"Falsehood flies, and the truth comes limping after it." — Jonathan Swift (1710)
__________
Dangerous conspiracy theories continue to isolate and divide the extremist segments of the population from the rest of us, rendering the ability to build any kind of meaningful national consensus about the things that really matter that much more difficult.
An example of how this works is the recent uproar over the false reports that the U.S. was helping Ukrainians develop biological weapons. This disinformation originated with Russian propagandists but found support among both far-right and far-left social media channels, Fox News hosts and followers of the QAnon conspiracy theories.
While it was mainly confined to the fringe-right, it also leaked over to conspiracy-minded leftists who, though far less numerous or significant than the right-wing variety, still carry some weight in and around cities like Portland, Seattle and San Francisco.
In the recent past, these attitudes facilitated the actions of the Antifa brigades that never accomplished much beyond pointless disruptions of otherwise peaceful demonstrations against police misconduct — plus giving Trump someone to falsely blame for the January 6th riot.
Given this context, a very useful report by two NPR journalists documented how the Ukrainian bio-warfare rumors spread throughout U.S. society. Bill Chappell and Odette Yousef show that the “biolab conspiracy theory is an example of how Russian narratives can be seized on and refined by conspiracy theorists in the U.S., who can often spread false narratives far more effectively than Russia's own efforts.”
The reporters also remind us that “false claims of biological warfare have long been a favorite topic for Russian and Soviet propaganda. In the 1980s, the Soviet Union falsely claimed that AIDS was the result of U.S. government biological warfare research.”
The Covid-19 pandemic has intensified the trend for conspiracy theories to infect mainstream circles. Far-right groups like QAnon have long asserted that the biological research facility in Wuhan was the source of the first release of the virus, while the best available evidence suggests that a nearby live animal market was the more likely cause.
Personally, I’ve wanted to keep an open mind on the origin of Covid-19, but as time passes and more evidence emerges, I’ve come to realize the same conspiracy theorists are responsible for the China lab rumor as the Ukrainian bio lab business, which discredits both equally.
Unfortunately, a deep well of paranoia persists in many corners of U.S, society, in the form of a persistent distrust of both government and legitimate media, providing fertile ground for disinformation to take root. The best way to combat it is with solid reporting such as the NPR report cited above.
I just hope a few of the followers of the conspiracy theorists left or right — get around to reading it. That would be a much better use of their time than listening to their usual suspects — Tucker Carlson or Glenn Greenwald.
Today’s News (40):
How the false Russian biolab story came to circulate among the U.S. far right (NPR)
Air raid sirens in Lviv, 3 explosions reported (AP)
Ukraine ‘disappointed’ in NATO, as Biden visits U.S. troops in Poland (WP)
Shelled city in north Ukraine fears becoming ‘next Mariupol’ (AP)
Biden meets with Poland’s president, Ukrainian refugees (CBS)
Biden, in Poland, Hears of the ‘Mental Trauma’ of Ukrainian Refugees (NYT)
Putin’s purge of ‘traitors’ scoops up pensioners, foodies and peaceniks (WP)
Russian Elites Reportedly Blame Putin For Chaos From Ukraine Invasion (MSNBC)
Russia’s Shifting War Plan Threatens More Suffering for Eastern Ukraine (WSJ)
Russia begins to mobilize reinforcements for Ukraine as casualties mount, Pentagon says (WP)
Russia Signals Redefined Goals in Ukraine War as Its Advances Stall (NYT)
Russians shift focus from Kyiv — scaling back goals in war? (AP)
Russia says new ‘phase’ of Ukraine offensive to focus on Donbas (Financial Times)
Ukrainian president calls on energy producers to hike output (Reuters)
Russian general Yakov Rezantsev killed in Ukraine (BBC)
Russian oligarch Herman Gref, a key Putin advisor and CEO of Russia's largest bank, has been added to US sanctions list (Business Insider)
After crippling rounds of sanctions, these are the oligarchs who are (and aren't) speaking out against Russia's war (CNN)
Zelensky urges energy-rich countries to call time on Putin’s ‘blackmail’ (Financial Times)
NATO deputy: Putin can’t win his ‘unprovoked, illogical’ war (AP)
Long on Europe’s Fringe, Poland Takes Center Stage as War Rages in Ukraine (NYT)
Russian forces are reportedly holding Ukrainian journalists hostage (NPR)
‘Don’t Leave the Space Open’ — How the West Can Defeat Putin in Cyberspace and Beyond (Politico)
Afghan girls stage protest, demand Taliban reopen schools (Al Jazeera)
U.S. cancels talks with Taliban over U-turn on girls' education (Reuters)
Officials: Taliban blocked unaccompanied women from flights (AP)
Pakistan's Imran Khan faces a political showdown — without the army for support (NPR)
Israel to Host 3 Arab Foreign Ministers in Historic Meeting (NYT)
The Ginni Thomas story grows larger (Politico)
Obama’s former Education secretary is calling on Biden to cancel student debt (CNBC)
Chain Reaction: Why Global Supply Chains May Never Be the Same (WSJ)
Alcohol-related deaths spiked in 2020 – killing more under-65 Americans than COVID (Blaze)
The ups and downs of teaching during Covid (BBC)
How Does Such a Big Black Hole Fit in Such a Small Galaxy? (Atlantic)
Birds are laying eggs earlier as springs shift (Reuters)
Evenhanded Oatmeal Packaging Won’t Say Which Cooking Method Preferred (The Onion)
No comments:
Post a Comment