Rightwing conspiracy theories have roiled the internet over the past few weeks, many of them targeted at Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. At least two prominent examples of those theories have been sourced to an X account dubbed “Black Insurrectionist,” which had, until recently, sported a profile picture of an African American war veteran. Now, a new report from the Associated Press claims that the man who operates the account is not Black and has a checkered legal history.
The AP reports that a white guy named Jason G. Palmer is “directly linked” to the Black Insurrectionist account, which went by the handle @DocNetyoutube. The account has been credited with spreading the false rumor that Tim Walz was involved with an “inappropriate relationship with a minor,” as well as with elevating the claim that the Harris campaign colluded with the ABC news network prior to the 2024 debate with Donald Trump, where Trump notably did not do well.
After the AP reached out to Palmer, the account was deactivated. While the account still seems to be inactive, the Wayback Machine shows what it previously looked like:
© X/DocNetyoutube/screenshotThe AP says it was able to tie an email address pictured in one of the videos posted by Black Insurrectionist’s account to Palmer. The video showed the account user’s computer screen, and Palmer’s email address was visible in the background of the desktop, the report says. The AP contacted an open-source investigation company that helped tie the email address to a phone number.
When confronted by the AP about his connection to the account, the newspaper reports that Palmer “acknowledged in an email that he was involved with the account,” but went on to make a number of conflicting statements. Palmer said that he “did not create” the account, but claimed to “have owned it at one point before selling it in April or May to a person who he declined to identify.” Palmer further claimed that the account was “primarily operated by a friend of his who is Black” though he wouldn’t identify this Black friend and refused the AP’s request to be put in touch with them.
Even more mysteriously, Palmer claimed that he worked as a “researcher” for a broader group. “We did that with big people. National people,” he told the newspaper. “I have no comment on anything else regarding that.”
It wasn’t immediately apparent how to get in touch with Palmer. The AP also noted that he had a history of legal troubles, and that, in the past, he was involved in “real estate venture” that ended in a “string of lawsuits.”
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