Revealed: Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib targeted in far-right fake news operation

[JonLP24]

Israeli-based group uses Facebook to spread disinformation to more than a million followers around the world, singling out Muslim US congresswomen

Two Muslim US congresswomen have been targeted by a vast international operation that exploits far-right pages on Facebook to inflame Islamophobia for profit, a Guardian investigation has found.

A mysterious Israeli-based group uses 21 Facebook pages to churn out more than a thousand coordinated fake news posts per week to more than a million followers around the world. It milks the traffic for revenue from digital advertising.

Somali-born Omar is the most frequent target. She has been mentioned in more than 1,400 posts since the network began two years ago. Tlaib has been mentioned nearly 1,200 times. Both totals are far higher than any other member of Congress.

(snip)

The posts exacerbate Islamophobia by amplifying far-right parties and vilifying Muslim and leftwing politicians. Their content is a blend of distorted news and pure fabrication.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/dec/05/ilhan-omar-rashida-tlaib-targeted-far-right-fake-news-operation-facebook

Posting in this forum because the article is nearly 3 weeks old but I just came across it.

[empedocles]

1. Similiar to our rw media here, homegrown as well as foreign helpers.

[2naSalit]

2. It figures that

FB is where these gain traction.

[abqtommy]

3. I'm so glad that I closed my Facebook account years ago. I don't do twitter or any of the others,

either. My choice...