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Despite the news media’s frantic insistence that an obscure, fringe group of conspiracy theorists known as Q Anon played a major role in the Capitol riots, a new academic study is proving that the claims are yet more media ‘misinformation.’

Claims about Q Anon’s purportedly significant role in the January 6th attack on the Capitol building abound.

“The QAnon conspiracy theory and a stew of misinformation fueled the insurrection at the Capitol,” the Insider claimed on January 7th.

“[T]he voter-fraud conspiracy theories peddled by Trump, his allies, and his supporters since the election were amplified by and, in most cases, originated from powerful figures in the QAnon ecosystem,” the publication claimed.

Yahoo News also attempted to weave a narrative that those who led the planned Capitol building siege were driven by the Q Anon theory.

“Ever since a violent mob, including some with ties to the cultlike Q movement, invaded the U.S. Capitol in a failed attempt to stop Congress from certifying the results of the presidential election, Q believers have been trying to reconcile what did — and didn’t — happen in Washington this week with their own conspiracy-ridden world view,” Caitlin Dickinson reported.

It is important to note that there is very little evidence to back up the claims that widespread belief the 2020 election was illegitimate has anything to do with Q Anon or any other conspiracy theories. Tens of millions of Trump voters who have never heard of Q Anon, or are largely unfamiliar with its views, nonetheless believe the 2020 election was not free and fair.

There are a number of reasons why so many journalists were quick to conclude that Q Anon was a factor in the Capitol riots: The appearance of Q Anon banners, and of course, the bizarre figure of the Q Anon Shaman Jake Angeli, who is also proven to be an environmental extremist.

It turns out that the media’s narrative that Q Anon played a major role in the Capitol riots is itself media misinformation. The reason the Capitol riots happened has more to do with “Blue Anon” than “Q Anon.”

A study led by professors at the University of Chicago and the University of Michigan have found that only a sliver of the Capitol rioters had ties to any right-wing militia groups. Nearly 90% were “unaffiliated.”