‘Epstein Files’ Obsession Now Old News to Trump’s Online Base
After the Trump Administration declined to release additional “Epstein Files,” discussion of the subject has quieted on Truth Social.
TLDR
- Discussion of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has quieted to a whisper on Truth Social, President Donald Trump’s social media platform, following an initial explosion of outrage after the Trump Administration declined to release additional “Epstein Files.”
- A similar trend was observed on other alt-platforms that host predominantly pro-Trump political communities: 4chan, Gab, and Gettr.
- The only platform in our analysis showing sustained discussion of Epstein was Bluesky, which — unlike other platforms analyzed — hosts political communities which are more predominantly anti-Trump.
Background
On July 6, 2025, Axios reported that Trump Administration officials had concluded their review of Jeffrey Epstein’s criminal case and would not release additional information about the federal investigation.1Alex Isenstat. “Exclusive: DOJ, FBI conclude Epstein had no “client list,” died by suicide.” Axios. 06 July 2025. Here. An unsigned two-page memo from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and FBI stated that investigators found no evidence that Epstein blackmailed powerful acquaintances, kept a “client list,” or was murdered.
Epstein died while imprisoned in New York City in 2019, exciting online audiences to indulge in reckless speculations, viral rumors, and conspiracy theories about the notorious sex offender and secretive financier. The DOJ and FBI memo sparked outrage among pro-Trump influencers, some of whom suggested that Trump and his allies had been personally or politically compromised.2Jon Allsop. “Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein, and Three Conspiracy-Theory Theories.” The New Yorker. 18 July 2025. Here.
Containment of the Epstein Story
Facing backlash from supporters, Trump and his administration launched efforts to contain the backlash.3 Zach Montellaro. “’I don’t like what’s happening’: Trump tries to quell MAGA blowup over Epstein.“ Politico. 12 July 2025. Here. Trump discouraged further discussion of the Epstein inquiry and expressed frustration with conservatives who were criticizing his administration’s handling of the matter. Supporters of the administration in both media and politics focused on other issues, while Trump dismissed renewed scrutiny of his personal relationship with Epstein as a “hoax” manufactured by Democrats.4David Smith. “Trump cranks up distraction machine but focus refuses to budge from Epstein.” The Guardian. 25 July 2025. Here. Meanwhile, as other major stories developed, national news outlets directed coverage to other topics, like deadly flooding in Central Texas, humanitarian concerns in the Israel-Hamas war, new escalations in the Russia-Ukraine war, and more.
As national media outlets redirected coverage away from Epstein, Open Measures sought to assess whether Epstein had remained a focus of discussion on platforms hosting large communities of Trump supporters. Researchers used our analysis toolkit to determine the volume of posts mentioning Epstein per day on Truth Social — a microblogging social network platform owned by Trump Media & Technology Group — between Jan. 20 (Trump’s second inauguration) and Aug. 18, 2025. Researchers chose Truth Social because it has been Trump’s primary social platform since he was banned from Twitter in 2021.
To help contextualize these findings, we ran identical analyses for additional platforms in Open Measures’ dataset: 4chan, Bluesky, Gab, and Gettr.
Analysis
Open Measures’ dataset captured more than 1.7 million posts mentioning Epstein by name across the five platforms mentioned above between Jan. 20 and Aug. 18. More than 77% of those posts appear after July 6, when news broke about the FBI and DOJ memo stating no further disclosures would be made regarding the Epstein investigation.
Prior Activity Spikes
Before the memo’s release, mentions of Epstein experienced two notable spikes in activity. The first surge occurred in late February, after the Trump Administration invited social media influencers to the White House and presented them with binders labeled “The Epstein Files: Phase 1.”5Kerry Breen. “Right-wing influencers get binders labeled ‘The Epstein Files,’but downplay revelations” CBS News. 27 February 2025. Here. (The binders contained no new information, but officials promised more “Epstein Files” would come at a later date.) Another surge came in early June, after billionaire tech CEO Elon Musk claimed that “the real reason” more “Epstein Files” hadn’t been made public was because Trump’s name appeared in them.6Alexandra Hutzler, Rachel Scott, and Will Steakin. “Trump Musk feud explodes with claim president is in Epstein files.” ABC News. 5 June 2025. Here.
