- Guardian: Revealed: Johnson ally’s firm secretly ran Facebook propaganda network Archived Message
Posted by Sinister Burt
on August 2, 2019, 10:19 am
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Interesting article about lynton crosby's dodgy use of facebook for saudi arabia and others. https://www.dumptheguardian.com/politics/2019/aug/01/revealed-johnson-allys-firm-secretly-ran-facebook-propaganda-network "The lobbying firm run by Boris Johnson’s close ally Sir Lynton Crosby has secretly built a network of unbranded “news” pages on Facebook for dozens of clients ranging from the Saudi government to major polluters, a Guardian investigation has found. ... Based on discussions with the current and former employees and examination of a large number of internal documents, the Guardian can reveal the extent of the astroturfing campaign: How the company took millions of pounds from the Saudi Arabian government in 2018 to burnish the reputation of crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has subsequently been implicated in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. How the company worked with the party of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, who has since been implicated in one of the world’s biggest-ever corruption scandals, in the run-up to the country’s last general election. Razak has denied any wrongdoing. CTF’s role in political campaigns in countries criticised for their human rights records, ranging from Zimbabwe to Sri Lanka to war-torn Yemen. How CTF specialises in fighting regulation by seeking to influence key politicians, with campaigns in support of coal power, tobacco, and against cyclists. ... The company’s approach is a sophisticated application of the well worn communications technique of astroturfing, where political campaigners attempt to create the perception of an upswell of grassroots support for a cause. One former employee described how Crosby’s business created Facebook pages on specific topics to spread disinformation to interested members of the public in the UK and abroad. “It would all be anonymised and made to look as though they are a news aggregator with a specialist angle,” the employee said. “For instance, if we were working to promote the use of coal, it would be an anti-environmental page. You might make a page designed to attract pro-Trump types and get them revved up about green subsidies.”" [end of quote] I was wondering if it had any connection to this other story in reuters about facebook closing down pages tied to saudi government (i couldn't see a mention of CTF in the article) https://www.reuters.com/article/us-facebook-saudi/facebook-says-it-dismantles-covert-influence-campaign-tied-to-saudi-government-idUSKCN1UR50J |
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