The United States’ state department has accused Russia in a new report of developing a complex “ecosystem” to spread disinformation and propaganda about the coronavirus and other issues.
“Russia is playing a significant role in creating and spreading misinformation and propaganda around many topics”, said Lea Gabrielle, head of the state department’s Global Engagement Center.
“The ecosystem consists of five main pillars: official government communications, state-funded global messaging, cultivation of proxy sources, weaponization of social media, and cyberenabled disinformation”, the report said. “The Kremlin bears direct responsibility for cultivating these tactics and platforms as part of its approach to using information as a weapon”, it added.
The report profiled several websites that have peddled conspiracy theories and fringe thoughts on a range of topics, including the coronavirus.
“Russia tries to hide its affiliation with these different proxy sites. That’s what makes them effective, is that it’s difficult for just an average person who is online to look at these sites and know that it’s actually Russian disinformation”, Gabrielle said.
Russia has denied the report: “The U.S. State Department is not very fond of the existence of alternative sources of information. Serious resources are employed to discredit them. Any voice that contradicts Washington is dubbed ‘disinformation’ in the service of the ‘Kremlin’ and Russian intelligence”, the Russian Embassy in Washington said in response.
