Russia's RT Network Working Directly With Kremlin To Spread Disinformation, U.S. Says
www.rferl.org
The United States on September 13 said the Russian news outlet RT is taking orders directly from the Kremlin and working with Russian military intelligence to spread disinformation around the world to undermine democracies.

The United States on September 13 said the Russian news outlet RT is taking orders directly from the Kremlin and working with Russian military intelligence to spread disinformation around the world to undermine democracies.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States has gathered new evidence that exposes cooperation between RT and four other subsidiaries of the Rossia Segodnya media group, and it intends to warn other countries of the threat of the disinformation.

In addition to RT, Rossia Segodnya operates RIA Novosti, TV-Novosti, Ruptly, and Sputnik, but the announcement on September 13 focused largely on RT. The outlet, formerly known as Russia Today, has previously been sanctioned for its work to allegedly spread Kremlin propaganda and disinformation.

  • Maeve@kbin.earth
    3·
    4 months ago

    It’s a whataboutism, ultimately.

    Critical assessment of all information we have available to us isn’t whataboutery, imo, and often means breaking down large chunks of information into digestible bits. If it’s not acceptable for them to do it to us or their own, it’s not acceptable for us to do it to ours, or our own, full stop. From my obviously limited perspective, there are very few who benefit from regular people infighting or fighting regular citizens of other nations, about this. The people benefitting from this aren’t us regular people.

    • Carrolade@lemmy.worldEnglish
      10·
      4 months ago

      When someone points out a wrong, and someone else points out a different wrong of the same sort with the intent of making an argument around hypocrisy, that’s a whataboutism.

      In this case it’s an article about Russia doing it, and a commenter essentially saying “what about when America did it?”

      I ask again, what decision do they want us to make right now, in the current moment? We can’t go back in time and undo what we did. So what is that commenter’s proposal, what do they think would be the best path forward concerning RT, today?

      • Maeve@kbin.earth
        3·
        4 months ago

        I ask again, what decision do they want us to make right now, in the current moment? We can’t go back in time and undo what we did.

        We can stop pretending we didn’t, and aren’t still doing that.

        So what is that commenter’s proposal, what do they think would be the best path forward concerning RT, today?

        I can’t speak for that person. I also can’t raise Ed Bernays from the dead and lock him up, but guess who he worked for?

        • Carrolade@lemmy.worldEnglish
          10·
          4 months ago

          Nobody is pretending we didn’t. The articles linked were all in our news, right? And you and I are talking openly about it right now on the internet, yes? So, who is pretending it never happened?

          It’s about what next? What should we do concerning RT in your opinion then? Because I haven’t personally had any good ideas asides avoid overseas propaganda efforts in the future. But that’s not an idea about RT, and it won’t make RT go away.

          • Maeve@kbin.earth
            1·
            4 months ago

            So we can enact criminal and financial penalties on untrue articles, and stop redefining terms when what is untrue when it becomes inconvenient for us, especially businesses and politicians. And redirect institutions away from retribution to rehabilitation. If a behavior is repeated, by domestic or foreign entities, they don’t get to operate here.

            • Carrolade@lemmy.worldEnglish
              5·
              4 months ago

              So, we have a first amendment, we actually cannot prohibit or penalize someone for distributing propaganda to our citizens, that law would be illegal to make. We can make them register as foreign agents, that’s how the tenet media people got in trouble, that and being shady with where their money was coming from. We have no charges for propaganda distribution though, despite the very clear evidence of the behavior.

              To your other question, like I said, I have no real good ideas on concrete steps we can take that might prove useful. Unless we want to repeal the first amendment or something, which I don’t think is a good idea.

              • Maeve@kbin.earth
                1·
                4 months ago

                So your idea is rules for foreign entities, not our own?

                Who will serve as a check for what’s true and when terms are *redefined, if it’s our darlings, whether media moguls or politicians, doing the redefining?

                • Carrolade@lemmy.worldEnglish
                  5·
                  4 months ago

                  For the third time, I don’t have any good ideas. I don’t have a “my idea” and haven’t presented one. That’s why I asked for yours, since maybe you, as a human that is not me, thought of or read something that I haven’t.

                  This sentence:

                  So your idea is rules for foreign entities, not our own?

                  is something you concocted in your head somehow.

                  I just pointed out that your idea is illegal, that’s all.

                  • Maeve@kbin.earth
                    1·
                    4 months ago

                    I’d point out that you’re asking of me solutions you’re unable or unwilling to deliver, but that’s whataboutery, and off limits, so I myself should just “shut up.”