Russian propaganda effort spread fake news, report

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Russian President Vladimir Putin praised the then Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump during his annual press conference in Moscow, on December 17, 2015.  singled him out as an absolute leader.  (AFP Photo/Natalia Kolesnikova)
Russian President Vladimir Putin praised the then Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump during his annual press conference in Moscow, on December 17, 2015. singled him out as an absolute leader. (AFP Photo/Natalia Kolesnikova)

A new report suggests a “sophisticated” Russian propaganda campaign helped flood social media with fake news stories leading up to the presidential election.

The Washington Post, citing a yet-to-be published report from independent researchers, said the goal was to punish Hillary Clinton, help Donald Trump, and undermine faith in American democracy.

The report comes from a nonpartisan group of researchers called PropOrNot. The group describes itself as “concerned American citizens” with expertise in computer science, national security and public policy. The researchers say they traced the origins of posts and mapped the connections among accounts that delivered similar messages.

The findings show just how effective the bogus reports and propaganda were, according to the report. On Facebook, PropOrNot estimates that stories planted or promoted by the disinformation campaign were viewed 213 million times.

While it’s not clear whether fake news and propaganda helped sway the election in Trump’s favor, millions of Americans get their news from what’s shared on Facebook and other social media. In recent months, fake and misleading stories have proliferated, even as Facebook has insisted that they make up a tiny fraction of the overall stuff users share on the site.

Both Facebook and Google have said they are taking steps to stop the spread of misinformation on their sites, including by turning off access to advertising.

PropOrNot’s report, provided to The Post in advance of its public release, identified more than 200 websites as “peddlers of Russian propaganda during the election season, with combined audiences of at least 15 million Americans.”

PropOrNot did immediately not respond to a message asking for the report on Friday afternoon.

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8 responses to “Russian propaganda effort spread fake news, report”

  1. PatienceTew Avatar
    PatienceTew

    He’s pointing to the exact spot for the opposition to place the bullet.

  2. O'Matrix Avatar

    The “fake news” sites are coming from Macedonia.

    1. Niemals Avatar

      You are claiming that “fake news” sites are coming from Macedonia.
      Are you sure that the source you referring to is reliable?

      Who is spreading this fake news about the fake news?
      https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/58114ed8c899e4366730f78e0c109833a71fd7ec95e3a401eea851ac227e8c3d.jpg
      Below is the list of know Fake/Hoax News Websites:

      AmericanNews.com
      BigAmericanNews.com
      Cap News (twitter.com/capnews)
      ChristWire.org
      CivicTribune.com
      ClickHole.com
      CreamBMP.com
      DCGazette.com
      DailyCurrant.com
      DCClothesLine.com
      DerfMagazine.com
      DrudgeReport.com.co
      DuhProgressive.com
      EmpireNews.com
      EnduringVision.com
      Indecision Forever (www.cc.com/indecision)
      MSNBC.co
      MSNBC.website
      MediaMass.net
      NationalReport.net
      NewsBiscuit.com
      News-Hound.com
      NewsMutiny.com
      PoliticalEars.com
      Private-eye.co.uk
      RealNewsRightNow.com
      RileNews.com
      Sprotspickle.com
      TheNewsNerd.com
      TheUsPatriot.com
      WitScience.org

  3. Pakistan threatens Israel with nuclear weapons – because of “Fake News”
    The Pakistani Defense Minister has created a diplomatic spate in the social networks.
    He threatens Israel with Pakistan’s nuclear weapons – because he had previously been given a false message.
    https://twitter.com/KhawajaMAsif/status/812370140507545600?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
    Pakistan and Israel are on the lookout for a “fake news” website.
    It had been reported that a former Israeli Defense Minister threatened Pakistan with a nuclear strike, the country should send troops to Syria.

    Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif apparently fell in love with this and sent a warning to Israel via Twitter: “Pakistan is also a nuclear state,” he wrote.
    The Israeli Ministry of Defense also responded on Twitter on Saturday: The article on the website AWD News is “totally fictional.”
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a4830cfc571f6e9b7dde0fd4ddc2f528752677e7f8f07ee31b37543e8deb4734.jpg
    A Pakistani soldier watches a rocket..

    1. 5thDrawer Avatar
      5thDrawer

      Love the condoms they put on their rockets. :-)))

      1. Niemals Avatar

        Although they put condoms on their ‘rockets’, they multiply like rats.

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