I think this is a bit too pessimistic. In the same vein as lab leak. Anyone who paid attention knew lab leak was very likely to be correct, and certainly wasn't "debunked". Eventually the MSM narrative couldn't hold up to the torrent from the heterodoxy and relented. It didn't "solve" any problems, but it showed that there was sufficient power to correct the narrative. A wonderful side effect of Russiagate/lab leak was introducing a whole new cadre of people into heterodox thinking especially related to the MSM.