On CNN Wednesday, reporter Donie O'Sullivan discussed the QAnon gathering in Dallas — and some of the personal motivations of its adherents.
"It is important to remember the sort of wider context, this is all playing out and there is a space online where there is no truth," said O'Sullivan. "People are not tethered to reality anymore. And while we have seen — this was a small segment of the QAnon population, I guess you could call them at this point, but, you know, other folks in QAnon said those people yesterday were crazy, who showed up in [Dallas] to try to see JFK and JFK Jr. They have been saying the election has been stolen, all the Democrats are going to be rounded up and sent to Guantanamo Bay. It is tough to see where one conspiracy begins and another one ends. JFK and his son JFK Jr. did not show up yesterday, so these people didn't get to meet their hero."
"I do want to show you one quote from the Daily Beast picked up on, on livestream, a lot of people livestreaming this event yesterday," added O'Sullivan. "A person, one of the attendees said some of them are home, speaking about this event, feeling lonely. They had nobody there. We heard these stories for months about people, people feeling alone, having nobody they can talk to and now you have a thousand people in Dallas. I think that's just a really important point to hit on ... amid all the political stuff. So many folks that we speak to who go down these rabbit holes of conspiracy theories, especially online, are looking for community. They are looking for people to interact with and that is what a lot of these conspiracies give folks that sort of outlet."
"That all being said ... I am going for a late breakfast this morning with Elvis and Tupac," joked O'Sullivan.
QAnon followers are 'alone' with 'nobody to talk to' as they pursue their theories www.youtube.com
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