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authorshow({"version":"1.0","encoding":"UTF-8","feed":{"xmlns":"http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom","xmlns$openSearch":"http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/","xmlns$blogger":"http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008","xmlns$georss":"http://www.georss.org/georss","xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7030318226622508810"},"updated":{"$t":"2024-11-05T22:05:53.735-05:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Is It Propaganda Or Not?"},"subtitle":{"type":"html","$t":"Your Friendly Neighborhood Propaganda Identification Service, Since 2016!"},"link":[{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/feeds\/posts\/default"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default?alt=json-in-script"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/"},{"rel":"hub","href":"http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"X"},"uri":{"$t":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/profile\/16401174395512306547"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$image":{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail","width":"16","height":"16","src":"https:\/\/img1.blogblog.com\/img\/b16-rounded.gif"}}],"generator":{"version":"7.00","uri":"http://www.blogger.com","$t":"Blogger"},"openSearch$totalResults":{"$t":"6"},"openSearch$startIndex":{"$t":"1"},"openSearch$itemsPerPage":{"$t":"25"},"entry":[{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7030318226622508810.post-5429871485325857875"},"published":{"$t":"2017-03-24T19:44:00.002-04:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2017-03-25T04:56:10.075-04:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Anatomy of a Russian Propaganda Troll: Geotagging Marks the Spot"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"On March 24th, as the Congressional investigation into Trump's ties to Putin kept acquiring momentum, we received an unexpected boon: A Twitter account going by\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\"\u003E@KevinK_2012\u003C\/a\u003E, and claiming to be from \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Westerly,_Rhode_Island\"\u003EWesterly, Rhode Island\u003C\/a\u003E, left its geotagging on - thus locating the origin of its tweets in \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Saratov\"\u003ESaratov, Russia\u003C\/a\u003E. At this time it has \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/status\/845169814729469954\"\u003Egeotagged tweets\u003C\/a\u003E still up.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjklVqHvSsddzLRDzLHYIhIZ0KsUmae64z3cFKp9egLgMSNGWZV3yhMd3D6ZZ57PKY6gZIRlW7vLf08NogfZ3jHIfdreq4vUl7hrBBO-OkkOTHMe5_2x18CyBeS8cYTuaNw1B8LUBpvVl8\/s1600\/kevink_2012.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjklVqHvSsddzLRDzLHYIhIZ0KsUmae64z3cFKp9egLgMSNGWZV3yhMd3D6ZZ57PKY6gZIRlW7vLf08NogfZ3jHIfdreq4vUl7hrBBO-OkkOTHMe5_2x18CyBeS8cYTuaNw1B8LUBpvVl8\/s400\/kevink_2012.jpg\" width=\"225\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFirst highlighted by the astute\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ggoodale\/status\/845271573946818561\"\u003EGrant Goodale\u003C\/a\u003E, this mistake on the part of the account's operators presents an opportunity to analyze the content of a Russian propaganda troll account that accidentally blew its own cover. From this, we can get a sense for the kinds of messages the Russian intelligence\/propaganda apparatus seeks to convey to American audiences, the fake news that Russian propaganda spreads, the actions they want to dupe Americans into taking, and the outcomes they would like to see happen.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFirst, though, some background: Russia has been known to spread propaganda via \"troll farms\" of paid content creators, using social media, \"fake news\" and other kinds of websites, YouTube channels, recruited\/coopted agents in the West, etc, to manipulate public discourse and pursue its strategic objectives. \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2015\/06\/07\/magazine\/the-agency.html\"\u003EThis famous analysis of the infamous \"Internet Research Agency\"\u003C\/a\u003E provides good context:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote class=\"tr_bq\"\u003E\nThe Internet Research Agency [...] had become known for employing hundreds of Russians to post pro-Kremlin propaganda online under fake identities, including on Twitter, in order to create the illusion of a massive army of supporters; it has often been called a “troll farm.”\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\nSince then, much related research has been done, including\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/warontherocks.com\/2016\/11\/trolling-for-trump-how-russia-is-trying-to-destroy-our-democracy\/\"\u003ETrolling for Trump: How Russia Is Trying to Destroy Our Democracy\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;by a team of researchers at \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.fpri.org\/\"\u003EFPRI\u003C\/a\u003E, and our own\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/0Byj_1ybuSGp_NmYtRF95VTJTeUk\/view\"\u003EBlack Friday Report On Russian Propaganda Network Mapping\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;(both of which have held up very well in retrospect!). \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/toinformistoinfluence.com\/\"\u003EJoel Harding\u003C\/a\u003E has done excellent work describing \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/toinformistoinfluence.com\/2016\/12\/11\/understanding-russian-information-warfare\/\"\u003Ethe organizational structure of Russia's propaganda bureaucracy\u003C\/a\u003E, the New Yorker has laid out \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/magazine\/2017\/03\/06\/trump-putin-and-the-new-cold-war\"\u003Ethe Kremlin's larger motivations and strategy\u003C\/a\u003E in their war on liberal democracies around the world, \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.documentcloud.org\/documents\/3259984-Trump-Intelligence-Allegations.html\"\u003Ea famous dossier describing Trump's \"deal\" with Russia\u003C\/a\u003E has been \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/shareblue.com\/remember-that-dossier-on-trump-and-russia-here-are-16-reasons-we-now-know-it-wasnt-fake-news\/\"\u003Evindicated as accurate time and again\u003C\/a\u003E, multiple investigations have been probing \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.vanityfair.com\/news\/2017\/03\/donald-trump-russia-investigation\"\u003Ethe Trump administration's collusion with Russia to sabotage the 2016 election\u003C\/a\u003E, and \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.mcclatchydc.com\/news\/politics-government\/white-house\/article139695453.html\"\u003ECongress has begin investigating how Russia used extremist pro-Trump websites like Infowars and Breitbart\u003C\/a\u003E to target \"fake news\" propaganda at the American people, among many other developments.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThe scandal of \"Kremlingate\" - Trump's corruption by and collusion with Russian intelligence - is just getting started.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nHowever, Russian propaganda continues its attempts to\u0026nbsp;deny, confuse, justify, or distract from Russian military and intelligence operations around the world, especially their covert support of the Trump administration. Thanks to the Russian operators of the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\"\u003E@KevinK_2012\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;propaganda account blowing their cover by leaving geotagging on, we have new insight into their operations.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nLet's start with the location and account description:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cdiv class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgCCZG2jQEWQwbcJBDQBqO-9Vf33qeYd6rl_tuptvO6Ol6xSw_0ubVe51-_tsPTZ3qU1iSM5cBljjnbAaxFURsAhh6G6FEbmuX-gL2vxguOIuI8njxU24gxgjskAzRGjkXYP8PDve1OwCk\/s1600\/Saratov.png\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgCCZG2jQEWQwbcJBDQBqO-9Vf33qeYd6rl_tuptvO6Ol6xSw_0ubVe51-_tsPTZ3qU1iSM5cBljjnbAaxFURsAhh6G6FEbmuX-gL2vxguOIuI8njxU24gxgjskAzRGjkXYP8PDve1OwCk\/s400\/Saratov.png\" width=\"332\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\nThe\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\"\u003E@KevinK_2012\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;account claims to be an American from \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Westerly,_Rhode_Island\"\u003EWesterly, Rhode Island\u003C\/a\u003E in its profile, but after leaving geotagging on, Twitter attributes the origin of many of its tweets to \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Saratov\"\u003ESaratov, Russia\u003C\/a\u003E. There is no obvious reason to suspect that Twitter's geolocation is inaccurate, and leaving it on is an easy mistake for a Russian propagandist pretending to be an American to make. There is no previous reporting into Russian propaganda troll-farm activity originating in Saratov, but it's a city of around a million people, so it's not surprising as a location for such operations.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nRussian propaganda operations \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.rferl.org\/a\/russia-trolls-headquarters-media-internet-insider-account\/26904157.html\"\u003Eoften work through contractors\u003C\/a\u003E, so can be located almost anywhere, and widely vary in competence and technical skill. Russia also frequently outsources their propaganda-creation efforts to allies and coopted agents in target countries or third countries, in order to create deniability. The Saratov location is a reasonable location for such troll-farm contractors.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nBecause it is a Russian propaganda account pretending to be an American, the KevinK_2012 account counts as \"\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/p\/frequently-asked-questions.html\"\u003Eblack propaganda\u003C\/a\u003E\": \u003Ci\u003EA systematic form of persuasion, purporting to be from someone it is not, that attempts to influence the emotions, attitudes, opinions, and actions of specified target audiences for political, ideological, and religious purposes, through the controlled transmission of deceptive, selectively-omitting, and one-sided messages.\u003C\/i\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThe content of the account itself is especially worthy of direct scrutiny, and is telling, because it gives us a sense for the kinds of messages the Russian intelligence\/propaganda apparatus seeks to convey to American audiences, the fake news Russian propaganda spreads, the actions they want to dupe Americans into taking, and the outcomes they would like to see happen.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFor example, \u003Cb\u003ERussia would like to see Trey Gowdy (R-SC),\u0026nbsp;become Director of the FBI\u003C\/b\u003E. We know this because\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/status\/845168619562549249\"\u003Ethis known Russian propaganda account is advocating for it\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgZ0DvVAle0p_aFali1iH_PA24oICMobRo1kniLlIWfJs19Nzg_QpLlQwKzCc5ozTW6oQmA8cQShYG5HfT0Jei3VWOuOaPTrDy5lKsd8lwV2t7Atu04r9-JFSVn5AGgdL_JuZH6_jyURBo\/s1600\/gowdy_fbi.png\" imageanchor=\"1\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgZ0DvVAle0p_aFali1iH_PA24oICMobRo1kniLlIWfJs19Nzg_QpLlQwKzCc5ozTW6oQmA8cQShYG5HfT0Jei3VWOuOaPTrDy5lKsd8lwV2t7Atu04r9-JFSVn5AGgdL_JuZH6_jyURBo\/s1600\/gowdy_fbi.png\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThat indicates that the Russian state and intelligence services would love to see Trey Gowdy replace James Comey as FBI Director, presumably because he would not effectively investigate Trump's collusion with Russia. It also indicates that \u003Ci\u003EGowdy may himself by compromised\u003C\/i\u003E by Russian intelligence, whether through cooption or blackmail, and should immediately recuse himself from all related investigations and submit to counterintelligence investigation.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThere is much more we can glean. For example, \u003Cb\u003ERussia wants to stir up ethnosectarian hatred against Muslim people in the United States\u003C\/b\u003E. We know this because \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/status\/845163076513030144\"\u003Ethis known Russian propaganda account is trying to do so\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjDy3-9BCbNpqyHeGWTxOtolB3VPEYeQlH-nHeVvHvj8cOn5qbZBeXmaGEb5EuemRLg8ASbB7ec360x1Cn2gc0_gcix_FUwiu95DmmD9cCECGnsm8MsmvV4Fgf9iL8PNW8mWtphIZayLSQ\/s1600\/anti-muslim.png\" imageanchor=\"1\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"208\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjDy3-9BCbNpqyHeGWTxOtolB3VPEYeQlH-nHeVvHvj8cOn5qbZBeXmaGEb5EuemRLg8ASbB7ec360x1Cn2gc0_gcix_FUwiu95DmmD9cCECGnsm8MsmvV4Fgf9iL8PNW8mWtphIZayLSQ\/s640\/anti-muslim.png\" width=\"640\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nIn doing so, this Russian propaganda account is spreading \"fake news\" - deliberately inaccurate information. The \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.pewforum.org\/2013\/04\/30\/the-worlds-muslims-religion-politics-society-overview\/\"\u003EPew Research Center has examined this in some detail\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote class=\"tr_bq\"\u003E\nMuslims around the world strongly reject violence in the name of Islam. Asked specifically about suicide bombing, clear majorities in most countries say such acts are rarely or never justified as a means of defending Islam from its enemies... \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\nIn fact, the Russian intelligence services (\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/articles\/2016\/12\/01\/assad-henchman-here-s-how-we-built-isis.html\"\u003Ewith their allies, like Bashar al-Assad in Syria\u003C\/a\u003E) \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/articles\/2015\/08\/23\/russia-s-playing-a-double-game-with-islamic-terror0.html\"\u003Ehelp create and continue to strategically support extremist terrorist groups like ISIL\u003C\/a\u003E and \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-usa-afghanistan-russia-idUSKBN16U234\"\u003Ethe Taliban\u003C\/a\u003E. \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.theatlantic.com\/international\/archive\/2011\/12\/how-the-soviet-union-transformed-terrorism\/250433\/\"\u003EThe \u003Cspan id=\"goog_613028652\"\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cspan id=\"goog_613028653\"\u003E\u003C\/span\u003ERussian intelligence services have supported terrorism since the height of the Cold War\u003C\/a\u003E, and there's no reason to think they stopped. However, and at the same time, Russian propaganda like the KevinK_2012 account stirs up internal strife in the West, using fake news to blame all Muslim people for the very problem Russia is helping create!