There is no evidence that a group of conservatives were injured while trying to shoot down an alleged Chinese spy balloon that flew over the United States for a few days in early February, contrary to social media posts. The claims stem from a satirical Twitter account.
A tweet (here) (bit.ly/40E1svt) originally published by @HalfwayPost (www.twitter.com/HalfwayPost) on Feb. 4, 2023 reads: “BREAKING: 6 local conservatives in South Carolina have accidentally shot themselves in gun accidents while attempting to shoot down the Chinese balloon.”
The account shares satirical content and has a bio that says: “Dada news. Halfway true comedy by @DashMacIntyre. I don't report the facts, I improve them.” Reuters has previously debunked satire claims from this account taken seriously online (here), (here).
Reuters found no record of any such injuries taking place. A Google search did not result in credible news outlets reporting on the supposed story (bit.ly/40GvDSX).
U.S. officials said on Feb. 2 that a Chinese spy balloon had been flying over the country for a few days, Reuters reported. Although fighter jets were mobilized, military leaders initially advised President Joe Biden against shooting it for fear debris could pose a safety threat (here).
Before it was shot down two days later by a military fighter jet (here), some conservative politicians tweeted photographs of themselves posing with a rifles (here) (here).
VERDICT
Satire. There is no evidence that six local conservatives were injured while trying to shoot down the Chinese spy balloon. The claims stem from a satirical Twitter account.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work here .
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.