This is simply the wrong way to write, think & report about QAnon. None of the reporters who have covered the movement closely have argued that it is a majority view, or even close. What we have said is that it grew significantly in 2020 and has repeatedly inspired violence. https://twitter.com/kdrum/status/1359708630975537153

Meanwhile, the idea that anyone could convince 2% of the US to believe that a powerful cabal of Botswanans controls the US is absurdly obtuse. First of all, 2% of the US population is 6.5m people. Popping 2% on a single poll is simply different than the real whole number.

If convincing 2% of the US population to do anything was so simple, the news media would not be in such dire financial straits.

But more importantly, part of what makes QAnon so powerfully sticky in the brains of people in the US and around the world is that it takes advantage of preexisting false beliefs, such as the age old antisemitic conspiracy theory about the Jewish cabal.

To ignore the way that QAnon has taken advantage of these preexisting false beliefs, bigotries, and patterns of thought is to misunderstand QAnon entirely.

You could probably convince 2% of Americans something false about Botswanans if it algined with pre-existing false beliefs held by Americans about Africans, such as racism. If you were to do that with inflammatory allegations while exalting violence, it would be very dangerous.

QAnon has successfully colonized a large number of false/conspiratorial narratives that many Americans already held, providing them with a moral crusade (save the children from trafficking) and an enemies list while glorifying violence and fascistic state power. It's dangerous.