\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFurther, \u003Cb\u003ERussia hates attempts to help refugees and promotes internal conflict surrounding them\u003C\/b\u003E. We know this because \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WSJ\/status\/844685898218459136\"\u003Ethis Russian propaganda account is trying to do so\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhNaW7X2HC0oZ4zmnPdMm04NSgE-KTWOZh4BJ9bit7pD2yNW5yYTPSTzpgJDB1k7930D9Ijd7yU0IS1Sq3FvkbBW-q0JM804jZJxTgA8q-o6fFzlmDp30Trnhbl2G0O5bsL4nbsU_MPxQQ\/s1600\/starbucks.png\" imageanchor=\"1\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"545\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhNaW7X2HC0oZ4zmnPdMm04NSgE-KTWOZh4BJ9bit7pD2yNW5yYTPSTzpgJDB1k7930D9Ijd7yU0IS1Sq3FvkbBW-q0JM804jZJxTgA8q-o6fFzlmDp30Trnhbl2G0O5bsL4nbsU_MPxQQ\/s640\/starbucks.png\" width=\"640\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nHere, Russian propaganda is piggybacking off mainstream U.S. media (the Wall Street Journal) in order to frame attempts to help refugees as a zero-sum conflict with U.S. military veterans. It is attempting to create division within the U.S. by promoting the narrative that \"refugees are taking our jobs\", which directly parallels \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2016\/mar\/05\/russia-refugee-germany-angela-merkel-migration-vladimir-putin\"\u003ERussian attempts to use refugees as a political wedge and incite division in Europe\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cb\u003ERussian propaganda is still trying to hype the \"Clinton email server\" non-story\u003C\/b\u003E, and focus investigatory attention away from Trump and onto Hillary Clinton. We know this because \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/status\/845155879175409666\"\u003Ethis Russian propaganda account is still trying to do so\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgylAPloscKlUElR30nBE_cTg4F8gb4SzAfinoXuEZZyEx8bMhWx1PGFD32ZyfefuZfG5IsVwSR0GZyf9txZuWJewElNOixlQgJvPW7Lbx2LtcWUWUWgURI6cEDyyTGV9qTkkj56JyB8IY\/s1600\/clinton_email.png\" imageanchor=\"1\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"368\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgylAPloscKlUElR30nBE_cTg4F8gb4SzAfinoXuEZZyEx8bMhWx1PGFD32ZyfefuZfG5IsVwSR0GZyf9txZuWJewElNOixlQgJvPW7Lbx2LtcWUWUWgURI6cEDyyTGV9qTkkj56JyB8IY\/s640\/clinton_email.png\" width=\"640\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nHere, Russian propaganda is piggybacking off Charlie Kirk, the founder of a \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Turning_Point_USA\"\u003Emajor conservative activist group, Turning Point USA\u003C\/a\u003E, in order to refocus attention on Russia's U.S. opponents, and distract from the very warranted investigation into Trump's ties to Russia.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/status\/845108077225545728\"\u003EThis\u003C\/a\u003E takes a similar approach:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhPT7yCe_tjBra6Okd_Ut-SK2697ivfy1HQWFkDouzEyuT2ybrwokU39UXgLViKpSTqkfvdF2nUsBjgKSBGytnFVTqM0gOb49alOgR84Z-VFcQhj5p6DTsAFt-AGTKiQ1Wf1BiSVKe4TRI\/s1600\/clinton_found.png\" imageanchor=\"1\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"162\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhPT7yCe_tjBra6Okd_Ut-SK2697ivfy1HQWFkDouzEyuT2ybrwokU39UXgLViKpSTqkfvdF2nUsBjgKSBGytnFVTqM0gOb49alOgR84Z-VFcQhj5p6DTsAFt-AGTKiQ1Wf1BiSVKe4TRI\/s640\/clinton_found.png\" width=\"640\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cb\u003EDifferent kinds of Russian propaganda amplify and feed off each other\u003C\/b\u003E. We know this because \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/status\/845154709543444481\"\u003Ethis Russian propaganda account provides an excellent example of them doing so\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEipJ_jdOb3yol66JGX8CywvypSqloqOaDJxbA6lArpH9raQrkLHY0fkFasB3GTpdCc3Ff2HEPDs6zYZ2olDb_tsAJzblqZi9epRaHFKs2qbV3RQKDeJteIoheDnE5Q2UWc_rSZQEMp4Yb0\/s1600\/kevin_rt.png\" imageanchor=\"1\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEipJ_jdOb3yol66JGX8CywvypSqloqOaDJxbA6lArpH9raQrkLHY0fkFasB3GTpdCc3Ff2HEPDs6zYZ2olDb_tsAJzblqZi9epRaHFKs2qbV3RQKDeJteIoheDnE5Q2UWc_rSZQEMp4Yb0\/s640\/kevin_rt.png\" width=\"576\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nHere, a \"black\" Russian propaganda account (deniable, trying to pretend to be an American) comments on and amplifies a narrative being spread by one of Russia's largest \"light gray\" (state-sponsored but pretending to be independent) propaganda outlets, Russia Today. The narrative it uses attempts to discredit Adam Schiff, the ranking Democratic member of the House Intelligence Committee, and negatively associate him with Hillary Clinton.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cb\u003ERussian propaganda hates \"globalists\", and wants Americans to think that \"liberals and globalists\" support terrorism, Muslim people cannot assimilate into the West, and Islam forbids doing so\u003C\/b\u003E. We know this because \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/status\/845152030196850690\"\u003Ethis Russian propaganda account provides an excellent example of them doing so\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEiJlTDz-46OKA75SKOYOsRSEIa_dAGLoW0ogSidlgSJzkf7bMiLKOw5wxGDBVD_A2LyHeQvK_7dnPMpIf5G8y2jKPc9NG4vWDO8YIEkPAggty8JQN29bMQlfDxfAPrhs57OKDu-DqRVAGY\/s1600\/kevin_cnn.png\" imageanchor=\"1\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEiJlTDz-46OKA75SKOYOsRSEIa_dAGLoW0ogSidlgSJzkf7bMiLKOw5wxGDBVD_A2LyHeQvK_7dnPMpIf5G8y2jKPc9NG4vWDO8YIEkPAggty8JQN29bMQlfDxfAPrhs57OKDu-DqRVAGY\/s640\/kevin_cnn.png\" width=\"616\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nHere, Russian propaganda uses the term \"globalists\", which (\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/0Byj_1ybuSGp_NmYtRF95VTJTeUk\/view\"\u003Eas we mentioned in our report\u003C\/a\u003E)\u0026nbsp;Russian propaganda has long used as a derogatory scare-word (instead of \"globalization\"), in an attempt to demonize what has been largely seen in the West as a relatively secular process resulting from increasingly efficient global communications and transportation. Russian propaganda denigrates liberalism, writ large, \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.themontrealreview.com\/2009\/The-Ideology-of-Vladimir-Putin-Regime.php\"\u003Ein keeping with the Kremlin's fascist ideology\u003C\/a\u003E (which they pretend they don't have). Russian propaganda insists that Muslims cannot integrate into the West, ignoring how, \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/why-are-muslim-immigrants-assimilating-so-quickly-511292\"\u003Eespecially in the U.S.\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;they actually do a great job of integrating and assimilating into the fabric of American life. Russian propaganda also frequently insists that Islam \"forbids Muslims from assimilating\", which is simply fake news.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cb\u003ERussia is using propaganda to fight a populist revolutionary war against liberal democracy\u003C\/b\u003E.\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/status\/845147283305914368\"\u003EThis one\u003C\/a\u003E requires a little explanation:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEicMdJyfldyc8WRomO2V471E8UYZDamW1_ibkIchUKCxmFPGjSUOG3WXiOgHxB2MQvZg3FVJDK-36BnHsimF3U3Bk5rDajdiMvxVVKit9b2FTBq-iuPX5kDGfOWa6nMuEa8feqWwvxL7kY\/s1600\/realwar.png\" imageanchor=\"1\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"120\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEicMdJyfldyc8WRomO2V471E8UYZDamW1_ibkIchUKCxmFPGjSUOG3WXiOgHxB2MQvZg3FVJDK-36BnHsimF3U3Bk5rDajdiMvxVVKit9b2FTBq-iuPX5kDGfOWa6nMuEa8feqWwvxL7kY\/s640\/realwar.png\" width=\"640\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nHere, Russian propaganda is laying out the terms of the war they're fighting, using ideological language that they think will appeal to their audience in this particular case. The primary objective is to demonize liberal democracy by associating it with \"corporatism\" and \"globalism\", and they advocate for its \"populist\" overthrow using whatever justification seems appropriate at the time. To Russian propaganda, \"socialism\" and \"capitalism\" are essentially interchangeable terms, and they'll advocate for \"socialism\" while targeting left-leaning audiences, and for \"capitalism\" when targeting right-leaning ones.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/status\/845141645066563587\"\u003EHere\u003C\/a\u003E they do it again:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhOaBVCEMBQFWQU-buGWdlZktMYtNME3liywwVS5KvEN6DddtQdB8kj-GOfkyMEEGnxkqKVFZt_rG-ztahNxw5qkzZDJyMr7K3_m5Yf2QbyL7WpvqWVyILwlyDnEbVpaRxXoNjdQyil-zI\/s1600\/r_d_awake.png\" imageanchor=\"1\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"528\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhOaBVCEMBQFWQU-buGWdlZktMYtNME3liywwVS5KvEN6DddtQdB8kj-GOfkyMEEGnxkqKVFZt_rG-ztahNxw5qkzZDJyMr7K3_m5Yf2QbyL7WpvqWVyILwlyDnEbVpaRxXoNjdQyil-zI\/s640\/r_d_awake.png\" width=\"640\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThis Russian propaganda account's use of \"Woke Up World\" is interesting, and warrants further investigation. Whoever produces and spreads those memes is, knowingly or not, acting as a propagandist for Vladimir Putin, the most brutally corrupt dictator in the world.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cb\u003ERussian propaganda constantly seeks to discredit actual journalism\u003C\/b\u003E. We know this because \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/status\/845141172955754496\"\u003Ethis Russian propaganda account provides an excellent example of them doing so\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhFgArg4__bLHS88P-jtoPahynwr3svdzvPoJ322qSw2E_tzsagW5Wu7lS_48GiTVBH3hMqCNzJUqAmMAM3XquhN4w_9hjsU7XKIOiVM2zJfU6O7tBAAVaAu_k3rJcdT_PkAsPHaB-rlVc\/s1600\/antimedia.png\" imageanchor=\"1\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhFgArg4__bLHS88P-jtoPahynwr3svdzvPoJ322qSw2E_tzsagW5Wu7lS_48GiTVBH3hMqCNzJUqAmMAM3XquhN4w_9hjsU7XKIOiVM2zJfU6O7tBAAVaAu_k3rJcdT_PkAsPHaB-rlVc\/s640\/antimedia.png\" width=\"612\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nHere, Russian propaganda is using a meme from collectiveevolution.com\u0026nbsp;in order to create the impression that actual journalism is trying to \"enslave\" its audience. The objective is to confuse public opinion, encourage paranoia and passivity, and distract American audiences away from relying on actually-accurate journalism - and supplant actually-accurate journalism with Russian propaganda.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThis Russian propaganda account's use of content from collectiveevolution.com\u0026nbsp;is interesting, and warrants further investigation. Whoever produces and spreads such content is, knowingly or not, acting as a propagandist for Vladimir Putin, the most brutally corrupt dictator in the world. We have listed collectiveevolution.com as a Russian propaganda outlet for related reasons.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nMore generally, \u003Ci\u003Eany time\u0026nbsp;a particular outlet consistently, uncritically, and one-sidedly echoes, repeats, gets used by, or refers its audiences to Russian propaganda\u003C\/i\u003E (especially\u0026nbsp;Russian (semi-)official state media), \u003Ci\u003Ethen it is acting as an outlet for Russian propaganda itself\u003C\/i\u003E, and should be treated accordingly.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nAll of the above examples are from just the last 24 hours. The \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/with_replies\"\u003Etimeline of the KevinK_2012 account\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp; contains numerous similarly telling examples of Russian propaganda, and we encourage all concerned to investigate it for themselves, using a critical eye and whatever technical forensics tools you have available. Because we expect that account to start deleting tweets, we have \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1msQ4-X0xu0vxq5zs0M_R_qf_joOPpwkBxe_wgHhG2rE\/edit?usp=sharing\"\u003Emirrored them all in a spreadsheet\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;for later analysis, along with a \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/17W6_MIJIkL2Y_0AB-tGkkBHNdNu2F5OhSDpa8x_SElI\/edit?usp=sharing\"\u003Espreadsheet of the propaganda account's followers\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nIn conclusion, this a rough-and-ready analysis of just one, out of literally millions, of Russian propaganda Twitter accounts, websites, YouTube channels, Facebook pages and accounts, etc. It is probably partially automated, and its operator almost certainly runs hundreds of parallel accounts, repeating similar messages in various guises to audiences targeted by Russian intelligence for indoctrination.