Facebook and Twitter shutter pro-Trump network reaching 55 million accounts.

[Cattledog]

On Friday, Facebook and Twitter shut down a network of fake accounts that pushed pro-Trump messages all while “masquerading” as Americans with AI-generated faces as profile photos.

In a blog post, Facebook said that it connected the accounts to a US-based media company called The BL that, it claims, has ties to Epoch Media Group. In August, NBC News first reported that Epoch Media Group was pushing messages in support of President Donald Trump across social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Epoch has extensive connections to Falun Gong, an eccentric Chinese spiritual community that has faced significant persecution from the country’s central government. In a statement provided to The Verge, the Epoch Times denied any connection to The BL.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/12/20/21031823/facebook-twitter-trump-network-epoch-times-inauthentic-behavior?fbclid=IwAR2ATqE59LxMeUFsIosirgXsaB9ey3wk4KzG8Jcq0uqGEWmt4Y6ovZhSrPA

[Merlot]

1. Headline of this should be "FB & Twitter shutter FAKE pro-trump accounts"

[TwilightZone]

2. Ah, if only the Epoch Times had been banned, as well.

That outfit is a scourge of social media.

[AnotherMother4Peace]

3. Published by Falun Gong. I believe it has something to do with end-of-times beliefs. nt

[TwilightZone]

7. It's a propaganda outlet for the right.

They push pseudoscience, the "deep state", and QAnon, among other nonsense.

https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-epoch-times/

[AnotherMother4Peace]

10. "The Epoch Times is founded by John Tang and a group of Chinese-American Falun Gong practitioners"

From your link: "The Epoch Times is founded by John Tang and a group of Chinese-American Falun Gong practitioners. The Epoch Times publishes in 21 languages in 35 countries across five continents. Their focus topics includes sections for world and national news, op-eds, sports, entertainment, business, arts and culture, travel and health. and health."

I saw it for sale in a Coronado, CA Vons store for $3.00. It's right up there with the worst lying right wing news rag. I hope this "religious" group is not tax exempt - but I know it probably is. I'm sure it is published with free labor from Falun Gong followers.

Actually I do know a young man who belongs to Falun Gong. He is called upon to provide "volunteer" security for the Shen Yun show.

[Historic NY]

18. Yes it is.

purports to be a religious organization. I hope NY dumps their exemptions too.

Falun Gong spiritual movement.

[dewsgirl]

26. Every time I get an Epoch Times ad, I think of how dangerous

these people are. Unlike Alex Jones/Infowars, their main spokesperson appears to be quite intellectual, back in 2015 before I was exposed to massive loads of propaganda, I would have easily believed that guy.

[TwilightZone]

27. Agreed.

It's looks and sounds reasonably convincing compared to a lot of the fake news sites, enough so to fool an awful lot of people.

[Qutzupalotl]

4. Snopes had an article on this yesterday,

pointing out that Facebook’s actions to date were woefully inadequate. Maybe now they got the message.

Link to tweet

https://www.snopes.com/news/2019/12/13/facebook-bl-cib/

[spanone]

6. trump....selling access worldwide.

[spanone]

5. trump called them a 'far left magazine'....of course he did

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100212803734

[dalton99a]

8. It's the Epoch Times / Falun Gong / Shen Yun cult.

Weird bunch

[ancianita]

19. Years ago I saw them demonstrating around the Washington Monument. Creepy even back then.

[SunSeeker]

23. Oh it's connected to Shen Yun? Their stage show is beyond creepy.

Some friends took us to see it, swayed by the massive advertising for it with billboards along L.A.'s freeways showing beautiful leaping dancers. Turned out to be a disguised political/religious propaganda piece pushing Falun Gong. We left before the end. Horrible. Yet they perform at major venues, like the Dorothy Chandler Pavillion in Los Angeles, where the oscars have been held. I felt bad for my friends, who paid good money for the tickets.

[dweller]

9. world waking up

methinks ?

✌🏼

[Bernardo de La Paz]

11. "The BL" company "The Big Lie". . . . nt

[CaptYossarian]

14. How did they misspell BM?

They must be pro-Trump.

[Pepsidog]

12. Maddow reported on this story.

[NJCher]

13. do you recall when or approx. when?

would like to look it up at "on demand."

[tishaLA]

17. April. Here's a link

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/pro-trump-conspiracy-theories-pay-off-for-anti-china-group-66712645854

[NJCher]

21. that is an amazing story

without reading it, I would not have understood her show last night, which included quite a number of references to Epoch Times.

It is almost unfathomable that we could have such a nut case in the WH, yet there it is: all in black and white. The latest story, which Rachel reported last night, was about that network Facebook took off in the last few days. This is the one that spread Trump conspiracy theories.

How can anyone not see that this is a threat to democracy?

Anyway, thank you for getting me the link. I am sending it to three other people.

[Pepsidog]

20. About a month or 2 ago. It was her A block and she starts by talking about press coverage being

interupted by a Chinese member of the press protested on the White House lawn during the meeting between Bush II and the Chinese leader. Very informative about The Epoch Times being second only to Trump’s campaign in Facebook ads.

[NJCher]

22. thanks, Pepsidog

the screamer--and how bush grabbed the jacket and pulled him back for a picture. Really bad behavior on everyone's part, and as Rachel tells it, a supreme cluster@$#k.

[Ilsa]

28. This last Friday night's show covered this and

Other very recent social media abuses. I'm going to watch her show again.

[iluvtennis]

15. Excellent news. nt

[fleabiscuit]

16. I saw that Conspirador Norteo had flagged that behavior. Interesting.

Conspirador Norteño

https://twitter.com/conspirator0?s=20

[Lucky Luciano]

24. Now I know why they were persecuted in China!

Falun Gong practitioners were marketed in the US as an innocent religious minority persecuted for their beliefs about 25 years ago.

Didn’t know they were a far right cult in reality.

[ck4829]

25. K&R