The President’s Platform
Open Measures’ dataset contained more than 414,000 posts on Truth Social that mentioned Epstein between Jan. 20 and Aug. 18. Like other platforms in our analysis, about 63% of these posts appeared after July 6, when news outlets reported on the DOJ and FBI memo negating the Trump Administration’s promised disclosures about the Epstein case.
The period after the memo’s release saw Epstein mentions soar to unprecedented levels on Truth Social. In July, Truth Social users shared more than 245,000 posts that mentioned Epstein — the highest monthly total since the platform launched in February 2022. This amount was more than double the previous high-point in January 2024, after unsealed court documents revealed the names of powerful people associated with Epstein.7Victoria Bekiempis. “Jeffrey Epstein: documents linking associates to sex offender unsealed.” The Guardian. 3 January 2025. Here.
Trump Addresses Truth Social
On July 12, five days after the memo became public, Trump shared his first Truth Social post discouraging people from focusing on the “Epstein Files” scandal. The following day, daily mentions of Epstein on Truth Social soared to their highest level since the platform debuted: over 20,000 posts on July 13. Open Measures’s prior research has suggested Trump’s posts play a significant role in shaping overall conversation on Truth Social.8“Chatter on Truth Social After Death of Alexei Navalny.” Open Measures. 19 March 2024. Here.
Between July 12 and 24, Trump would attack the Epstein scandal in 11 separate posts on 8 different days, represented by green lines in the chart below.
Reactions from Political Allies
As Trump continued to make public remarks dismissing the “Epstein Files” scandal, his administration and its allies sought to draw attention to unrelated topics.9Giselle Ruhiyyih Ewing, Anna Wiederkehr, Abhinanda Bhattacharyya and Paula Friedrich. “47 things Trump would rather talk about than Jeffrey Epstein.” Politico. 31 July 2025. Here. Major right wing news outlets like Fox News decreased their coverage of Epstein in favor of other topics, among them a denim ad featuring actress Sydney Sweeney.10Beth Copy and Lis Power. “Fox News since Monday: 85 minutes talking about Sydney Sweeney, 3 minutes talking about Epstein.” Media Matters. 31 July 2025. Here. Finally, since no new information was emerging, all other national news media gradually moved to other issues as well.
Decline of Epstein Mentions
Throughout late July and early August, daily mentions of Epstein on Truth Social declined, dropping to fewer than 100 posts on Aug. 18. Our researchers observed the same trendlines on 4chan, Gab, and Gettr, all platforms that have historically hosted large pro-Trump communities.
Bluesky Users Aren’t Letting Epstein Go Away
Among the social media platforms analyzed by Open Measures, only Bluesky — a platform popular with anti-Trump political audiences — has maintained elevated discussion about Epstein since the Trump Administration’s simmered its disclosure efforts. Bluesky was created by former Twitter employees and offers a similar user experience, which has made it compelling to users who abandoned the platform after Elon Musk, a prominent Trump backer, purchased it in 2022, renaming it X.11“What is Bluesky, the fast-growing social platform welcoming fleeing X users?” Associated Press. 15 November 2024. Here.
Bluesky posts accounted for approximately two-thirds of all Epstein mentions across the five platforms Open Measures examined between Jan. 20 and Aug. 18. As other platforms’ users have moved on to other topics, Bluesky’s dominance of the online conversation about Epstein has only grown: across all five social media platforms analyzed from Aug. 1 to 18, about 85% of all posts mentioning Epstein appeared on Bluesky. On Aug. 18, the quietest day in our analysis window since the FBI and DOJ memo’s release, Bluesky posts represented about 94% of all Epstein mentions.
(Graphic created with Flourish using data from Open Measures)
Since early July, the number of Bluesky posts mentioning Epstein has declined, but to a lesser extent than Open Measures observed on Truth Social and other alt-platforms. However, in mid-August, when Epstein mentions on all five platforms dropped to their near pre-“Epstein Files” baselines, Bluesky users were still sharing thousands of posts per day.
Conclusion
The DOJ and FBI memo quashing the release of more “Epstein Files” triggered an unprecedented eruption of Epstein discussions on Trump’s Truth Social platform, but the surge didn’t last. As of Aug. 18, mentions of Epstein had returned to lower levels similar to those predating the memo’s release. This trend was also seen on other alt-platforms included in our analysis with prominent pro-Trump political communities.
Sustained discussion about Epstein has persisted on Bluesky, a platform whose online communities lean predominantly anti-Trump. Even there, the focus on Epstein is fading, but more slowly.
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