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AltWatcher

@altwatcher.bsky.social

2.5K followers 500 following 830 posts

The alt account of @jjoycelynch.bsky.social, where I keep an eye on "Alt" US Govt. accounts, and one account in particular. For more of my writing on this subject: https://substack.com/home/post/p-161500621

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · Aug 1

The Alt National Park Service has spent months stealing from journalists, directly plagiarizing the work of others more than a hundred times.

With more than 4.3 million followers on Facebook and nearly 900k here on Bluesky, they've built a massive following on theft.

The "Alt National Park Service:" On Plagiarism, Part 1

The first in a three-part series.

jjoycelynch.substack.com

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 17h

Thanks for reading, and for the kind words! It's a very weird, very niche rabbit hole that I can't seem to escape, and I'm glad to be able to pull a few others in after me.

bjkeefe @bjkeefe.bsky.social · 18h

I want to point you to a truly laudable body of work by @altwatcher.bsky.social, that documents @altnps.bsky.social's ongoing plagiarism. Links in comments.

h/t @ladymolson.com

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 21h

It's *embarrassing* how directly they're just copying the tone of the early Q drops.

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 21h

a group of men in military uniforms are walking on a tarmac

ALT: a group of men in military uniforms are walking on a tarmac

media.tenor.com

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 22h

We've been hearing them every single day around Wrigleyville, it's insane. Thank you for all your work and reporting!

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 23h

AltNPS's return to the world of code words and resistance LARPing was inevitable, because this is who they are. This is what got them their fervent audience, and it's what their true believers are here for.

This account owes everything to this LARP. Without it, they're nothing. But they have it.

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 1d

It's been a while. But somehow, I always knew AltNPS would get back to their roots. They could only resist the LARP for so long.

Alt National Park Service: Standing by at waypoint. Not lost. Just holding the line.

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 23h

My closing argument:

"AltNPS may get increasingly clever about their plagiarism, or be forced to find new ways to hide it, but they’ve been too successful to stop now. Their popularity depends on it, and without it, they’re nothing."

"It’s not just that they WON'T change. It’s that they can’t.*

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 23h

I ended this article with a section called "AltNPS Can't Change." In it, I argue that the account owes its surge in popularity to its manufactured image as a rogue government operative, and that it has trapped itself in an endless cycle of needing to maintain this image. Hence, all the plagiarism.

The "Alt National Park Service:" On Plagiarism, Part 4

A series of pivots, and a glimpse at the future.

open.substack.com

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 1d

It's been a while. But somehow, I always knew AltNPS would get back to their roots. They could only resist the LARP for so long.

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 1d

I am seriously going to lose it

Alt National Park Service: The monster is really coming for us all. General Letitia James has been indicted following Trump’s pressure campaign. She’s accused of committing “mortgage fraud.” The MAGA movement is weaponizing the Justice Department.

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 1d

I was thinking the same thing. All these little individual quotes and numbers seem to point towards it being synthesized into an AI summary.

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 1d

The claim about "business owners in neighborhoods like Chinatown" appears to refer to one *specific* store owner in Chinatown, who was interviewed by Alec Schemmel in Fox Business and is also the source of the "30-40%" number:

www.foxbusiness.com/politics/wat...

Alt National Park Service: - In neighborhoods like Chinatown, business owners say sales are down 30–40% since the increased military and security presence.
- Many say the sight of armed troops, checkpoints, and “militarized” policing makes people uneasy, or even fearful of being questioned, so they stay home.

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 1d

Mena's CNN article also mentions the 81% decrease in walk-in business by local DC retail:

Bryan Mena, CNN: In the week starting August 11, foot traffic was down about 81% of retail-store categories in Washington compared to data from a year ago, according to pass_by, with car dealerships, department stores, convenience stores and beauty-supply shops seeing some of the steepest drops.

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 1d

Several claims in AltNPS's thread seem to be from this CNN article by Bryan Mena. The article opens by describing "decreased foot traffic" and also includes the "31% decrease in restaurant reservations" statistic.

www.cnn.com/2025/08/21/b...

Alt National Park Service: - Restaurant reservations have dropped by about 31% compared to the same days a year earlier.
- Local shops are seeing an even steeper hit, one report estimates an 81% decline in walk-ins after the deployment began.

Bryan Mena, CNN: Despite Trump’s claim earlier this week that DC restaurants have been “busier than they’ve been in a long time,” reservations tracked by OpenTable have been down recently. On August 11, when Trump announced the takeover, seated diners dropped 16% compared to a year ago. Two days later, when troops mobilized around the city, seated diners fell 31% compared to a year ago.

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 1d

This one's complicated. Layered, even.

AltNPS seems to have pulled their information from several different sources, and because they listed none of them, I guess I have to list them all.

Alt National Park Service: MAGA says everyone in D.C. is smiling since the Trump invasion. Let’s look at some facts:

- Small retailers and restaurants report much lower foot traffic since the National Guard and federal agents began patrolling.

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 1d

This was reported by Ryan J. Reilly at NBC News on 10/8/25 at 12:44 PM CDT, twenty hours before AltNPS reposted it without attribution.

www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 2d

what

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 2d

AltNPS could have cited literally any outlet for this news and I would have been perfectly happy, but they didn't.

So just for fun, let's cite a local outlet. Kelly Bauer and Mack Liederman at Block Club Chicago reported on this on 10/7/25, a day before AltNPS.

blockclubchicago.org/2025/10/07/n...

Alt National Park Service: National Guard units from Texas have arrived on the outskirts of Chicago.

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 2d

two men are standing next to each other in a room .

ALT: two men are standing next to each other in a room .

media.tenor.com

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 2d

Yes lol, definitely still illegal. I'm just quibbling about AltNPS getting the details wrong, and how their lack of sources might lead people to misread their statement.

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 3d

I could be! But considering that AltNPS gets replies like this, I do worry about the people who will take it seriously. There are a lot of people who are bought in 100% to AltNPS's grift, and that's my main concern.

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 3d

For sure! Someone even posted it in their replies. My issue is with their sheer laziness!

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 3d

AltNPS dropped this act as quickly as they started it, and they haven't claimed to be in touch with any "unnamed officials" since July 18th. Maybe those officials stopped returning AltNPS's calls, or maybe they were never real in the first place.

AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 3d

So to keep the magic alive, AltNPS introduced “unnamed officials” that were feeding them exclusive intel on condition of anonymity.

Alt National Park Service: - Unnamed EPA Official - Briefed on restructuring strategy; confirmed scientific roles will be decentralized across politically appointed departments rather than maintained as independent research; spoke on condition of anonymity due to ongoing agency review.

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 3d

I don’t think the account’s motivations are a mystery here. In the past, their plagiarism had allowed them to imply that they, the resistance collective fighting Trump from the inside, were the source of the information they shared. But that image has started to crack.

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AltWatcher @altwatcher.bsky.social · 3d

But there's no reason to think this is true. Why did AltNPS, who has been posting multiple times a day since December, wait until JULY to mention their connections to these supposed officials?

Why would officials from unrelated agencies need to contact the park rangers to get their message out?

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