The New York TimesThe New York Times

Talk of 'civil war,' ignited by Mar-a-Lago search, is flaring online

By Ken Bensinger, Sheera Frenkel

05 Oct 2022 · 7 min read

Editor's Note

Ever since the former US President Donald Trump has been protesting against the Mar-a-Lago raids, the term "civil war" is picking up pace in right wing internet circles, reports NYT.

Soon after the FBI searched Donald Trump’s home in Florida for classified documents, online researchers zeroed in on a worrying trend.

Posts on Twitter that mentioned “civil war” had soared nearly 3,000% in just a few hours as Trump’s supporters blasted the action as a provocation. Similar spikes followed, including on Facebook, Reddit, Telegram, Parler, Gab and Truth Social, Trump’s social media platform. Mentions of the phrase more than doubled on radio programs and podcasts, as measured by Critical Mention, a media-tracking firm.

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