MAGA Users Propel Hoax Claim that History Channel Cut Ties with Obama Over “Coup” Claims
What happened: Pro-Trump social media users are falling for the bogus claim that the History Channel suspended production of former President Barack Obama’s documentary series after Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard released a memo accusing Obama of taking part in “what was essentially a years-long coup” against Trump.
Context: In addition to that memo, Gabbard’s office on July 18 released numerous emails among members of the intelligence community, which her office said implicated the Obama administration in a plot to “subvert President Trump’s 2016 victory and presidency” using “manufactured and politicized intelligence” of Russian election interference in 2016.
In a statement to USA Today, Obama spokesperson Patrick Rodenbush said, “These bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction.”
A closer look: In March 2024, Obama signed a deal with the History Channel to produce an eight-part series on America’s Reconstruction Era. In the wake of Gabbard’s accusations, conservative social media accounts falsely claimed that the History Channel released a statement saying: “We need to make sure the facts are straight first” before the Obama series can proceed.
“The History Channel has halted production on its Barack Obama documentary series. Sources say intel from DNI Tulsi Gabbard’s latest release changed everything,” pro-QAnon X user @17QStorm stated, quoting he History Channel’s purported statement. The post garnered 54,700 views and 3,900 likes in one day.
Pro-Trump X user @mcafeenew stated: “History Channel FREEZES Obama Docuseries After Explosive DNI Bombshell. … They’re panicking. The Obama myth is collapsing. The Deep State is losing control of the narrative.” The post received 43,700 views and 3,800 likes in one day.
Actually: There are no credible reports that the History Channel, a channel of an A&E Networks joint venture between Hearst Communications and Disney, suspended its deal with Obama. Indeed, the supposed statement by the History Channel originated as satire.
The claim was first posted by America’s Last Line of Defense (ALLOD), a group that says it aims to dupe conservatives into believing outrageous claims. Many of the accounts spreading the claim did not note its satirical origins. (See a video from NewsGuard explaining how to avoid falling for ALLOD’s claims here.)
A&E Global Media Executive Vice President of Communications Dan Silberman, asked about the claim, told NewsGuard in a July 28, 2025, email: “There’s no truth to any of that. Our podcast will have a launch date to announce soon.”
Obama spokesman Patrick Rodenbush and the Obama Foundation did not respond to a three emailed request for comment.
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