble dating app boots white nationalist leader Jack Posobiec in crack down on hate speech". www.independent.co.uk. Independent. Retrieved 17 April 2018.

• Living people
• 1985 births
• Conspiracy theorists
• Temple University alumni
• People from Norristown, Pennsylvania
• Alt-right