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWe know about how this works in part because courageous Western journalists (and comedians!) have actually interviewed some of the Russian propagandists doing this:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cdiv class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"\u003E\n\u003Ciframe allowfullscreen=\"\" class=\"YOUTUBE-iframe-video\" data-thumbnail-src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/OauLuWXD_RI\/0.jpg\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"532\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/OauLuWXD_RI?feature=player_embedded\" width=\"640\"\u003E\u003C\/iframe\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nAs the investigation of Trump's treachery with Russia closes in on him and his henchmen, we expect Russian propaganda to increase in volume accordingly, along with Russian intelligence use of other \"active measures\" - including bribery, intimidation, cyberespionage, and even assassination and terrorism.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWe encourage all concerned to share this article, \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/0Byj_1ybuSGp_NmYtRF95VTJTeUk\/view\"\u003Eread our report\u003C\/a\u003E, get news from actual journalists, organize locally, and creatively oppose Trump\/Putin using all legal means! Also, please follow us on Twitter, at \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinK_2012\/with_replies\"\u003E@PropOrNot\u003C\/a\u003E, and on \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Propaganda-Or-Not-933658713423154\"\u003EFacebook\u003C\/a\u003E. Feel free to get in touch by email at (our domain)@gmail.com, and watch this space - we won't stop fighting this.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nSincerely,\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n-- The PropOrNot Team"},"link":[{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/5429871485325857875"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/5429871485325857875"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/2017\/03\/anatomy-of-russian-propaganda-troll.html","title":"Anatomy of a Russian Propaganda Troll: Geotagging Marks the Spot"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"X"},"uri":{"$t":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/profile\/16401174395512306547"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$image":{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail","width":"16","height":"16","src":"https:\/\/img1.blogblog.com\/img\/b16-rounded.gif"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjklVqHvSsddzLRDzLHYIhIZ0KsUmae64z3cFKp9egLgMSNGWZV3yhMd3D6ZZ57PKY6gZIRlW7vLf08NogfZ3jHIfdreq4vUl7hrBBO-OkkOTHMe5_2x18CyBeS8cYTuaNw1B8LUBpvVl8\/s72-c\/kevink_2012.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7030318226622508810.post-7841531479660025447"},"published":{"$t":"2016-11-30T20:06:00.001-05:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2016-11-30T20:06:36.253-05:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Update 3: Press Release, List Updates, and more!"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"In the short time since we started this project, we have been approached by whistleblowers leaking documents, laid the groundwork for collaboration with other researchers, and received an immense outpouring of support, constructive suggestions, offers to contribute, and volunteer applications. \u0026nbsp;Our approach has been successfully used by people around the world to critically examine online propaganda outlets and expose the pro-Russian bias, lies, and uncritical reuse of state-controlled media therein. Operators of sites we have highlighted have reached out to us, made a case for their independence, described how they take state-sponsored propaganda very seriously, and put measures in place to avoid being a conduit for it. We are very encouraged by that. We have removed these outlets from our list, and are continuing to add other ones, especially ones which are directly owned and controlled by governments that suppress and restrict free media.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nReporters have investigated some of the outlets we highlighted and found them to be \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.inc.com\/tess-townsend\/ending-the-fed-russia-propaganda.html\"\u003Eforeign-run, popular, and supportive of Russia in important ways\u003C\/a\u003E. Some reporters in particular have engaged with our work in its \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.iwp.edu\/news_publications\/detail\/prof-chodakiewicz-discusses-russian-military-and-influence-operations-at-us-army-europe-senior-leaders-forum\"\u003Elarger\u003C\/a\u003E \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/08\/29\/world\/europe\/russia-sweden-disinformation.html\"\u003Econtext\u003C\/a\u003E to produce \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/view\/articles\/2016-11-28\/how-russian-propaganda-really-works-in-the-west\"\u003Ethoughtful analysis\u003C\/a\u003E. Allied governments and intelligence services, including those of \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/german-justice-minister-heiko-maas-worried-fake-news-might-affect-2017-election\/a-36546276\"\u003EGermany\u003C\/a\u003E and \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.thelocal.se\/20160727\/concern-over-barrage-of-fake-russian-news-in-sweden\"\u003ESweden\u003C\/a\u003E, are well aware of the phenomena we highlight and take it very seriously. We have accomplished these things in a very short time, with no budget and no formal organization, by building on the work of numerous others who have paved the way.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWe have been strongly criticized as well. Journalists and other researchers have made some thoughtful critiques and pointed out the need for certain improvements that we take seriously. Some have questioned our anonymity, but we will remain anonymous for the reasons which we laid out at the start of this project, in our Frequently Asked Questions: We are anonymous because we are civilian Davids facing down a state-sponsored Goliath. \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.esquire.com\/news-politics\/a49791\/russian-dnc-emails-hacked\/\"\u003EWe take things like Russian hacking of Americans\u003C\/a\u003E, \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/05\/31\/world\/europe\/russia-finland-nato-trolls.html\"\u003ERussian physical attacks on journalists\u003C\/a\u003E, \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/11\/21\/technology\/fact-check-this-pizzeria-is-not-a-child-trafficking-site.html\"\u003E“Pizzagate”-style mob harassment\u003C\/a\u003E, and doxing and harassment seriously.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWe would also like to be clear: We strongly believe in the First Amendment rights to freedom of expression and freedom of the press. Diverse and independent media are vital to the health of free society. Non-profit and commercial, alternative and mainstream - all are critical to our democracy.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nAmericans have the \u003Ci\u003Eright\u003C\/i\u003E to echo, repeat, be used by, and refer their audiences to Russian official and semi-official state media, including “fake news” propaganda - just as we have the right to analyze and highlight that, without fear or favor. Our list was never intended to be “black”. We highlight these outlets because we believe that the public should be able to know that very disparate kinds of online outlets frequently display a strong bias towards Russia in ways that echo, repeat, are used by, and redirect their audiences to Russian official and semi-official state media.\u0026nbsp;We also highlight them to encourage readers to think critically about the media they encounter, especially when it might confirm their ideological preconceptions.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWe highlight. \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/act-four\/wp\/2016\/02\/09\/how-censorship-works-in-vladimir-putins-russia\/\"\u003EUnlike the Russian government\u003C\/a\u003E, we do not censor.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nAs an example, we are happy to remove from the List any outlet whose operators understand how Putin's Russia is a brutal authoritarian kleptocracy that uses \"fake news\" as online propaganda, and resolves to help do something about it. For example, any outlet that has used a lot of Russia Today and Sputnik News content, but resolves to stop doing so, is going to be removed from the List.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nAfter productive conversations with several website operators, in which it became clear that they shared the same concerns we do and were interested in constructively moving forward, we removed them. Please see the \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/p\/the-list.html\"\u003Eupdated List \u003C\/a\u003Efor more information.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nAlso please see our November 30 Press release, which goes into more detail on the themes above, is available for download \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/0Byj_1ybuSGp_ZUJybWhTeFFrM1E\/view?usp=sharing\"\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E, and can be viewed inline below:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ciframe src=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/0Byj_1ybuSGp_ZUJybWhTeFFrM1E\/preview\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\"\u003E\u003C\/iframe\u003E"},"link":[{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/7841531479660025447"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/7841531479660025447"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/2016\/11\/update-3-press-release-list-updates-and.html","title":"Update 3: Press Release, List Updates, and more!"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"X"},"uri":{"$t":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/profile\/16401174395512306547"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$image":{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail","width":"16","height":"16","src":"https:\/\/img1.blogblog.com\/img\/b16-rounded.gif"}}]},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7030318226622508810.post-946259769973632498"},"published":{"$t":"2016-11-25T23:59:00.000-05:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2016-11-27T18:48:51.985-05:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Site Update: Report, Tweaks, and More!"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"We are grateful for the outpouring of support we've received over the past day or so, and are currently starting to wade through it all, as well as working to map out and analyze all the outraged accounts who jump in randomly to tell us how great Putin is and decry the very suggestion that Russian influence operations might actually be a real thing.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWe are also amused by everyone who wants to change the subject. We have been writing code, collecting data, analyzing data, manually reviewing outlets, responding to media, drafting, editing, internally debating, etc, with a team of volunteers, on a holiday weekend, and it is working. We have helped start the conversation we wanted to start, and greatly increased awareness of the problem we are trying to address. There remains much more to do, but we look forward to the upcoming public discussion, and intend to respond to questions and requests for more information as soon as humanely possible - again, bearing in mind that we are an all-volunteer team, with no budget, on a holiday weekend.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWe would also like to be very clear that we fiercely believe in the rights to freedom of expression and freedom of the press, and have no interest in seeing anyone punished for exercising them. Quite to the contrary.\u0026nbsp;However, when outlets echo, repeat, and refer their audience to Russian propaganda, especially of the fake-news variety (which they have the right to do), we're going to highlight it (which we have the right to do). If they in fact were not doing so, and we were incorrect, we are happy to correct the record. We highlight. We do not censor.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nOur criteria are behavioral, not motivational. If a particular outlet consistently echoes, repeats, and refers its audience to official and semi-official Russian state media, we will to try to measure it. We often cannot know the motivations of the people involved, although sometimes, thanks to other reporting, we can have have a very good sense - but the motivations are less important to us than the behavior. \u0026nbsp;That's one big reason why we don't accuse any Americans of deliberate wrongdoing, and why we so generally focus on outlets, not individuals.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nMore generally, we would like to point out that propaganda outlets like Russia Today are the mouthpieces of a brutal authoritarian oligarchy run by a mafia-spy tyrant, who assassinated a leading opposition politician literally right in front of the Kremlin, and strategically supports and funds political movements around the world. There is no moral equivalence between the United States and the Putin regime. Everyone has the right to criticize the US government, but criticizing the Russian government can get you killed. That is one reason we're anonymous.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThere are a few other points of interest as well:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Col\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EWe have updated and will continue to update our \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/propagandaornot.blogspot.com\/p\/frequently-asked-questions.html\"\u003EFrequently Asked Questions\u003C\/a\u003E in response to some of the most common inquiries we've received, although we intend to get back to everyone as soon as possible as well. Watch that space.