Princess of Wales Kate Middleton revealed in a video message that she is undergoing preventive chemotherapy in an effort to put an end to rumors about her health condition (French)

It seems that Princess of Wales Kate Middleton's announcement that she had cancer did not succeed in stopping the confusion surrounding her health condition, as some are still insisting on spreading more conspiracy theories about the princess.

Kate Middleton (42 years old) received a wave of global sympathy after she revealed in a video message published on Friday that she was undergoing preventive chemotherapy, in an effort to put an end to rumors about the reason for her absence from public life for months.

Kensington Palace's distribution of a royal photo to the media, which it later deleted after it turned out to be modified, sparked a lot of speculation and the spread of conspiracy theories on social media, embodying the new nature of information chaos in the age of artificial intelligence and misinformation.

These speculations took a dangerous turn last week when the British police were asked to investigate in an attempt to access Princess Kate's secret medical records. Helen Lewis wrote for the American magazine "The Atlantic", "Kate was effectively intimidated" following these developments, but "the alternative - i.e. "The torrent of gossip and conspiracy theories - it was worse."

The British newspaper "Daily Mail" also criticized the campaigns against Princess Kate, asking, "How do all these vile trolls on the Internet feel now?"

But it seems that the conspiracy theorists have not said their final word.

“Fear-mongering scammers”

Some pioneers of the X platforms - formerly Twitter - and TikTok claimed that the video message published by Kate was created using deep fake technology supported by artificial intelligence.

Some users posted slow versions of the video to support their claim that the aforementioned clip had been subjected to digital manipulation, wondering why nothing in the background of the video, such as green leaves or grass, was moving.

Others analyzed her facial movements, also stopping when a dimple that was evident in previous photos did not appear.

One post on the X platform said: “Sorry, House of Windsor, Kate Middleton and old media – I still can’t believe what you are trying to convince us of.”

Misinformation also spread about cancer itself, with publications claiming that the disease is not fatal, likening chemotherapy to "poison."

Also, anti-vaccine activists, as usual, had a share in the discussions, as many of them did not hesitate to ride the wave of conspiracy theories, talking about Kate being diagnosed with “turbo cancer”, a rumor that has been repeatedly refuted, accusing “Covid-19” vaccines of increasing Risk of rapid cancer.

“There is no evidence to support the rapid cancer lie,” said disinformation expert Timothy Caulfield from the University of Alberta in Canada.

He added that conspiracy theorists are "cruel fraudsters who peddle fear and misinformation."

"seed of doubt"

The spread of conspiracy theories highlights the growth of misinformation, a trend that is growing due to the public's mistrust of institutions and traditional media.

Researchers say this same mistrust has corrupted online conversations about serious issues, including elections, climate and health care.

"People don't trust what they see and read," explains Karen Douglas, professor of social psychology at the University of Kent. "Once the seed of doubt is planted, and people lose trust, conspiracy theories are able to gain more attention."

Rumors surrounding Kate have swirled since she withdrew from public life after attending Christmas Mass and undergoing abdominal surgery in January.

The Internet witnessed a torrent of conspiracy theories after the Princess of Wales admitted that a family photo published on the occasion of Mother's Day in Britain two weeks ago had been doctored, a move that prompted international news agencies to withdraw it.

When a video was later released showing Kate strolling through the market with her husband, conspiracy theorists claimed the princess had been replaced by her surrogate.

“When it comes to an institution as ancient and opaque as the royal family, public distrust creates a huge appetite for scrutiny,” says Danagal Young of the University of Delaware.

Hashtags talking about the princess achieved great popularity on social media, to the point that some began using the hashtags to promote unrelated posts on topics that receive much less attention, including human rights violations in India and the Middle East.

Researchers believe that what made this madness worse was the culture of royal secrecy and gaps in the palace’s public relations strategy. “To be honest, the palace could have nipped the situation in the bud much earlier,” Douglas says.

Source: French