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Debunking
The conspiracy theory has been widely discredited and debunked. It has been described as false by the fact-checking website snopes.com and The New York Times.[41][53][54] Other criticisms of the conspiracy theory came from the New York Observer,[55] The Washington Post,[56] The Independent in London,[57] The Huffington Post,[58] The Washington Times,[11] Los Angeles Times,[59] Fox News[60] and the Miami Herald.[61] The Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia characterized the matter as "fictitious".[61]
Much of the purported evidence cited by the conspiracy theory's proponents had been taken from entirely different sources and made to appear as if they supported the conspiracy.[3] Images of children of family and friends of the pizzeria's staff were taken from social media sites such as Instagram and claimed to be photos of victims.[53] The Charlotte Observer noted the diverse group of sources that had debunked the conspiracy theory, pointing out this included the Fox News Channel in addition to The New York Times.[37]
On December 10, 2016, The New York Times published an article that analyzed the claims that the theory proposed.[2] They emphasized that:
The theory claimed "cheese pizza" was code for "child pornography," since the term had been used in this context previously on the website 4Chan. This was extrapolated to other mentions of food in non-political emails. However, as the Times pointed out, the "Podesta brothers were famous in Washington circles for their Italian cooking and big salon and fund-raising dinners, often cooked by their mother."[2]
Theorists linked the conspiracy to Comet Ping Pong, through similarities between company logos and symbols related to Satanism and pedophilia. However, The Times noted that striking similarities may also be found in the logos of a number of unrelated companies, such as AOL, Time Warner, and MSN.[2]
A photograph was circulated purporting to show President Barack Obama playing ping pong with a child inside Comet Ping Pong. The original picture hangs framed in the White House, where it was taken.[2]
Theorists claimed an underground network beneath Comet Ping Pong; however, the restaurant actually has no basement, and the picture used to support this claim was taken from another facility.[2]
Theorists claimed to have a picture of restaurant owner Alefantis wearing a T-shirt endorsing pedophilia. However, the image was of another person entirely, and the shirt, which read "J’ ❤ L’Enfant," was actually a reference to the L’Enfant Cafe-Bar in DC, whose owner was pictured in the image, and which itself was named after Pierre Charles L'Enfant, designer of much of the layout of Washington, DC.[2]
Theorists claimed John and Tony Podesta kidnapped Madeleine McCann using police sketches which were, in fact, two sketches of the same suspect taken from the descriptions of two eye witnesses. Furthermore, the claim that the brothers were in Portugal at the time of the kidnapping was sourced only to the conspiracy website Victurus Libertas, notable for, among other things, suggesting that the Queen of England was a reptilian alien.[2]
Additionally, no alleged victims have come forward, nor has any physical evidence been found.[62]
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