A White House Adviser Says the Cyclospora Outbreak Is Manufactured Hysteria. Taco Bell's ...

Theory Briefing

• A White House adviser publicly labeled the Cyclospora outbreak 'manufactured hysteria,' lending official-sounding weight to a fringe claim.
• The conspiracy theory denying the outbreak reached 85,000 views, showing how a credible-seeming source can turbocharge a false narrative's spread.
• Two people are reportedly linked to the outbreak, grounding the story in real public-health stakes even as the denial goes viral.
• The episode shows how quickly an authority figure's dismissal can reframe a documented health event as a political hoax for a mass audience.