tol.org 24 January 2017
The European Union anti-propaganda unit will get more staff to counter Russian and Islamic State propaganda, an EU source says.
Called East Stratcom, the task force was set up in September 2015 amid increasing concern about the impact of Russia’s well-funded, state-controlled media and of shadowy “troll factories” that sprayed improbable stories across social media.
The 11-person team has no budget of its own and relies on funds from EU and member state resources, EUObserver reports.
An additional 800,000 euros ($860,000) has been made available to the task force, according to the Guardian, which says more than 400 journalists and officials working with the team have collected about 2,500 examples of misinformation in 18 languages. But that is only the tip of the iceberg, the team says.
East Stratcom is expecting more disinformation from Russia and sympathetic media in Europe this year, with elections set for the Netherlands and France in the spring and Germany in September, EUObserver writes.
The task force has identified German Chancellor Angela Merkel as the main target of disinformation and fake news campaigns, a source familiar with its work told DPA Monday.
Some fake news items even claimed that Merkel posed for selfies with the Islamists who carried out bloody attacks on Paris and Brussels.
• EU officials estimate that the Russian government gives state media outlets such as RT and Sputnik about $1 billion annually, according to the Guardian.
• A European Parliament resolution in November calling for an end to Russian “disinformation” and “hostile propaganda” was denounced by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
• The Kremlin has “a wide range of tools and instruments” including “pseudo-news agencies” to spread its messages, the resolution said.
• The Czech Republic’s maverick President Milos Zeman criticized this month’s opening of a government anti-propaganda center, saying, “We don’t need censorship. We don’t need thought police,” DPA reported. The center is expected to employ eventually about 30 people.
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Compiled by Ky Krauthamer