\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EWe will be updating \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/p\/the-list.html\"\u003EThe List\u003C\/a\u003E slightly as well, in part based on the numerous new outlets we've been asked to look into over the past 24 hours. We will do that as soon as we can sink our analysis tools and review processes into the outlets we've been asked to look into, and we'll be updating our browser plugin as well. Due to different volunteers being responsible for different parts of the option, please note that the list in the plugin is slightly ahead of the list on the website. We will fix that.\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EWe are updating our homepage slightly, to give people a better sense for what the Russian folks working to influence US public opinion look and sound like.\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EWe are proud to present our updated Black Friday Report, and extremely grateful to everyone who contributed! We look forward to your thoughts, suggestions, and contributions as we move forward. It is \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/open?id=0Byj_1ybuSGp_NmYtRF95VTJTeUk\"\u003Eavailable for download here\u003C\/a\u003E, or can be reivewed directly below:\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003C\/ol\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Ciframe height=\"480\" src=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/0Byj_1ybuSGp_NmYtRF95VTJTeUk\/preview\" width=\"640\"\u003E\u003C\/iframe\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThank you very much for all your support, and watch this space - much more soon.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n-- The PropOrNot Team"},"link":[{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/946259769973632498"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/946259769973632498"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/2016\/11\/site-update-report-tweaks-and-more.html","title":"Site Update: Report, Tweaks, and More!"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"X"},"uri":{"$t":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/profile\/16401174395512306547"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$image":{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail","width":"16","height":"16","src":"https:\/\/img1.blogblog.com\/img\/b16-rounded.gif"}}]},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7030318226622508810.post-1974120345582700689"},"published":{"$t":"2016-10-31T04:11:00.000-04:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2016-11-05T07:11:32.031-04:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"An Example of Multi-Source Identification: ZeroHedge.com"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003Cimg src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEictokj0um4usCo4VcmoutihcZHbXhduVWHpnM4iULQqyyqjbRl6H8O5-MU1nfxEFtNqoF4qoNer4vGhrVZZ3K9S9P46rcov3g-GHn1yoeqUgqmmAUNAqUvI5TZ9uS-KrbuF1WVlGFwmcw\/s400\/zerohedgelogo.png\" style=\"display: none;\" \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nIn some cases, professional-journalist reporting has uncovered interesting connections between outlets which we have identified, through our multiple overlapping checks and analyses, as Russian propaganda. Take, for example, \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/\"\u003EZeroHedge.com\u003C\/a\u003E. Targeted at Wall St. professionals and people interested in the finance sector, it is now the 407th most-popular site in the United States (according to \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.alexa.com\/\"\u003EAlexa.com\u003C\/a\u003E), with 18.7m monthly page views in the U.S., averaging roughly 8 minutes a visit (according to \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.similarweb.com\/\"\u003ESimilarWeb.com\u003C\/a\u003E). It is one of the top finance-industry news sources for American audiences, and was rated as one of the top ten most popular financial blogs in the U.S. by \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/content.time.com\/time\/specials\/packages\/article\/0,28804,2057116_2057343_2057267,00.html\"\u003ETime Magazine\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nZeroHedge.com makes an excellent case study, both because of how quickly it rose to prominence, and because it was spectacularly eviscerated by its primary ghost-writer after a falling-out with his employers in April of 2016.\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nZeroHedge was established as a blog in 2009, and rapidly grew into an internet success story with an extensive reach on social media and its own YouTube channel. Its “author” wrote under the pen-name of Tyler Durden in a heavy-handed homage to Fight Club, and his opinions were frequently anti-establishment and notedly pessimistic. The site found a large audience among Americans who were searching for answers about a financial system that had suddenly and disastrously run off the road.\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nOn the face of it, ZeroHedge’s articles were always a perplexing mix of solid financial news and frankly sensational articles that headed straight for conspiracy-theory territory—an odd combination for a financial website. The real identity of its author was hotly debated, as was the veracity of many of its claims. ZeroHedge frequently argued that “pseudonymous speech” was necessary amid an atmosphere of stifled public dissent, but it also made it nearly impossible to trace the source of some of the articles it published.\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cimg height=\"372\" src=\"https:\/\/lh6.googleusercontent.com\/nQouHWM3Gf_HX9MCHAK_mLb6c5pVnQfddX_YK-NQ_eTri8Ufl2_WKizyYl-9XT3ohPnwfYWVaI5RjgEOd4wkHinAEH1PGZXTNwSSUbOPWxjMqVrz3dy1_ZlHeh8MnTggz_87XBda\" style=\"-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);\" width=\"624\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cdiv style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003EThe ZeroHedge.com homepage, sans ads, as of October 23rd 2016\u003C\/i\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nNew York Magazine ran an extensive profile of the site, titled \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/nymag.com\/guides\/money\/2009\/59457\/\"\u003EThe Dow Zero Insurgency\u003C\/a\u003E, in September 2009, doing some research into the site’s apparent founder, Daniel Ivandjiiski, and including this comment about Zerohedge’s tone:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote class=\"tr_bq\"\u003E\n“It’s nihilist, and that kind of vision lends itself to all manner of overreaching and conspiracy,” says Felix Salmon of Reuters. “You need some kind of critical judgment to separate out the [stories] that make sense and the ones that don’t. ZeroHedge just seems to not care about that. It doesn’t matter if it’s not true.”\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nIn November 2011, the Streetwise Professor blog \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/streetwiseprofessor.com\/?p=5728\"\u003Edid some excellent digging\u003C\/a\u003E, and is to our knowledge the first time a writer systematically compared ZeroHedge to Russia Today\/RT:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote class=\"tr_bq\"\u003E\n‘ZH’s editorial line on the US and European economies parallels almost exactly that of RT. Moreover, although ZH is unsparing in its criticism of virtually every Western government leader, it never whispers the slightest word of reproach about Vladimir Putin or Russia. Indeed, a tweet mentioning that fact almost immediately drew a response from ZH: a link to a ZH piece spouting a common line of Russian propaganda argument about the superior fiscal foundation of Russia as compared to the US.’\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nAt PropOrNot, our research and content analysis has confirmed that that seems to be the case. The Streetwise Professor story goes on to make the connection that the the father of Zerohedge’s founder appears to have been a Bulgarian intelligence officer during the Cold War:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote class=\"tr_bq\"\u003E\n‘Its creator is Daniel Ivandjiiski, a native of Bulgaria. Daniel has a very dodgy past, including losing a job and his securities license for insider trading. None of this is hard to find out: it was covered in a New York Magazine piece that ran soon after ZH first gained notoriety. Mr. Ivandjiiski’s checkered past perhaps explains his clearcut antipathy for Wall Street. But there may be more to it than that.\n\nIn light of my flash analogy of ZH to a  Soviet disinformation operation, what is really interesting is the background of Daniel Ivandjiiski’s father. Ivandjiiski pere (Kassimir) was a Bulgarian “journalist” and “envoy” during the Cold War. A member of the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Trade, in the COMECON and EU departments. A journalist. A “special envoy” (hence presumably with very useful diplomatic cover) in every proxy war in Central Asia and Africa in the 1970s and 1980s.\n\nThat is an intel operative’s CV with probability 1. Probability 1. Every one of those jobs was a classic cover. There is no doubt in my mind whatsoever—none—that Mr. Divandjiiski senior was a member of the Bulgarian Committee for State Security (Държавна сигурност or DS for short)—the Bulgarian equivalent of the KGB. And remember that Bulgarian DS was the USSR KGB’s most reliable allied service during the Cold War. It carried out wet work in western countries, notably the “umbrella murder” of Georgi Markov in London...\n\nPerhaps it is just coincidence that the son of an obvious Warsaw Pact intelligence service agent with the “journalistic” and “diplomatic” background commonly used in influence and disinformation operations starts a website that employs classic influence and disinformation methods, and spouts an editorial line dripping with vitriol and hostility for American (and Western European) financial institutions and governments: a line that follows that of RT quite closely. Perhaps.’\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nThree years later, in November 2014, the Streetwise Professor Blog ran a followup story about Zerohedge, called \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/streetwiseprofessor.com\/?p=8947\"\u003EHow Do You Know That ZeroHedge is a Russian Information Operation? Here’s How\u003C\/a\u003E, which analyzed a particularly egregious case in which ZeroHedge echoed a deeply misleading story on an obscure Russian-language website, \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/iskra-news.info\/news\/segodnja_nochju_iz_borispolja_v_ssha_strartoval_samoljot_s_zolotym_zapasom_ukrainy\/2014-03-07-9122\"\u003EIskra News\u003C\/a\u003E, blaming the U.S. for Ukrainian gold going missing from the central-bank vault:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote class=\"tr_bq\"\u003E\n‘Shortly after Yatsenuk [the Ukrainian prime minister] disclosed the theft of the gold, stories started appearing on the web, first on a Russian website, claiming that the gold had been spirited out the country: including on ZH, which quoted the Russian web story. This obviously serves a Russian purpose: it presents a counter-narrative that blames the theft of the gold not on Yanukovych [the Russian-backed former President], or the Russians, but on the new Ukrainian government and the United States.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThis is the classic Soviet\/Russian agitprop MO that I noted 3 years ago. A story appears in an obscure publication, typically outside the US or Europe, where it has been planted by Soviet\/Russian intelligence. It is then picked up by another, more widely read publication, in Europe or the West. Maybe it works its way through several additional media sources. It then gets disseminated more widely in the west, sometimes making it to prestige publications like the NYT.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nIn the era of the web, the information weapon needn’t make it that far. Getting into a widely-read web publication like ZeroHedge which is then linked by numerous other sources and tweeted widely ensures that the lie goes viral.\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nZH is an important transmission belt moving the story from Russian propagandists\/information warriors to western news consumers. It happens a lot. This is a particularly egregious example, but the transmission belt runs almost daily. ZH is as much a part of Putin’s information warfare as RT. If you follow closely enough, it’s as plain as the nose on your face.’\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nThen, in April 2016, Bloomberg ran a story called \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2016-04-29\/unmasking-the-men-behind-zero-hedge-wall-street-s-renegade-blog\"\u003EUnmasking the Men Behind ZeroHedge, Wall Street's Renegade Blog\u003C\/a\u003E, which extensively quoted a disgruntled former employee of Zerohedge named Colin Lokey, who described “writing as many as 15 posts a day of as many as 1,500 words each”. The side was indeed run by Daniel Ivandjiiski, the Bulgarian-born former analyst who was barred by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority in 2008 for insider trading, and Tim Backshall, a credit derivatives strategist who frequently appears on the news as a financial expert. Both men were financially well-situated, and chat logs given to Bloomberg indicate that Lokey, who was being paid upwards of $100,000 a year to produce content, was increasingly uneasy about the hypocrisy of purporting to be fighting for the common man while pushing a very specific editorial line:\n\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote class=\"tr_bq\"\u003E\n‘Lokey, who said he wrote much of the site’s political content, claimed there was pressure to frame issues in a way he felt was disingenuous. “I tried to inject as much truth as I could into my posts, but there’s no room for it. “Russia=good. Obama=idiot. Bashar al-Assad=benevolent leader. John Kerry=dunce. Vladimir Putin=greatest leader in the history of statecraft,” Lokey wrote, describing his take on the website's politics...