Cernovich — a controversial far-right figure who has promoted blatantly false conspiracy theories, such as the discredited “Pizzagate” hoax — was the source of a big BuzzFeed scoop Monday night. Cernovich declined Tuesday to say whether he actually paid anyone; he also said he didn’t know whether BuzzFeed knew about his offer. “We were extremely careful,” he said, noting that BuzzFeed ensured that the documents Cernovich provided weren’t forged or altered. Smith declined to say from whom and how Cernovich, a lawyer who lives in Southern California, got the information he passed on to BuzzFeed. Aware that his reputation could raise questions about the story’s credibility, he said, he decided to pass the documents to BuzzFeed.

Source: Washington Post November 21, 2017 18:32 UTC