Covid.gov now points to a ‘lab leak’ conspiracy website

Covid.gov, the authorities website wherever you could previously find information astir covid, present redirects to a page that pushes the conspiracy mentation that the microorganism originated from a lab. Navigating to the website reveals a salient banner with the words “Lab Leak” and a photograph of Donald Trump, arsenic spotted earlier by Wired’s Andrew Couts.

Covidtests.gov, wherever you could bid escaped covid tests, besides redirects to the caller webpage.

The website purports to uncover the “true origins” of covid, blaming a Chinese lab’s “inadequate biosafety levels” for allegedly “leaking” the virus. It goes connected to propulsion different blatant conspiracy theories, specified arsenic the assertion that the Biden medication misled the nationalist astir covid’s origins and “demonized alternate treatments.” The leafage besides claims that the WHO “caved to unit from the Chinese Communist Party” successful its effect to the pandemic.

It’s not wide precisely erstwhile the covid.gov leafage changed. As shown connected an archived version of the webpage, covid.gov included resources astir the microorganism up until astatine slightest April 10th. The leafage present includes a nexus to the House Oversight Committee report, which likewise promotes the laboratory leak conspiracy theory.

Since February, the Trump medication has been moving to rip down webpages from national websites that don’t align with its beliefs – peculiarly accusation related to clime change, radical equity, and sex identity. Though a tribunal bid brought immoderate of these pages backmost online, the Trump medication ordered national agencies to see disclaimers around “gender ideology.”