Fox Spreads Fake Story That Arizona Gov “Disappeared”

The Arizona Republic reports:

Fox News stirred up conspiracy theories online Thursday with a report about state Treasurer Kimberly Yee being named acting governor after what the conservative cable news network called the “mysterious disappearance of Gov. Katie Hobbs.” The erroneous news report, later changed by Fox, followed a false rumor that went viral on social media earlier this week that Hobbs had been “indicted” by the state Senate on charges related to conspiring with a Mexican drug cartel.

The network didn’t attempt to explain why it called Hobbs’ temporary absence from the state a “disappearance” in its report, which was headlined “Arizona governor mysteriously steps down for one day.” Hobbs didn’t disappear. She was in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday for a meeting about border issues with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas following a weeklong visit to Taiwan, an important Arizona trade ally. She flew back to the state Thursday to meet with President Joe Biden.

Read the full article.

Fox News said Gov. Katie Hobbs disappeared. She didn’t. This is where she was https://t.co/PGcEp3MHHz

— azcentral (@azcentral) September 29, 2023