Several weeks ago I put together a list of online resources for tracking the spread of the coronavirus.
Verification of news and social media content regarding this virus is now more important than ever, especially since state actors have joined the disinformation fray.
The rise of the anti-Chinese sentiment, which manifests itself primarily in the use of the phrase “Chinese virus” in the media (as if this or any virus could have full geo-political awareness!) has led to acts of hostility and sometimes violence towards Chinese people in different parts of the globe.
The initial propaganda efforts undertaken by the Chinese state information apparatus in response to the covid-19 outbreak were aimed at containing, controlling and manipulating the media coverage of the topic. Obviously, those efforts failed miserably.
In a rare admission of guilt, the communist authorities recognised that fact, as well as their shortcomings in combating the spread of the virus at the early stages.
Soon thereafter, the Russian state media began to inject their own “fake news” narrative into the global information stream.
And as it usually is the case (see the conspiracy narrative regarding the Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 in 2014), the Russian disinformation strategy is based on creating and promoting several narratives, often mutually exclusive…