Following the recent snowstorm, power slowly returns to homes in Texas. And a conspiracy theory has blown in its place; a bogus claim that the snow is fake and engineered by the government.
TikTok is flooded with videos of people burning snowball with the match. Their surprised reaction on how the snow doesn’t melt is recorded on social media. This is unfamiliar to Texans as the state as they mostly enjoy warm weather all year.
In one video, a TikTok user uses a blow-dryer on a snowball and says, “It’s not melting.” The user has shared several videos of herself experimenting with snow.
@sarahmojoSomeone said do it with a blow dryer #fyp #snowwontmelt #whatshappening #texasblizzard #centraltexas #conspiracytheories #helpmeunderstand♬ original sound – Sarah
This extremely rare snowstorm in Texas has almost caused the collapse of the electricity infrastructure. People were in freezing cold for days. Thankfully, electricity has gone back to normal recently. Yet similarly, the situation doesn’t end.
Political Theories
There are even similar conspiracy theories circulating on Facebook and Telegram about President Joe Biden and Bill Gates. Many are even claiming Trump’s presidency would’ve made it spring by now. These bias claims are mostly ‘political’. According to an assistant professor at the University of Buffalo, Yotum Ophir, in times of crisis, people tend to “fall back on all kinds of biases and shortcuts that they use to make sense of the situation.”
@cowboyrikter75GOVERMENT SNOW IF IT WAS TRUMP IN OFFICE IT WOULD SPRING #foryoupage #snow #trump #fyp #govermentsnow
Bill Gates becoming part of the theories becomes a popular scapegoat. He is often the subject of far-right conspiracy theories.
The Science
Astronomer Phil Platt debunked the claim and explain it in his video. He explained, debunking the videos that the snow does melt but it doesn’t appear to drip because the remaining snow absorbs the water.
The ‘scorch’ mark on the snowballs are resulting from burning butane, the gas that fuels lighters. Furthermore, Butane produced soot once it is burned.
TikTok has gained increasing popularity in the past year. However, it is highly criticized for the many issues. This is just one of the many issues regarding the social media platform concerning misinformation. Many have criticized the TikTok video even to the point of questioning the American education system.
Source: The Insider, Reuters