\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n“I can’t be a 24-hour cheerleader for Hezbollah, Moscow, Tehran, Beijing, and Trump anymore. It’ s wrong. Period. I know it gets you views now, but it will kill your brand over the long run,” Lokey texted Ivandjiiski. “This isn’t a revolution. It’s a joke.”’\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nMeanwhile, in February 2016, Andrew Aaron Weisburd’s blog \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/aktivnyye.com\/\"\u003EAktivnyye Meropriyatiya|Active Measures\u003C\/a\u003E published an analysis of SimilarWeb referrer data, highlighting ZeroHedge, and building out a network graph of sites which refer their audience to each other, titled \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/aktivnyye.com\/t\/20160207-fringenet1.html\"\u003EThe Fringes of Disinfo: A Network Based on Referrers\u003C\/a\u003E. Later in February 2016, he posted \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/aktivnyye.com\/t\/20160212-fringenet2.html\"\u003EDisinformation Flows - A Second Look\u003C\/a\u003E, in which he focused down the core referrer network surrounding ZeroHedge:\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cimg height=\"567\" src=\"https:\/\/lh5.googleusercontent.com\/IM5hSCsFAmR452N5OY7X6ZoPk5ZfyPJbyDtK4-1P3NZI4f2ZiTfju68_ETTNzKWzBXWYyS1N93lTvogZI6_6vTM9CVLX3mYknasqIAIq9wdbb14-ZQgLesgLz4XUPAQUQGFJg6wy\" style=\"-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);\" width=\"624\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cdiv style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003EZeroHedge.com referrer network (illustration by \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/aktivnyye.com\/t\/20160212-fringenet2.html\"\u003EAndrew Aaron Weisburd\u003C\/a\u003E)\u003C\/i\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nWeisburd then went on to drill down into the subset of the referrer network subset of the network which included sites that had been flagged on Twitter by the \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/EUvsDisinfo\"\u003E@EUvsDisinfo\u003C\/a\u003E team as propagating Kremlin disinformation. The \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/EUvsDisinfo\"\u003E@EUvsDisinfo\u003C\/a\u003E account is a project of the European Union’s East Strategic Communications Task Force, and does excellent work, which we at PropOrNot are also using to inform our efforts.\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nWeisburd’s network next graph just included the sites identified by EUvsDisinfo, with the ones in ZeroHedge’s core referral network highlighted in blue:\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cimg height=\"537\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/NfmenLBL-44pGaGkJG8eNhhL2dLEf-dklXlxkQ384I99tPkMGaw-t0-2G_SMCNpG2g_jODE2kQvGLflUeRCMMgfIDavcykCY4c-9n-HJLAuZh9pmwhISTIjhCtQwqyDYhQcsK7yP\" style=\"-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);\" width=\"624\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cdiv style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003EZeroHedge.com referrer network focused on sites identified as disinformation by @EUvsDisinfo (illustration by \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/aktivnyye.com\/t\/20160212-fringenet2.html\"\u003EAndrew Aaron Weisburd\u003C\/a\u003E)\u003C\/i\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nWe have systematically confirmed the EUvsDisinfo\/Weisburd findings in this case. Weisburd’s comment from that post bears repeating here:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote class=\"tr_bq\"\u003E\n‘To the extent any of these sites are involved in supporting Russian objectives that run counter to Western interests, they - and more to the point, the people who operate them - should be of interest to the security services of the Western countries in which they live, work, and acquire services related to their websites. At the same time, one frequently finds direct links from these websites to Russia and individuals in Russia clearly associated with the Kremlin and Russian intelligence services. It is always worthwhile to look for criminal activity occurring on the periphery of such websites, particularly on the backend of the operations, involving people who host the sites, register the domain names, and otherwise provide logistical support. And finally, many sites involved in Kremlin disinformation work now solicit donations online, raising the distinct possibility that the online fundraising accounts are being used to move or launder funds.’\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nIvandjiiski has publicly stated that the site has turned a profit from ad revenue since day one, and that they have never taken outside funding, which does not preclude ad buys being used to channel funds to the site. In a world where traffic and clicks are synonymous with money, the traditional goal of propaganda—influencing as many people as possible—becomes indistinguishable from the profit motive. A successful information operation would almost certainly reach enough people to be self-financed.\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nAnd that is where things get interesting from our perspective here at Propaganda or Not, because ZeroHedge’s opinions align nearly perfectly with those of Russia’s official propaganda outlets.\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nZeroHedge consistently cites the Russian defense ministry and Russian outlets such as Russia Today\/RT, and that coverage is notably slanted towards Russia. Russian claims of Western aggression are given greater weight than competing claims of Russian bellicosity, and ZeroHedge hews to the Russia version of events in Crimea, Syria, and elsewhere. It’s pretty evident to even a casual reader that the site’s coverage is heavily pro-Russian. ZeroHedge is also anti-GMO, and has a frankly weird obsession with the gold standard - both of which common themes in Russian propaganda.\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nAre ZeroHedge’s owners driven primarily by profit, and their alignment with Russian propaganda merely the result of catering to their readers’ pre-existing prejudices?\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nOne consideration is that the site’s contents do not seem to align with the prejudices of its audience. There is no reason, ipso facto, why day traders would also be wary of GMOs, or especially interested in the Syrian Civil War. Articles from ZeroHedge are frequently reposted by other sites, but appear on ZeroHedge first — the site’s authors are driving and shaping the stories, not merely reacting to them. An analysis of web traffic patterns and linking backs this up: ZeroHedge has a prominent place within the network of pro-Russia news and propaganda outlets.\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nOn final analysis, ZeroHedge hews far too closely to the Russian propaganda line for their slant to be accidental. In one sense, that doesn’t matter. Whether for money or out of ideological affinity, the end results of echoing Russian propaganda are the same, regardless of motivation. In another sense, however, motivation matters because it determines what kind of response is appropriate, and what kind of response is likely to work.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\nOur conclusion:\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cb\u003EZeroHedge qualifies as “dark gray” propaganda, systematically deceiving its civilian audiences for foreign political gain. We at PropOrNot rate it: Five Shadies.\u003C\/b\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cb\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/b\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cimg height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/lC1EvVfAbafGMHFoAhJYmQQOCH5rJagwbymGhayr96362eHtvhjzWN-Et00Z1DR3tdmyADR7A_tTVh4ctYyuiQqxxYqQi7KuNBQOLPeAs5UR4qorssyzeP4GPDjfiYhqiYA-h6eY\" style=\"-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);\" width=\"50\" \/\u003E \u003Cimg height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/lC1EvVfAbafGMHFoAhJYmQQOCH5rJagwbymGhayr96362eHtvhjzWN-Et00Z1DR3tdmyADR7A_tTVh4ctYyuiQqxxYqQi7KuNBQOLPeAs5UR4qorssyzeP4GPDjfiYhqiYA-h6eY\" style=\"-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);\" width=\"50\" \/\u003E \u003Cimg height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/lC1EvVfAbafGMHFoAhJYmQQOCH5rJagwbymGhayr96362eHtvhjzWN-Et00Z1DR3tdmyADR7A_tTVh4ctYyuiQqxxYqQi7KuNBQOLPeAs5UR4qorssyzeP4GPDjfiYhqiYA-h6eY\" style=\"-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);\" width=\"50\" \/\u003E \u003Cimg height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/lC1EvVfAbafGMHFoAhJYmQQOCH5rJagwbymGhayr96362eHtvhjzWN-Et00Z1DR3tdmyADR7A_tTVh4ctYyuiQqxxYqQi7KuNBQOLPeAs5UR4qorssyzeP4GPDjfiYhqiYA-h6eY\" style=\"-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);\" width=\"50\" \/\u003E \u003Cimg height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/lC1EvVfAbafGMHFoAhJYmQQOCH5rJagwbymGhayr96362eHtvhjzWN-Et00Z1DR3tdmyADR7A_tTVh4ctYyuiQqxxYqQi7KuNBQOLPeAs5UR4qorssyzeP4GPDjfiYhqiYA-h6eY\" style=\"-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);\" width=\"50\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n"},"link":[{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/1974120345582700689"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/1974120345582700689"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/2016\/10\/zero-hedge.html","title":"An Example of Multi-Source Identification: ZeroHedge.com"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Unknown"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$image":{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail","width":"16","height":"16","src":"https:\/\/img1.blogblog.com\/img\/b16-rounded.gif"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEictokj0um4usCo4VcmoutihcZHbXhduVWHpnM4iULQqyyqjbRl6H8O5-MU1nfxEFtNqoF4qoNer4vGhrVZZ3K9S9P46rcov3g-GHn1yoeqUgqmmAUNAqUvI5TZ9uS-KrbuF1WVlGFwmcw\/s72-c\/zerohedgelogo.png","height":"72","width":"72"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7030318226622508810.post-2203527754910690832"},"published":{"$t":"2016-10-31T02:25:00.004-04:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2016-11-05T05:31:54.202-04:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":" An Example of Manual Propaganda Identification: HangTheBankers.com"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003Cimg src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEg_dAFkN1RI2YywNoG7LAS1fIWecqogICiNuv0wOQPzwqZV6oehhGS9XjME4090Ci0NyA0Hv1bNrHLjadSipM85gn99Bu7Gl2Bv_K0OqM1yhx1FoGasP6gMoASeps1HIpnPEP3wzJNzAJ1O\/s320\/hangthebankerslogo.png\" style=\"display: none;\" \/\u003E\nIn order to illustrate the process of manually identifying Russian propaganda as described in\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/p\/the-yyycampaignyyy.html\"\u003Ethe YYYcampaignYYY\u003C\/a\u003E, let's walk through the process of evaluating an excellent case study, which was itself discovered through manual analysis.\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20151126020111\/http:\/\/www.hangthebankers.com\/turkey-downs-russian-plane-syria\/\"\u003EThis story provides a great example, from HangTheBankers.com\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ctable align=\"center\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" class=\"tr-caption-container\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ctbody\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgwXci7t7rrZ4N3QmkAXJnfDxsxry0QYjkS3jys7JG-T6DE1FsamGV52__P3QOXuZbt4c8Jab66tX4QCgyfOJW2EE1agg9QFmBr0x4ybaKd1yGJ2Y1AbnjnyQ7YeyqqrkqZjbT8IC4-xmI\/s1600\/hangthebankers_su24.png\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"224\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgwXci7t7rrZ4N3QmkAXJnfDxsxry0QYjkS3jys7JG-T6DE1FsamGV52__P3QOXuZbt4c8Jab66tX4QCgyfOJW2EE1agg9QFmBr0x4ybaKd1yGJ2Y1AbnjnyQ7YeyqqrkqZjbT8IC4-xmI\/s320\/hangthebankers_su24.png\" width=\"320\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd class=\"tr-caption\" style=\"font-size: 12.8px;\"\u003EWorld War III!!!