Misinformation is a dangerous plague spread throughout the Web and what remains of the Mainstream Media. Propaganda and lies have always been with us. But before the rise of cable TV and the internet, newspapers in the West were able to filter out the worst misinformation. Many newspapers and journalists were dedicated to finding and reporting the truth, and they had sufficient resources for the job. With the demise of the newspaper industry, it’s now possible for propagandists to manufacture a fake “reality” at will and spread it unchecked. It’s becoming nearly impossible for the average person to know what’s real and what’s lies, unless you’re an actual eyewitness, or you have reliable sources. And of course any one eyewitness can touch only one small part of the elephant. Informed bloggers such as Clarissa try to counter misinformation. Well-informed bloggers can be reliable sources. Of course, it’s not easy to identify the informed bloggers, and their reach is small compared to the power of state-sponsored misinformation. Thanks to Clarissa for providing a steady stream of reliable information about Ukraine. — John
Right-wing publications are as dedicated to pushing Putinoid propaganda as the Leftie pro-Putin rag The Nation. Kremlin propaganda is always offered under the sauce of “We really want Ukraine to succeed but let’s keep in mind this string of Putin-generated myths that we will pretend have a connection to reality.”
Here is how The American Interest does it (and mind you, this is just one tiny example):
Throughout last week, armies of coal miners stormed Kyiv’s government district to protest unpaid wages and call for the sacking of Ukraine’s energy minister.
Of course, there were no “armies of coal miners.” The “coal miners” are actors whom we have already seen appear in Russian news segments as bus drivers from Lugansk, separatists in Gorlovka, persecuted Russian-speakers in Donetsk, etc. The moment I saw the very first newscast about the “protesting coal miners”, I immediately recognized one of them as the fake…
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Thank you for sharing this John ..
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