Previous blog post mistake

 “When it comes to the food supply, the conspiracies become existential,” said Joel Finkelstein, co-founder of the Network Contagion Research Institute, which tracks hate and extremism on social media. “If you lose an election, you can win it back. Vaccines, well, you’re going to get sick, but you’ll be OK, probably.” But food is much more existential. Knowing the government, however, they are not completely off on this. Still, expect a long, cold, hard winter with a lot of discontent.

- Stay Tuned 

Is your government to blame for high food prices? Russia has an interest in what you think.

 Today I just found out that President Putin is launching global campaign to try and discredit Western governments by claiming that they are the current cause of the global food crisis. The conspiracy theory goes like this: liberal globalist elites are shortening the food supply to curb climate change, force the world into submission, or both through regulations on the food supply. The rumors have been making their way around right-wing internet chat rooms for quite a while now and are now getting a boost from QAnon. It's worse in developing countries in Africa and Asia due to the food crisis being worse in those regions. The content of the conspiracy is also worse, according to the article, “When it comes to the food supply, the conspiracies become existential,” said Joel Finkelstein, co-founder of the Network Contagion Research Institute, which tracks hate and extremism on social media. “If you lose an election, you can win it back. Vaccines, well, you’re going to get sick, but you’ll be OK, probably.” But food is much more existential. Knowing the government, however, they are not completely to blame for this. Still, expect a long cold, hard winter with a lot of discontent.

- Stay Tuned 

Now some lies from our side (the Ukrainian War)

 So far on this blog I have been covering misinformation committed by the Russians and Chinese in their wars and soon to be wars against other countries. Now, it is time to turn the lease back on ourselves because we are not free from war-time lies ourselves. There have been plenty of times in our own history when we have practiced censorship in war-contexts. The Alien and Sedition Act of 1798 being the worst. However, in America censorship often takes a different pathway from those of outright-authoritarian regimes. Almost all of it comes in the form of self-censorship--where journalists and media outlets opt-out of publishing certain news stories out of fear of backlash and/or losing connections with state officials. Another form of self-censorship is when the owner of the media outlet (be it private or government) chooses not to publish stories that frame them in a negative light (or chooses to spin them in a way that makes them positive). The US has currently supported a plethora of lies and distortions about the war in the Ukraine links to (admittedly extremist leaning) sources are here. 

https://www.cato.org/commentary/us-press-again-becomes-conduit-pro-war-propaganda

https://www.cato.org/commentary/us-press-again-becomes-conduit-pro-war-propaganda

The Heroes of the Zaporizhzia

 I read an interview about Andriy Tuz--a former spokesperson for the Zaporizhzia Nuclear Power Plant in the Ukraine. The interview happened more than a week ago but the situation has not likely been changed much on the ground. In the interview he describes the forceful and chaotic take-over of the power plant by Russian forces--how they were so disorganized that they shot at each other on multiple occasions. Andriy in the interview also described how he was detained and totured by the Russians into spreading misinformation about the plant and how he was fired from the plant, forcing him and his mother to travel from place to place being detained multiple times until in Georgia. Really harrowing stuff--it makes you really think about what is going on at that besieged nuclear power plant--which can melt down at any moment. All in all I can say that the situation in the Ukraine is continuing to get worse. 

https://www.npr.org/2022/08/29/1119925635/ukraine-russia-zaporizhzhia-nuclear-plant-interview

- Stay Tuned 

China Fattening Up the Pig Before the Kill: Misinformation Campaign in Taiwan

 Last week I wrote a post about Russia (and Ukraine's) use of misinformation during the Ukraine War. But can a country use social media in a way to say, divide the populace before war? That's what China is doing (or is trying to do) in Taiwan. As Geopolitical Monitor reports, China's Strategic Support Force Network System's Department is sending up to 2,400 pieces of disinformation daily to the island. The goal of all this is to try and undermine public confidence in President Tsai. After seeing how President Zelensky became a rallying figure for the people of Ukraine during the conflict China wants to make sure that doesn't happen with President Tsai. The most egregious example of Chinese misinformation is a post traceable back to the PRC in 2017 where it was claimed that President Tsai desired to ban the burning of "ghost money," incense, and setting off firecrackers. This caused 10,000 Buddhists and Taoists to march in protest in the capital. The strategy, so far, appears to be working, with the approval rating of President Tsai dropping a whopping of 20 points from 70% to 50%. However, other likely explanations can also contender to explain the drop--such as President Tsai reducing military conscription lengths and her poor handling of COVID-19. Whether or not such highly sophisticated propaganda used to soften targets before   war will become a common staple after the Ukraine War (or Taiwan War), further deepening the blurring of reality that we are already seeing remains to be seen. Either way, its always worth it to take an extra look at that social media post that you are oh-so willing to share with all your friends and family (as they want you to do). 

- Stay Tuned