Bits: Anti-Clinton Fake News Casts Pizzeria as Front for Crime

View in [Browser] | Add [nytdirect@nytimes.com] to your address book. Tuesday, November 22, 2016 [The New York Times] [For the latest updates, go to nytimes.com/bits »] [The New York Times] Tuesday, November 22, 2016 [The Comet Ping Pong pizzeria.] The Comet Ping Pong pizzeria. Chad Bartlett for The New York Times [Daily Report] The proliferation of fake news online has [roiled the American presidential election], [politicians around the world] and internet companies [including Facebook and Google]. So what happens when the fake news juggernaut also sweeps up ordinary citizens? Cecilia Kang saw the fallout up close when she interviewed James Alefantis, owner of the Comet Ping Pong pizzeria in Washington. Mr. Alefantis and his employees [have gotten caught up] in a storm of fake news recently. A barrage of false articles on social media and fake news sites said their pizzeria was a front for a child-trafficking ring led by Hillary Clinton and her campaign chief, John D. Podesta. The stories — collected under the hashtag #pizzagate — have surprised Mr. Alefantis. He was a supporter of Mrs. Clinton’s and has prominent Democratic friends in Washington, but has never met the former Democratic presidential candidate, nor peddled children nor abused them. The repercussions have been far-reaching. Mr. Alefantis, his friends and employees are now dealing with a flood of nasty comments on social media, threatening phone calls and even visits to their restaurant from people who say they believe the fake news articles. Mr. Alefantis has gotten in touch with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the local police and man ysocial media companies to try to take down the fake items. He has had little success. “It’s endless,” Mr. Alefantis said of the strange digital turn his life has taken. — Pui-Wing Tam  Related [James Alefantis, owner of Comet Ping Pong, at his restaurant in Washington, D.C. Fake news websites have called it the home base of a child abuse ring led by Hillary Clinton and John D. Podesta.] [This Pizzeria Is Not a Child-Trafficking Site] By CECILIA KANG A Washington restaurant is reeling from menacing calls and online abuse after a fake story: that Hillary Clinton abuses children there.  ADVERTISEMENT  More From The Times On Technology [Is Social Media Disconnecting Us From the Big Picture?] By JENNA WORTHAM We’ve heard about its power to help us empathize with others. But what if, instead, it’s just cocooning us with our friends? Global Health [West Nile virus is spread by Culex mosquitoes. ] [Telling Mosquitoes Apart With a Cellphone] By DONALD G. MCNEIL JR. Calling their project “Shazam for Mosquitoes,” Stanford students showed that common mobile phones could distinguish the hums of beating wings, which could prove useful in fighting diseases. [Snapchat Spectacles are sunglasses that record short videos.] [To Snag Snapchat Spectacles in New York, a Long, Cold Wait] By MICHAEL J. DE LA MERCED At a pop-up store in Manhattan, hundreds of people waited for the chance to buy $130 sunglasses that take 10-second video shared wirelessly to their Snapchat app.  ADVERTISEMENT  Personal Technology Tech Tip [Making Movies With Windows 10] By J. D. BIERSDORFER Microsoft’s Windows Movie Maker app is headed for retirement next year, but an updated version is promised and other programs may fill the void.  LIKE THIS EMAIL? Forward it to your friends, and let them know they can sign up [here].  FOLLOW Bits [Twitter] [@nytimesbits] ABOUT THIS EMAIL You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Bits newsletter. [Unsubscribe] | [Manage Subscriptions] | [Change Your Email] | [Privacy Policy] | [Contact] | [Advertise] Copyright 2016 The New York Times Company | 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018