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Ivana

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Zhalet Baharestan - Propaganda examples #2

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Zhalet Baharestan - Propaganda examples #2

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(Harry Wilson)

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According to a study by researchers at Oxford University, v ast cyber armies have been unleashed by Middle Eastern governments, waging a propaganda war fought through trolls, bots, and fake social media accounts. The number of troops involved is vast-but while the battalions are big, stealthy they are not. Mainly because they keep on getting caught.

Social media giants, and notably Facebook, have transitioned from being the darlings of the digital world, to its demons -something that has played out in various ways in the Middle East. They rose to prominence almost decade ago, as the people's voice during the Arab Spring; since then, regional leaders and autocrats have jumped on the social bandwagon as a way to reach out to the people, and to appear more human. But it has also taken a dark turn: regional governments are among the top recruiters of online operatives to push disinformation, the Oxford University study found.

Spreading disinformation, trolling, and amplifying online content are among the weapons in the Middle East cyber troops' arsenals.

According to The Global Disinformation Order , published last week, social media manipulation by governments and political parties has soared globally , increasing by 150 percent over the past two years . Evidence of organized campaigns was identified in 70 countries, up from 48 in 2018 and 28 in 2017. Computational propaganda-the use of algorithms, automation, and big data to shape public life-is becoming "a pervasive and ubiquitous part of everyday life," with Facebook the platform of choice, the study found. These techniques are being used to suppress human rights, discredit political opposition , and drown out dissent.

The report did not portray Middle Eastern states in a good light . Of the 12 countries globally that were identified as having a "high cyber troop capacity"-involving large numbers of staff and big budgets-half were from the region: Egypt, Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Syria , and the UAE. While most countries seed online propaganda for domestic purposes, Iran and Saudi Arabia were among just a handful of state actors using these techniques for foreign influence operations, the Oxford University study found.

The report gave examples of the kind of tactics being used in this disinformation war. In Saudi Arabia and the UAE, for example, it said that government agencies, private contractors, civil society organizations, and citizens and influencers were among those launching social media influence operations. The use of bots-automated accounts designed to mimic the behavior of real people-and human-run fake accounts were observed in both countries, and aimed to spread pro-government propaganda, attack the opposition, and suppress other voices. Spreading disinformation, trolling, and amplifying online content are among the weapons in the cyber troops' arsenals.

The likes of Facebook and Twitter are at least attempting to stamp out coordinated disinformation campaigns , efforts which seem to be more publicly pronounced as a result of increased scrutiny from global lawmakers . Last month, Facebook announced it had uncovered a network of fake accounts and pages run by people connected to the Saudi government (which denied any knowledge of the network ), as well as having suspended a separate network of more than 350 accounts linked to marketing firms in Egypt and the UAE, which Facebook did not directly link to government activity.

"The two campaigns we removed were unconnected, but both created networks of accounts to mislead others about who they were and what they were doing," Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook's head of cybersecurity policy, . "We have shared information about our findings with law enforcement, industry partners and policymakers."

The social media giants appear to be working almost in tandem on this. A few weeks after Facebook's announcement, Twitter it had taken down hundreds of fake accounts including some connected to Saudi Arabia's "state-run media apparatus," and others in the UAE and Egypt. Among the accounts suspended, according to a , was that of Saud Al-Qahtani, a former advisor to the Saudi royal court and top aide to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Al-Qahtani was fired last year following his alleged role in the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The influential figure was also allegedly at the center of media outreach and online propaganda efforts in the kingdom.

"The manipulation can be very subtle, nudging towards certain actions."

Both Facebook and Twitter have been keen to stress that these clampdowns are part of wider investigations to target misinformation and "inauthentic behavior" across their networks. Pages, groups and accounts have been taken down, Facebook says, because of manipulative behavior rather than the content posted.

But this manipulation can be extremely subtle-and therefore hard to detect. "Social media has enabled various institutional actors, such as state actors and global corporations, to gain granular understandings of particular target audiences," says Harris Breslow, associate professor in the department of mass communication at the American University of Sharjah. "Because of this fine-tuned understanding of the psychographics of their audience, these institutional actors can manipulate members. And the manipulation can be very subtle such as nudging-subtle manipulations towards certain actions."

