Trevor Loudon:
Evidently a damaging “rumor” that Dr. Ben Carson was suspending his campaign started during a Monday broadcast on CNN at around 7:43 pm, while the Iowa caucus was in full swing. The “rumor” led to Cruz campaign staffers informing their precinct captains that they should urge caucus-goers to vote for Ted Cruz.
The Cruz camp, along with many other media sources had the same impression.
Consider this article at Business Insider, which still has the original link...