Overview
- The official White House accounts on X and Instagram shared two short videos Wednesday night, deleting the first clip and leaving the second one live as questions piled up.
- The first clip, which appeared around 9:15 p.m. ET Wednesday, showed a phone pointed at feet as a woman asked, “It’s launching soon, right?”, and it was removed about 90 minutes later.
- The second post, added around 10 p.m. ET, displayed a black, static‑like screen with a phone notification chime and a brief flash of a U.S. flag, and it remained viewable as coverage continued.
- Reporters received no clear explanation from the White House, while a third‑party fact‑check on X claimed the account was not hacked and suggested a staff error during a text‑alert test, which the White House has not confirmed.
- Republic World reported a new pixelated image on the White House X account on Friday with no caption, reflecting a broader pattern in coverage that ranges from hacking concerns to guesses about a teaser or internal misfire, with no verified tie to military action.