Breslow says he is not at all surprised that social networks are making the revelations about fake accounts public, particularly given the pressure they are under in the United States, amid calls for substantially greater oversight of the industry. "[The announcements] are about just a few thousand accounts at the moment. But there are billions of accounts worldwide," Breslow says. "I imagine they will make more similar announcements. But it is more a PR campaign to avoid legislation and oversight in the US. They are trying to argue that they are just a platform, not a publisher, and they are also trying to show that they are good actors."

The Middle East is not the only region to be caught up in the crackdown on fake accounts and disinformation. Twitter also revealed this month that 259 fake accounts linked to Spain's center-right Partido Popular political party had been suspended. "This is going on everywhere, not just in the Middle East. All governments are trying to defend against and also engage in this," says Breslow. "It has become just another aspect of statecraft. Twitter and Facebook are pointing to a problem far more common than even they realize. What makes them so attractive is the size and reach of their networks. Facebook and Twitter are global in nature-and that invites global meddling."

So the Middle East's internet propaganda battles are likely still in the early stages of a wider war-and no one yet knows whether the trolls and bots will win.

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Inside the Middle East's epic online propaganda war

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According to a study by researchers at Oxford University, v ast cyber armies have been unleashed by Middle Eastern governments, waging a propaganda war fought through trolls, bots, and fake social media accounts. The number of troops involved is vast-but while the battalions are big, stealthy they are not.

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Pin by • grace • on merr-01 collage inspo in 2020 | Cold war propaganda, American propaganda, Cold war

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Nov 8, 2020 - Buy 'Is This TomorrowAmerica Under Communism Retro Propaganda Poster' by Daniel Johnson as a Art Print, Canvas Print, Classic T-Shirt, Sleeveless Top, Magnet, Framed Print, Art Board Print, Greeting Card, iPhone Case, Lightweight Hoodie, L...

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Posters played a crucial role in the wars of the 20th century, firing up patriotic sentiment and sending out calls to arms. The exhibition Propaganda draws on the Australian War Memorial's extensive collection, showing how illustration and graphic design were used to speak directly to people during times of conflict

* Propaganda runs at the Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery 20 April - 8 July

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War and pleas: propaganda posters from 20th century Australia - in pictures

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Posters played a crucial role in the wars of the 20th century, firing up patriotic sentiment and sending out calls to arms. The exhibition Propaganda draws on the Australian War Memorial's extensive collection, showing how illustration and graphic design were used to speak directly to people during times of conflict * Propaganda runs at the Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery 20 April - 8 July

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(Harry Wilson)

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A great poster of Rosie the Riveter! An icon of the US War Effort during WWII! We can do it - and… | Rosie the riveter poster, Rosie the riveter, Propaganda posters

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Jun 11, 2018 - A great poster of Rosie the Riveter! An icon of the US War Effort during WWII - We can do it! Ships fast. 11x17 inches. Check out the rest of our excellent selection of WWII posters! Need Poster Mounts..?

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"Daisy" Ad (1964): Preserved from 35mm in the Tony Schwartz Collection

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By definition, propaganda is the spreading of ideas, information, or rumor for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person. (Merriam-Webster) This practice is very common in wartime, from present time Iraq and Afghanistan to as far back as the American Revolution. Nations all around the world, and in particular the United States, use these exaggerated facts or fabrications to get their own country to believe in their cause and not the other side. In the beginning organizations spread their message using letters, newspapers, and pamphlets. As the wars went on, music became the new way of quickly getting your message to the masses, followed by film, then television, and today one could include social media. While newspapers and pamphlets were still the traditional method, the way music was used in World War 1 proved that non-traditional ways of disseminating information was becoming the better option, and paved the way for the other non-traditional methods to follow.

Connecticut was very influential in this push to use music as a propaganda platform, specifically on the home front. Many Connecticut publishers were the ones to print and distribute the song booklets that contained these newly written pro-war propaganda songs. Also, in order to create hype around the idea of supporting the war effort, Connecticut cities and towns created "Liberty Choruses" to sing these songs and others at rallies and fundraisers. These choruses had such great success in Connecticut that they began popping up all over New England before exploding onto the national scene.

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By definition, propaganda is the spreading of ideas, information, or rumor for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person. (Merriam-Webster) This practice is very common in wartime, from present time Iraq and Afghanistan to as far back as the American Revolution.