Ukraine War Upd. EXTRA: Russian Trolls, Information Warfare, & Missing KA-52s?
Table of Contents 📖
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"Defeating Russia on the battlefield is our best way of defeating Russia in the information spaces."
Hello Team!
Jonathan discusses Elon Musk's controversial tweets about the Israel-Hamas conflict, arguing that Musk is a "useful idiot" for Putin by sowing division and chaos. He believes Musk should refrain from commenting on complex geopolitical issues without fully understanding them.
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Russian Disinformation Campaigns
- Russia is highly skilled at using troll farms and bot farms to spread disinformation and sow discord and chaos internationally.
- Jonathan shares insights from an interview with Finnish author Jessikka Aro who has written a book called "Putin's Trolls". She argues that social media companies are enablers of Russian trolls and don't invest enough in user safety.
- Aro believes governments need to do more to investigate and combat Russian disinformation operations which target elections and try to undermine support for Ukraine.
- Jonathan argues that if Russia succeeds in Ukraine, it will embolden them to ramp up disinformation campaigns globally. Defeating Russia militarily is key to defeating them in the information war.
Missing KA-52 Helicopters?
Contrary to recent speculation that Russian KA-52 attack helicopters have not been seen in action for a week, analyst Rob Lee states they are still operating from forward arming and refuelling points (FARPs). Just because there are no videos of them does not mean they are not active and still a serious threat.
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Outsized Influence of English-Speaking Leaders
Commenter Njal Sturluson makes an astute observation that UK politicians have outsized influence globally simply because they speak English, which is understood by many more people worldwide than other languages. Jonathan agrees this gives British leaders like David Cameron an advantage in the global information space compared to German or French leaders for example. The UK is "boxing above its weight" partly due to its imperial past and the widespread adoption of English.
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Wrap up
Jonathan gives a shoutout to commenter GMT Politico who is currently in western Ukraine volunteering in a non-combat role, mostly doing medical support. He also showcases the volunteer work of Pierre Dupont, a French-British man working with the base.ua charity who he previously interviewed. Jonathan invites any viewers with direct or indirect experiences of the war, including Ukrainians and those with Ukrainian family, to contact him if they would like to be interviewed. He apologizes to Canadian viewers Mark and Elena who he had planned to interview but has not yet been able to arrange.
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