\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003C\/tbody\u003E\u003C\/table\u003E\nOn the surface, HangTheBankers.com appears to be an American website about \"hanging the bankers\", but it extensively quotes the Russian defense ministry and Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov,\u0026nbsp;includes a Russia Today video in the main body of the story\u0026nbsp;(and no video from any other source), and copies and pastes text such as \"\u003Ci\u003EThe plane reportedly crashed in a village mostly populated by Syrian Turkmen. The place has been a hotspot between the opposition and the Syrian Army\u003C\/i\u003E\" \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20151125013834\/https:\/\/www.rt.com\/news\/323215-warplane-crash-syria-turkey\/\"\u003Edirectly from rt.com, here\u003C\/a\u003E, while obscuring the fact that its content is from Russia Today by using a link that just says \"SOURCE\". In fact, the entire article is copy-and-pasted directly from Russia Today:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ctable align=\"center\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" class=\"tr-caption-container\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ctbody\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgrM2l02Kfa31V2Tn50i_S6r-cR-km2k6N-VC5mu9uL5GO20sO2AT_MRtfRoFhrQ8a40HhhbgKAryDTKXzfyUeyvDckBJBrmdYClwaaQCbU5KAuDEy5oieG4HLGhp4-qPoTE1Vb07dKBAU\/s1600\/hangthebankers_plagarized_text.png\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"224\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgrM2l02Kfa31V2Tn50i_S6r-cR-km2k6N-VC5mu9uL5GO20sO2AT_MRtfRoFhrQ8a40HhhbgKAryDTKXzfyUeyvDckBJBrmdYClwaaQCbU5KAuDEy5oieG4HLGhp4-qPoTE1Vb07dKBAU\/s320\/hangthebankers_plagarized_text.png\" width=\"320\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd class=\"tr-caption\" style=\"font-size: 12.8px;\"\u003EThis is from HangTheBankers.com\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003C\/tbody\u003E\u003C\/table\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ctable align=\"center\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" class=\"tr-caption-container\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ctbody\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhWpBzc-04LDZy0bBUzBnnBjnCVOtc1hWNBvjXmiOBUe-RAGDQ83YYB5bmfBNlnTHt1hf9h1sqQgtWCMwPpg9nKNV5tGgWXMkUXecCvJqWrpP6mUMFckLVD-9aNx5ehmXE6LZio8b_1gcc\/s1600\/rt_plagiarized_text.png\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"217\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhWpBzc-04LDZy0bBUzBnnBjnCVOtc1hWNBvjXmiOBUe-RAGDQ83YYB5bmfBNlnTHt1hf9h1sqQgtWCMwPpg9nKNV5tGgWXMkUXecCvJqWrpP6mUMFckLVD-9aNx5ehmXE6LZio8b_1gcc\/s320\/rt_plagiarized_text.png\" width=\"320\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd class=\"tr-caption\" style=\"font-size: 12.8px;\"\u003EThis is from rt.com (Russia Today)\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003C\/tbody\u003E\u003C\/table\u003E\nThat meets the criteria outlined in manual Russian-propaganda analysis\u0026nbsp;Checks\u0026nbsp;#1 (\u003Ci\u003Econsistently cites obvious Russian propaganda outlets\u003C\/i\u003E) and #2 (\u003Ci\u003Ehas a history of reusing text directly from obvious Russian propaganda outlets, especially with minimal attribution\u003C\/i\u003E). But what about\u0026nbsp;Check\u0026nbsp;#3, \u003Ci\u003Echecking to see whether the site has a history of generally echoing\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/articles\/2015\/10\/04\/russia-s-propaganda-blitzkrieg.html\"\u003Ethe Russian line\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E?\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nSure enough: Some quick searching demonstrates how HangTheBankers.com has been echoing Russian propaganda content and themes for years. This is some vintage\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20120513002342\/http:\/\/www.hangthebankers.com\/the-countdown-to-the-break-up-of-the-euro-has-officially-begun\"\u003Eanti-Euro propaganda, from HangTheBankers.com in 2012\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ctable align=\"center\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" class=\"tr-caption-container\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ctbody\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgD1Pr_2gxhoeWl60o8njuzwYOddo9Ym8RQW6y7FAhT1Nwy5tkcoxERh8X9Cizv_U2pYrnfo3gfFg0ydIrUYL0WAWTLPCR90GHWRVx9R2P3gWiUcZMtB66DlhE8bedqC-ElcQE-rAWtVDs\/s1600\/hangthebankers_anti_EU-2012.png\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"207\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgD1Pr_2gxhoeWl60o8njuzwYOddo9Ym8RQW6y7FAhT1Nwy5tkcoxERh8X9Cizv_U2pYrnfo3gfFg0ydIrUYL0WAWTLPCR90GHWRVx9R2P3gWiUcZMtB66DlhE8bedqC-ElcQE-rAWtVDs\/s320\/hangthebankers_anti_EU-2012.png\" width=\"320\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd class=\"tr-caption\" style=\"font-size: 12.8px;\"\u003EAnti-Euro\u0026nbsp;\u003Cspan style=\"font-size: 12.8px;\"\u003Epropaganda\u003C\/span\u003E\u0026nbsp;from 2012\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003C\/tbody\u003E\u003C\/table\u003E\nThis fits with what we know of parallel Russian efforts:\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/commentisfree\/2016\/may\/26\/danger-brexit-break-up-eu-europe-russia\"\u003ETheir intelligence services no doubt started investing in efforts to break up the EU and Eurozone\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;quite some time previously, but it is interesting for them to suggest they have a timeline! And what exactly was the length of their supposed \"countdown\" to the \"break up of the Euro\" - what date\u0026nbsp;\u003Ci\u003Eexactly\u003C\/i\u003E\u0026nbsp;was it supposedly counting down to? Considering that article appeared in May 2012, shouldn't it have happened already?\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nBut what about in 2013? It is not difficult to find great examples. Here is some\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20130702044518\/http:\/\/www.hangthebankers.com\/mainstream-media-is-officially-dead\/\"\u003Eanti-actual-media propaganda, from HangTheBankers.com in 2013\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ctable align=\"center\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" class=\"tr-caption-container\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ctbody\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEj5Xw9zD0ASlDe_ir0tmZIQO5YhQlZZkqBEFv_mPZsfggzvc3WgBtV6-9ci65gN0xKszBkqYtJMSQuA1weLkrfmDnflQ5rpulyNPPL8SGiHBA47_jhqu65mOUwS7dgYRkNo2KGzRmzYBgw\/s1600\/hangthebankers_anti_media_2013.png\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"216\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEj5Xw9zD0ASlDe_ir0tmZIQO5YhQlZZkqBEFv_mPZsfggzvc3WgBtV6-9ci65gN0xKszBkqYtJMSQuA1weLkrfmDnflQ5rpulyNPPL8SGiHBA47_jhqu65mOUwS7dgYRkNo2KGzRmzYBgw\/s320\/hangthebankers_anti_media_2013.png\" width=\"320\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd class=\"tr-caption\" style=\"font-size: 12.8px;\"\u003EAnti-actual-media propaganda from 2013\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003C\/tbody\u003E\u003C\/table\u003E\nMainstream media may be in bad shape, but that probably has something to do with the way that the Russian intelligence services are investing a lot in efforts to kill it off - efforts like, for, example, the HangTheBankers.com site that story appears on...\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nBut what about in 2014? It doesn't take long to find great examples. Here is a textbook case of\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20140920010352\/http:\/\/www.hangthebankers.com\/world-war-3-why-russia-and-syria-are-being-targeted\"\u003ERussia-is-just-a-poor-innocent-victim nonsense, from HangTheBankers.com in 2014\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ctable align=\"center\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" class=\"tr-caption-container\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ctbody\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEi0t8bmI8G_1SpJT45U2W78uzUxcmzSquLLXEPUYcGanxi8fVnNP023YsyKiqRA9eJdb4W2t5beGQPhBlQGiFurkFH0zYfZaol9pBrZDiZvPQ0e9kQNAveNn5bf-s57CbSxgIH3CwVP81Y\/s1600\/hangthebankers_russia_targeted_2014.png\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"215\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEi0t8bmI8G_1SpJT45U2W78uzUxcmzSquLLXEPUYcGanxi8fVnNP023YsyKiqRA9eJdb4W2t5beGQPhBlQGiFurkFH0zYfZaol9pBrZDiZvPQ0e9kQNAveNn5bf-s57CbSxgIH3CwVP81Y\/s320\/hangthebankers_russia_targeted_2014.png\" width=\"320\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd class=\"tr-caption\" style=\"font-size: 12.8px;\"\u003ERussia-is-an-innocent-victim\u0026nbsp;\u003Cspan style=\"font-size: 12.8px;\"\u003Epropaganda\u003C\/span\u003E\u0026nbsp;from 2014\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003C\/tbody\u003E\u003C\/table\u003E\nNevermind the opinions of Syrians in Aleppo, Tatars in Crimea, Ukrainians in Mariupol, or Latvians in Riga - for HangTheBankers.com it's poor innocent Russia that's being \"targeted\"! And nevermind that the West and the USSR survived a generations-long Cold War without starting anything like World War III - Putin does\u0026nbsp;\u003Cb\u003Enot\u003C\/b\u003E\u0026nbsp;want anybody organizing against him, so his propagandists trot out the prospect of global thermonuclear war as a rebuttal to anyone even considering fighting back. It's simple intimidation.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nBut what about in 2015? It doesn't take long to find this\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20160604141518\/http:\/\/www.hangthebankers.com\/jade-helm-martial-law-ww3\/\"\u003Eattempt to gin up opposition to US military exercises, from HangTheBankers.com in 2015\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ctable align=\"center\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" class=\"tr-caption-container\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ctbody\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEh987i123XrjSsoF3DY6wmTI8I52fmJRn18YborYf9d3f5WYRwMHk81GBMxS1giWFlSZRxxaJuiAAugR8KUgauW4ewbVb1aww1MMezdnaEfp6hzNy-P1urmJwgILqETe16LebbDMp4rIa8\/s1600\/hangthebankers_jade_helm_2015.png\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"218\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEh987i123XrjSsoF3DY6wmTI8I52fmJRn18YborYf9d3f5WYRwMHk81GBMxS1giWFlSZRxxaJuiAAugR8KUgauW4ewbVb1aww1MMezdnaEfp6hzNy-P1urmJwgILqETe16LebbDMp4rIa8\/s320\/hangthebankers_jade_helm_2015.png\" width=\"320\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd class=\"tr-caption\" style=\"font-size: 12.8px;\"\u003EAnti-US-military-exercise propaganda from 2015\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003C\/tbody\u003E\u003C\/table\u003E\nNevermind that the US was preparing to do things like, for example, kick Russia out of Estonia on the off-chance Putin saw fit to invade there... Nevermind all that! For Russian propaganda, US military exercises are evil conspiracies to be opposed. The darkly humorous subtext here is that that particular Russian influence operation, to gin up opposition to Jade Helm, sort of worked -\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.msnbc.com\/rachel-maddow-show\/many-gop-voters-buy-jade-helm-conspiracy-theory\"\u003Esignificant fractions of the Republican base\u003C\/a\u003E, and\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.rightwingwatch.org\/post\/jade-helm-15-is-over-and-obama-didnt-even-invade-texas\/\"\u003Eeven Republican elected officials\u003C\/a\u003E, fell for it. Imagine the Russian intelligence officers laughing to themselves about that one on their way home from work!\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nBut what about from 2016? Again, it doesn't take long. Here's some\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.hangthebankers.com\/us-jets-painted-russian-colors-false-flag-ww3\/\"\u003EUS-is-an-evil-aggressor propaganda, from HangTheBankers.com in 2016\u003C\/a\u003E:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ctable align=\"center\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" class=\"tr-caption-container\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ctbody\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003E\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEh-iSKo796QOLDPULbCF1xWdZL3Ujxh-VnRJUt1_QeTSox-pfZORICquqqvhijJj3Adde8x0FTDwO6vgQhyEz0CrIJFOlSNVzjuWLMPL_ZAH3nwKKyLl-4uokKvbEBelFIVBcKc8IC3Kdc\/s1600\/hangthebankers_us_jets_2016.png\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\"\u003E\u003Cimg border=\"0\" height=\"209\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEh-iSKo796QOLDPULbCF1xWdZL3Ujxh-VnRJUt1_QeTSox-pfZORICquqqvhijJj3Adde8x0FTDwO6vgQhyEz0CrIJFOlSNVzjuWLMPL_ZAH3nwKKyLl-4uokKvbEBelFIVBcKc8IC3Kdc\/s320\/hangthebankers_us_jets_2016.png\" width=\"320\" \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd class=\"tr-caption\" style=\"font-size: 12.8px;\"\u003EUS-is-evil-and-aggressive propaganda, from HangTheBankers.com in 2016\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\n\u003C\/tbody\u003E\u003C\/table\u003E\nNevermind that that the US military paints aircraft in Russian colors for training purposes, in order to, again, practice for stuff like kicking the Russian military out of Estonia on the off-chance Putin sees fit to invade there. HangTheBankers.com doesn't waver, or equivocate, or need alternative explanations. No, for HangTheBankers.com, the appropriate headline is to assert that those US fighter jets are painted in Russian colors in a \"push\" for a \"false flag\" to start World War III.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nMore generally, HangTheBankers.com echoes the larger themes of Russian propaganda to a T:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote class=\"tr_bq\"\u003E\n'The manifesto of the movement [the World National Conservative Movement]\u0026nbsp;claims that the world is governed by the ideology of \"liberalism, multiculturalism and tolerance\". This, in the view of the activists, results in \"the erosion of nations, massive migration from countries with foreign civilizational bases, falling away from religion, replacement of spirituality by materialism, impoverishment of cultures, destruction of the family and healthy moral values\" through \"abortion, propaganda of debauchery and acceptance of sexual perversions.\" Furthermore, the manifesto refers to the \"super-national institutions\" such as the EU and NATO, and argues that these forces represent \"the global cabal\" which, in the Russian cultural discourse, is essentially a euphemistic reference to the global Jewish conspiracy. The WNCM aims to counter liberalism and globalisation by staging a \"conservative revolution\" and bringing far right parties to power in Western societies. The manifesto claims that a \"victory of the conservative revolution even in one country [...] will provide an example for other countries.\" Establishing the WNCMis considered the first step in this direction.'\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n--\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.interpretermag.com\/russian-politicians-building-an-international-extreme-right-alliance\/\"\u003ERussian Politicians Building an International Extreme Right Alliance\u003C\/a\u003E, by Anton Shekhovtsov, on September 15 2015, in The Interpreter Magazine\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nSo, we have satisfied Check #1 (\u003Ci\u003Eciting obvious Russian propaganda\u003C\/i\u003E),\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;Check\u0026nbsp;#2 (\u003Ci\u003Ehas a history of\u0026nbsp;reusing text directly from obvious Russian propaganda\u003C\/i\u003E), and Check\u0026nbsp;#3 (\u003Ci\u003Ehas a history of generally echoing the Russian propaganda \"line\"\u003C\/i\u003E), but what about Check #4,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ci\u003Ehas a history of echoing the Russian line in weird ways\u003C\/i\u003E?