These Trump fans made threats — so VICE called them and they cited OAN and Newsmax as their inspiration
In 2020, HBO host John Oliver did a takedown of the conservative channel OAN, calling it a source of radicalization for conservatives.
"I know it is easy to dismiss OAN as just a stupid, little-watched borderline self-parody," Oliver said at the time. "The problem is, if we're learning one thing right now, it's that toxic things that start small can get big fast, and it's dangerous to ignore them. And right now, [Donald Trump] is putting a lot of energy into boosting OAN's profile right now."
After the election, supporters of Trump's went after election officials with violent threats, doxxed them, exposing their personal contact information online and in some cases followed their cars.
Speaking to officials, VICE News followed up on the threats and attacks by calling those making them for an interview.
Richard Barron, the elections director of Fulton County, began getting threatening phone calls not long after a Dec 5th rally in Valdosta, Georgia which aired an OAN "report" saying his name.
VICE called Derrick Risner after he made a call on Dec. 31, 2020, saying, "Either you're blind or you’re crooked as f*ck. So figure it out buddy cause which side you gonna be on when the shooting starts brother?"
Risner explained that he got Barron’s number while watching a segment on OANN. "I was watching One American News and they put his phone number on there and they said, ‘Give the man a call.'"
“I stand what I stand behind what I said," he continued. "Ultimately, you know, if you can sit right now in this country today and say that all of that was legal…I don't know. I watch One American News. It's on in the background as we speak. I was never really a Trump supporter. But ultimately, they've turned me into one."
When asked if he would appear on camera, Risner said "no" because it could jeopardize his personal safety.
John Johnson, his real name, lives in Tennessee and has left messages with threats in the past.
He too called Barron, saying, "We’re watching, Rick."
Johnson has no regrets either.
"I think I'm like every American that watched elections get decided the night of, and then I watched Georgia and a few other key swing states turn into a month-long, dragged out, hiding of information," he said. "When you're a public servant, you've got to be ready to stand up to the scrutiny of people, whether you're a constituent or not."