Yesterday, I (along with what seemed like half the Internet) covered Michele Catalano’s piece in which she described the day armed men in SUVs showed up at her house because of a series of Google searches for things like pressure cookers and backpacks. We’ve now learned that the visit was actually triggered by a tip from her husband’s former employer. Catalano’s story is still interesting. But what’s even more interesting is the pace at which — with the help of Twitter and the mainstream media — a personal essay can sweep across the Internet. It’s also worth noting that most of us had no problem believing that the feds tracked the search terms entered by Catalano’s family members and showed up at her front door. We’re all pretty sure we’re being watched. And we keep on searching anyway.

+ Catalano published her piece on Medium. It wasn’t published by a news outfit with editors and fact checkers. But that didn’t stop us from believing it. And it didn’t stop some news outlets from covering it as news. Pando Daily’s Hamish McKenzie explains why Medium isn’t the message.