\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nTo answer Check #4, let's step back a bit: What do Turkey shooting down a Russian fighter-bomber, dire predictions about the breakup of the Euro, the death of actual journalism, or Russia supposedly being targeted by \"false flag\" attacks to start WW3, have to do with \"hanging the bankers\"?\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWhat does any of\u0026nbsp;\u003Ci\u003Ethat\u003C\/i\u003E\u0026nbsp;have to do with it?\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nObviously, not much.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThere is plenty of room for reasonable debate about appropriate regulation of the financial system, including criminal penalties for bank and financial-industry executives who, for example, may have broken the law in connection to the Great Recession of 2008. That's a practical, real-world concerns, and it makes sense that there would be media outlets, blogs, and online communities dedicated to discussing it--but that's not what HangTheBankers.com is, at all.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20120509082629\/http:\/\/www.hangthebankers.com\/about\/\"\u003EIts About page\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;barely even mentions banking, let alone financial regulatory reform. It discusses the \"New World Order\", \"rabbit holes\", \"red pills\", the \"corporate mainstream media\", and an out-of-context quote from John F. Kennedy. The closest it comes to discussing banking is mentioning \"a handful of families that control the world banking system and hence the money supply\", although it doesn't say which families--a dog-whistle to a\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Economic_antisemitism\"\u003Eblatantly anti-Semitic trope\u003C\/a\u003E,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/newrepublic.com\/article\/117759\/anti-semitism-rising-russia-simon-wiesenthal-center-accuses-rt\"\u003Eused with increasing frequency by Russian propaganda\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nInstead of focusing on issues like financial regulation, HangTheBankers.com has a history of echoing Russian propaganda in ways that are, indeed, weird.\u0026nbsp;\u003Ci\u003EIts actual subject matter\u003C\/i\u003E--including Turkey shooting down a Russian fighter-bomber, dire predictions about the breakup of the Euro, the death of actual journalism, Russia supposedly being targeted by \"false flag\" attacks to start WW3--\u003Ci\u003Eis unrelated to the purported focus of its branding\u003C\/i\u003E: Punishing white-collar crime associated with the Great Recession of 2008. That satisfies Check #4.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nCheck #5 is about whether\u0026nbsp;HangTheBankers.com\u0026nbsp;\u003Ci\u003Elacks the hallmarks of\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.cjc-online.ca\/index.php\/journal\/article\/view\/1743\/1855\"\u003Egood actual journalism\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E: Are the stories factual? Are the facts placed in appropriate context? Do the headlines match the content? Are the agendas of the sources clearly disclosed? Are there good explanations? Does it bring clarity to complicated issues? Is there an absence of hype?\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nA cursory review of the content answers those and related questions: No.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThat satisfies Check #5.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nCheck #6 is about whether HangTheBankers.com\u0026nbsp;\u003Ci\u003Ehas been called out by other fact-checkers, journalists, and debunkers already\u003C\/i\u003E. A little double-checking reveals that HangTheBankers.com has been identified as a \"CLICKBAIT WEBSITE\" by\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/fakenewswatch.com\/\"\u003EFakeNewsWatch.com\u003C\/a\u003E, is included in the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.fortliberty.org\/hoax-sites.html\"\u003EFortLiberty.com Hoax Sites list\u003C\/a\u003E, and is the subject of an interesting analysis of its use of visual imagery published by the International Center of Photography, titled\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.icp.org\/perspective\/conspiracy-theory-20-0\"\u003ECONSPIRACY THEORY 2.0: Photographic practices on conspiracy theory websites following the Boston Marathon bombing\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThat satisfies Check #6.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nCheck #7 is is about whether HangTheBankers.com\u0026nbsp;\u003Ci\u003Esteadfastly avoids coherently proposing constructive solutions to anything\u003C\/i\u003E. Its most heavily-emphasized prescription, \"hanging the bankers\", might perhaps qualify as a Step One towards a constructive solution to a wide range of problems, for resolute Marxists, but like Marx, HangTheBankers.com does not go into much detail about Steps Two, Three, Four, or Five through Nine.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThe same applies for the other stories highlighted here. What's the solution to the pressures on the Euro as a currency? Well, the story on HangTheBankers.com from 2012 has nothing to say about that. It certainly does not\u0026nbsp;\u003Cspan id=\"goog_899043801\"\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.nber.org\/papers\/w13393\"\u003Econsult relevant expertise\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;to determine what possible solutions might look like\u003Cspan id=\"goog_899043802\"\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E, or\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/voxeu.org\/article\/why-collapse-eurozone-must-be-avoided-almost-any-cost\"\u003Elist out the problems associated with a potential breakup of the Eurozone\u003C\/a\u003E, let alone the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/view\/articles\/2016-08-09\/a-nobel-alternative-to-the-current-euro-system\"\u003Epossible solutions to them\u003C\/a\u003E. On the contrary, in this story, HangTheBankers.com seems more like a cheerleader for the breakup of the Euro than anything else, which makes sense in light of Russia's strategic interest in seeing that happen.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThe same applies to HangTheBankers.com sounding the death knell for actual journalism in 2013. What solutions does HangTheBankers.com propose? None. It links to a YouTube video which badly critiques actual professional journalism, and actual professional\u0026nbsp;journalists. What about Russia supposedly being the innocent victim of \"targeting\" for World War III? Nothing. Jade Helm? Nada. The US military practicing against simulated Russian aircraft? Zip. In many cases, no constructive solution can be articulated, because the supposed \"problem\" is so incoherent.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nThat satisfies Check #7.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ch2\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003EConclusion: YYYhangthebankers.comYYY\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/h2\u003E\nGiven that it satisfies those checks, thus qualifying as a bona-fide Russian propaganda outlet, what can be done? For one, you can help highlight it. When you see a story posted from it on social media, that we've already analyzed and debunked, surround the name of it in YYYs, and, as kindly as possible, push back against the person who posted it with a link to this page... And then\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/p\/contact.html\"\u003Etell us, at PropOrNot\u003C\/a\u003E, about it. For example:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003E@uninformed_relative:\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/i\u003ECan you belief there doing this stuff!???\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.hangthebankers.com\/ww3-globalists-pushing-war-russia\/\"\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.hangthebankers.com\/ww3-globalists-pushing-war-russia\/\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003E@you_our_enlightened_reader:\u003C\/i\u003E\u0026nbsp;Oh my dear relative, I love you, but just so you know, YYYhangthebankers.comYYY has\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/\"\u003Ebeen debunked by PropOrNot\u003C\/a\u003E, and is totally Russian propaganda #propornot\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003E@uninformed_relative:\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/i\u003EWowww what next!? Wonders never cease\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003E@you_our_enlightened_reader:\u003C\/i\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u0026lt;smug satisfaction\u0026gt;\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003E@us_at_propornot:\u003C\/i\u003E\u0026nbsp;Hmmmm look at those metrics! Yay!\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003E@vladimir_putin:\u003C\/i\u003E\u0026nbsp;эти чертовы ублюдки все планы мне сорвали!! And I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for those meddling kids!!\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cdiv dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;\"\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E\u003Cb\u003EHangTheBankers.com qualifies as “dark gray” propaganda, systematically deceiving its civilian audiences for foreign political gain. We at PropOrNot rate it: Five Shadies.\u003C\/b\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E\u003Cb\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/b\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cdiv dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;\"\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E\u003Cimg height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/lC1EvVfAbafGMHFoAhJYmQQOCH5rJagwbymGhayr96362eHtvhjzWN-Et00Z1DR3tdmyADR7A_tTVh4ctYyuiQqxxYqQi7KuNBQOLPeAs5UR4qorssyzeP4GPDjfiYhqiYA-h6eY\" style=\"border: none; transform: rotate(0rad);\" width=\"50\" \/\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E \u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E\u003Cimg height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/lC1EvVfAbafGMHFoAhJYmQQOCH5rJagwbymGhayr96362eHtvhjzWN-Et00Z1DR3tdmyADR7A_tTVh4ctYyuiQqxxYqQi7KuNBQOLPeAs5UR4qorssyzeP4GPDjfiYhqiYA-h6eY\" style=\"border: none; transform: rotate(0rad);\" width=\"50\" \/\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E \u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E\u003Cimg height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/lC1EvVfAbafGMHFoAhJYmQQOCH5rJagwbymGhayr96362eHtvhjzWN-Et00Z1DR3tdmyADR7A_tTVh4ctYyuiQqxxYqQi7KuNBQOLPeAs5UR4qorssyzeP4GPDjfiYhqiYA-h6eY\" style=\"border: none; transform: rotate(0rad);\" width=\"50\" \/\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E \u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E\u003Cimg height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/lC1EvVfAbafGMHFoAhJYmQQOCH5rJagwbymGhayr96362eHtvhjzWN-Et00Z1DR3tdmyADR7A_tTVh4ctYyuiQqxxYqQi7KuNBQOLPeAs5UR4qorssyzeP4GPDjfiYhqiYA-h6eY\" style=\"border: none; transform: rotate(0rad);\" width=\"50\" \/\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E \u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: black; font-family: \u0026quot;arial\u0026quot;; font-size: 14.6667px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\"\u003E\u003Cimg height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/lC1EvVfAbafGMHFoAhJYmQQOCH5rJagwbymGhayr96362eHtvhjzWN-Et00Z1DR3tdmyADR7A_tTVh4ctYyuiQqxxYqQi7KuNBQOLPeAs5UR4qorssyzeP4GPDjfiYhqiYA-h6eY\" style=\"border: none; transform: rotate(0rad);\" width=\"50\" \/\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n"},"link":[{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/2203527754910690832"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/2203527754910690832"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/2016\/10\/an-example-of-manual-propaganda_31.html","title":" An Example of Manual Propaganda Identification: HangTheBankers.com"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"X"},"uri":{"$t":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/profile\/16401174395512306547"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$image":{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail","width":"16","height":"16","src":"https:\/\/img1.blogblog.com\/img\/b16-rounded.gif"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEg_dAFkN1RI2YywNoG7LAS1fIWecqogICiNuv0wOQPzwqZV6oehhGS9XjME4090Ci0NyA0Hv1bNrHLjadSipM85gn99Bu7Gl2Bv_K0OqM1yhx1FoGasP6gMoASeps1HIpnPEP3wzJNzAJ1O\/s72-c\/hangthebankerslogo.png","height":"72","width":"72"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7030318226622508810.post-567773313207425630"},"published":{"$t":"2016-10-30T23:14:00.000-04:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2016-11-05T04:18:00.114-04:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Introducing PropOrNot: Identifying \u0026 Combatting Russian Online Propaganda"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003Cimg src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEiPduxRtkB0ZR9gkm93hNZBe6BEbti03Kf_B4GBlQywzgAKHw4108oSqEQpdFoL4QDT5WMJhyphenhyphen0ljBM82XFPC2vnrow6EKKufWwxlmpIZeI7CSCzIhHy3nkNOu7wTlSeL7e06aCE-nToR-s\/s1600\/proponot_logo_200x200.png\" style=\"display: none;\" \/\u003E\n\u003Cb\u003EExecutive Summary\u003C\/b\u003E: \u003Ci\u003ERussia’s attempts to influence the US election via hacking and selectively leaking sensitive US government and political data are not being conducted in isolation. They are accompanied by large-scale and long-term efforts to build online propaganda outlets with significant audiences in the US, which we estimate to number in the tens of millions of Americans.