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Wikipedia explains that:

Pizzagate is a debunked conspiracy theory started by an alt-right Twitter account and spread by 4chan users and /r/The_Donald forum on Reddit, which alleged that John Podesta's emails, which were leaked by Wikileaks, tied a number of pizzerias (notably Comet Ping Pong in Washington, D.C.) and members of the Democratic party to an imaginary child-sex ring.

Is there email evidence that a number of members of the Democratic party are involved in a child-sex ring?

Oddthinking
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Santropedro
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    You haven't given an example of a notable claim. Normally, I would add a reference like [WIkipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pizzagate_(conspiracy_theory)) for context, but it says "Pizzagate is a debunked conspiracy theory [...]", so what's the point? – Oddthinking Dec 07 '16 at 12:54
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    @Oddthinking The notable claim is the title! Do you mean it's not notable because it's been debunked? Well this site purpose is that also! I don't understand if the problem if there is not claim or if it's not notable. Thanks! – Santropedro Dec 07 '16 at 12:58
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    Yes, this is a notable claim. However, (a) many people won't have heard of it, so context is helpful, (b) there are going to be many versions of the claim, so having a specific one helps avoid vagueness. My concern is more that a simple search reveals it has been debunked, so we aren't really making the Internet a better place. The Wikipedia article of the same name answers the question. Giving context gives the answer! (Note: I haven't closed the question.) – Oddthinking Dec 07 '16 at 13:11
  • http://www.snopes.com/pizzagate-conspiracy/ is a good link to start with! – pericles316 Dec 07 '16 at 14:09
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    "Pizzagate is a debunked conspiracy theory". Maybe people believe in it, however the provided wikipedia link does not claim this theory is correct, on the contrary! – Sklivvz Dec 07 '16 at 21:50
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    Yeah, wikipedia itself is rarely a good source, rather you need to follow through to the sources provided for the wikipedia article itself. –  Dec 07 '16 at 21:58

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The "PizzaGate" rumor was started by Reddit users in the r/The_Donald subreddit, a discussion thread for Donald Trump supporters.

The New York Times investigated and came to the following conclusion:

None of it was true. While [Comet Ping Pong pizzeria owner James] Alefantis has some prominent Democratic friends in Washington and was a supporter of Mrs. Clinton, he has never met her, does not sell or abuse children, and is not being investigated by law enforcement for any of these claims. He and his 40 employees had unwittingly become real people caught in the middle of a storm of fake news.

Full article here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/21/technology/fact-check-this-pizzeria-is-not-a-child-trafficking-site.html

Most of the "evidence" for the conspiracy was fabricated by Reddit and 4Chan users, using a combination of images pulled from social media profiles of emplyees and friends of the owner of Comet Ping Pong. There are also emails mentioning or sent by John Podesta included in the "consipracy evidence". However, I read all of those emails, as did the NY Times investigative team, and they do not constitute "evidence" of anything. You can read them yourself, as they are available on wikileaks:

https://wikileaks.org/podesta-emails/Wikileaks

Snopes notes that child abuse rings are uncommon and that most child abuse is committed by close friends or family:

...while rumors about pedophilia and child trafficking remain standard in urban folklore, roughly 90 percent [PDF] of assaults on children in the U.S. are committed by a friend or family member, a number reiterated by the United States Department of Justice.

In summary, there is no evidence in those emails that supports the conclusions alleged by openly pro-Trump sources. The sources themselves are suspect based on their political allegiance and their past behavior.

fullstackdev
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