The "lab-leak theory" - which pushes the idea Sars-Cov-2 was bio-engineered in a lab as a "gain-of-function" program, and then either accidentally or deliberately released on an unsuspecting population - first came to the front pages as early as January 2020.
At the time it was deemed a "racist" "anti-china" conspiracy theory" by the vast majority of the media, and it fell away from the narrative.
It had a resurgence in 2021, suddenly & inexplicably becoming not racist anymore.
In February 2021 the World Health Organization published a report finding the lab origin for Covid19 "extremely unlikely". But WHO chief Tedro Adhanom was obviously keen not to let the idea die completely, publicly stating "more investigation was needed".
Overall, around this time, it suddenly became much less taboo to suggest the "virus" originated in a lab.
The BBC had an explainer article titled "Covid origin: Why the Wuhan lab-leak theory is being taken seriously", the New Yorker reported:
Scientists and political commentators are no longer dismissing the possibility that COVID-19 emerged from a Chinese laboratory.As the Wikipedia page notes:
Since May 2021, some media organizations softened previous language that described the laboratory leak theory as "debunked" or a "conspiracy theory"We did a brief coronavirus fact-check on "Covid is a bio-weapon" at the time.
Then, in December 2021, the Daily Mail reported that Dr Alina Chan had told the UK's Science Select Committee that it is 'reasonable to believe [the] virus was engineered in China' and that "the lab origin is more likely than not".
But after a brief furore over that, it again faded from the front pages.
Now it's back. And gaining momentum.