DISINFO: The Western media is afraid of losing its monopoly of brainwashing
SUMMARY
The fight against “fake news” had begun around the time when the Western media lost their monopoly on brainwashing. When it turned out that the Russian media is an attractive source of information for many persons around the world, the Euro-Atlantic competition started to convince people that lying is a modern invention and its epicentre lies in the East.
In reality, this entire situation is about scaring people and convincing them that there are dangers coming from the use of non-Western media. The big media concerns related to the West would like to maintain their dominant position on the market of deception.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative aimed at discrediting independent media and journalism – the Western media are presented here as unreliable and biased, while the Russian outlets are the only source of true information.
The claim that the West fights with the Russian media because of its fear to lose the “monopoly on brainwashing and deception” is unfounded.
The 2020 World Press Freedom Index clearly shows the positions of Western Media in the world. Russia ranked 149th and China 177th on the list.
The European Union first recognised the threat of online disinformation campaigns in 2015 when the European Council asked the High Representative to address the disinformation campaigns by Russia. Disinformation produced and/or spread by Russian sources [including pro-Kremlin and state-controlled media] has been reported in the context of several elections and referenda in the EU. Disinformation campaigns related to the war in Syria , to the downing of the MH-17 aircraft in the East of Ukraine and to the use of chemical weapons in Salisbury attack have been well documented.
Most recently the joint communique of G7 Foreign Affairs and Development Ministers noted that continued use of disinformation is a part of a pattern of Russia's irresponsible and destabilising behaviour.
See other examples of disinformation on this topic in our database, such as the alleged persecution of Sputnik in totalitarian Estonia due to its truthful reporting and fear of its influence; the allegedly brave efforts of Sputnik against intolerance in Lithuania; the supposed violations of the rights of Russian journalists in the US and the EU; or the stories on how nice is to be a journalist in Russia, unlike in Europe, because Russia is the global champion of free speech.