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/i\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003EThus far we at PropOrNot have identified over 200 distinct websites which qualify as Russian propaganda outlets according to our criteria, and target audiences in the United States. We estimate the regular US audiences of these sites to number in the tens of millions. We are gathering data to measure that more precisely, but we are confidant that it includes at least 15 million Americans.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/i\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\n\u003Ci\u003EThe messaging used by these Russian propaganda outlets seems intended to confuse public opinion, encourage paranoia, distract American audiences away from relying on actually-accurate journalism, and influence the upcoming US election, while blunting opposition to and strengthening popular support for Russian strategic priorities - and even going so far as to lay the groundwork for, in the immediate aftermath of the upcoming election, Russian-orchestrated political violence in the US.\u003C\/i\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWe at PropOrNot do not reach our conclusions lightly. We have arrived at them after systematically employing a combination of manual and automated analysis of open-source non-classified information, and building on the work of other researchers and journalists, in order to map out a related collection of websites, social media, video, and other outlets, which:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Col\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EInclude official state-owned and semi-official Russian propaganda outlets, such as\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.cjr.org\/feature\/what_is_russia_today.php\"\u003ERT\u003C\/a\u003E,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2014\/11\/10\/kremlins-sputnik-newswire-is-the-buzzfeed-of-propaganda\/\"\u003ESputnik News\u003C\/a\u003E,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.stopfake.org\/en\/is-russia-insider-sponsored-by-a-russian-oligarch-with-the-ties-to-the-european-far-right\/\"\u003ERussia Insider\u003C\/a\u003E,\u0026nbsp;etc.;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EConsistently cite official state-owned and semi-official Russian propaganda outlets, including the Russian defense ministry and other official spokespeople, etc.;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EConsistently reuse text directly from official state-owned and semi-official Russian propaganda outlets and government spokespeople, often with minimal or no attribution;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EHave a history of generally echoing the Russian propaganda \"line\", by using themes, arguments, talking points, images, and other content similar to those used by official state-owned and semi-official Russian propaganda outlets;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EHave a history of echoing the Russian propaganda \"line\" in ways unrelated to the purported focus of their branding, and in sequence with (at the same time as, or shortly after) official state-owned and semi-official Russian propaganda outlets;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EQualify as propaganda under a rigorous definition: “A systematic form of purposeful persuasion that attempts to influence the emotions, attitudes, opinions, and actions of specific target audiences for political, ideological, and religious purposes, through the controlled transmission of deceptive, selectively-omitting, and one-sided messages (which may or may not be factual) via mass and direct media channels”;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EHave in many cases already been called out by other fact-checkers, researchers, journalists, debunkers, etc.;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EShare technical “tells”, such as Google Analytics IDs, Amazon affiliate codes, WHOIS data, hosting data, ad-network utilization, SEO techniques, etc., in some cases implicating direct Russian involvement;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003ERefer their audiences to each other, via hyperlinks and other means, at disproportionately high rates;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EAre consistently visited by the same audiences, both directly and via search, demonstrating that those intra-network referrals build “brand loyalty” in their audiences over time;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EAre consistently visited by their audiences after searches for terms which congrue with the Russian propaganda “line”, and are unrelated to the purported focus of their branding;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EAre categorized as \"similar sites\" by automated services in spite of their purportedly distinct focuses;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EHave content characterized by automated services in ways that are consistently very different from their purported subjects, but align with the Russian propaganda “line”;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EHave content aligning with the \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www2.gwu.edu\/~ieresgwu\/assets\/docs\/demokratizatsiya%20archive\/GWASHU_DEMO_12_1\/John%20Dunlop%20Aleksandr%20Dugin's%20Foundations%20of%20Geopolitics.pdf\"\u003E“Eurasianist” philosophy of Alexander Dugin\u003C\/a\u003E;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EInclude specialized sites targeted at a wide range of audiences, including US military veterans, Wall St. finance types, environmentalists, peace activists, racists, conspiracy theorists, political junkies, etc.;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EAppear to be effectively influencing public opinion in significant and very problematic ways, by promoting:\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cul\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EConspiracy theories about and protests against US military exercises,\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EIsolationism\/anti-interventionism generally,\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003ESupport for policies like Brexit, and the breakup of the EU and Eurozone,\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EOpposition to Ukrainian resistance to Russia and Syrian resistance to Assad,\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003ESupport for the anti-vax, anti-Zika spraying, anti-GMO, 9\/11-”truther”, gold-standard, and other related movements;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003C\/ul\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EHave extremely large audiences in the US, such that tens of millions of people appear to use them as primary “news” sources, supplanting actual journalism;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EAppear to be part of a larger “active measures”-style Russian influence operation, which also includes hacking and selectively leaking sensitive US government and political data, along with more-traditional espionage and military activity, intended to:\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cul\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EConfuse public opinion, encourage paranoia and passivity, and distract American audiences away from relying on actually-accurate journalism,\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EBlunt opposition to and strengthen popular support for Russian strategic priorities,\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EInfluence the US election, and\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003ELay the groundwork for orchestrated violence, in the immediate aftermath of the election, against the US government.\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003C\/ul\u003E\n\u003C\/ol\u003E\nPlease bear in mind that these characteristics of propaganda outlets are motivation-agnostic. It is not up to us to determine whether the sites we’ve identified are being knowingly directed and paid by Russian intelligence officers (although some of them almost certainly are), or whether the individuals involved even knew they were echoing Russian propaganda at any particular point: If the outlets meet criteria like the ones above, then they are echoing Russian propaganda, have effectively become tools of the Russian intelligence services, and are worthy of further investigation.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nPlease also note that it is possible that this being effectively addressed by the US government in ways we're unaware of yet, but we have done our due diligence, and this does not seem to be the case. We have had extensive conversations with national security professionals in the legislative branch, executive branch, active and retired, and to a person, none of them are aware of it being addressed by the national security apparatus.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nOn the contrary, we have been advised that the US government is deliberately and purposely not getting involved, and steering clear of this in order to avoid inadvertantly influencing domestic politics and our democratic process. This has backfired, creating a US government blind spot, and opening an opportunity for a foreign power to do exactly what our government is so carefully trying to avoid doing: Directly manipulate our democratic process.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003E\u003Cb\u003EMethodology\u003C\/b\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWe use a combination of manual and automated analysis, including analysis of content, timing, technical indicators, and other reporting, in order to initially identify (“red-flag”) and then confirm an outlet as Russian propaganda. Our volunteers have developed a suite of software tools, leveraging publicly available data and commercial services, in order to perform automated analysis, but everything we do is in principle replicable using manual searching and data entry.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWe initially red-flag a new site based on content-based criteria like those outlined above. Does it:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Col\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EConsistently cite official state-owned and semi-official Russian propaganda outlets?\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EConsistently reuse text directly from official state-owned and semi-official Russian propaganda outlets?\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EHave a history of generally echoing the Russian propaganda \"line\", especially in ways unrelated to the purported focus of their branding, and in sequence with other Russian propaganda outlets?\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EHas it been called out by other fact-checkers, researchers, journalists, and debunkers for posting fake news?\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003C\/ol\u003E\nFrom there we use our software tools to fill in the blanks, collecting a wide range of data about the new target site, and seeing how it fits into the existing network of previously red-flagged and identified outlets. We have built out a significant network of websites, and every time we feel confidant that we have discovered most of them, we keep finding more.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nIn the process of doing this, we have also identified a significant set of YouTube channels, Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, etc, which are acting as part of the same larger Russian influence operation.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003E\u003Cb\u003EPreliminary Conclusions\u003C\/b\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nOur initial findings include:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cul\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EThere are well over 200 distinct websites which qualify as Russian propaganda outlets according to our criteria, and target audiences in the United States.\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EWe estimate the regular US audiences of these sites to number in the tens of millions. We are gathering data to measure that more precisely, but we are confidant that it includes at least 15 million Americans.\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EWe have yet to to analyze at least hundreds more websites, along with numerous more YouTube channels, Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, etc.\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EThe US government is fully aware that this is the case.\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EThe US government has refrained from publicizing it, primarily to avoid interference in the domestic political process.\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003Cli\u003EHowever, this inaction has deprived the American public of information they need to vote in an informed manner, and allowed Russia to manipulate the US domestic political process and interfere in the 2016 election.\u003C\/li\u003E\n\u003C\/ul\u003E\n"},"link":[{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/567773313207425630"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/7030318226622508810\/posts\/default\/567773313207425630"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.propornot.com\/2016\/10\/introducing-propornot-be-aware-of-and.html","title":"Introducing PropOrNot: Identifying \u0026 Combatting Russian Online Propaganda"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"X"},"uri":{"$t":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/profile\/16401174395512306547"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$image":{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail","width":"16","height":"16","src":"https:\/\/img1.blogblog.com\/img\/b16-rounded.gif"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEiPduxRtkB0ZR9gkm93hNZBe6BEbti03Kf_B4GBlQywzgAKHw4108oSqEQpdFoL4QDT5WMJhyphenhyphen0ljBM82XFPC2vnrow6EKKufWwxlmpIZeI7CSCzIhHy3nkNOu7wTlSeL7e06aCE-nToR-s\/s72-c\/proponot_logo_200x200.png","height":"72","width":"72"}}]}});