April 08, 2022
On this episode of Fault Lines, hosts Jamarl Thomas and Faran Fronczak talk about the White House pushing politicalized intelligence on Ukraine, China’s objectives for Eurasian integration and the disbandment of NATO, Zelensky showing up to Greek Parliament with an Azov fighter, and if Will Smith’s Oscars slap was bought by Pfizer to promote their new drug. more
The U.S. is using intel to fight an info war with Russia, even when the intel isn’t rock solid
April 6, 2022 – nbcnews.com
By Ken Dilanian, Courtney Kube, Carol E. Lee and Dan De Luce
It was an attention-grabbing assertion that made headlines around the world: U.S. officials said they had indications suggesting Russia might be preparing to use chemical agents in Ukraine.
President Joe Biden later said it publicly. But three U.S. officials told NBC News this week there is no evidence Russia has brought any chemical weapons near Ukraine. They said the U.S. released the information to deter Russia from using the banned munitions.
It’s one of a string of examples of the Biden administration’s breaking with recent precedent by deploying declassified intelligence as part of an information war against Russia. The administration has done so even when the intelligence wasn’t rock solid, officials said, to keep Russian President Vladimir Putin off balance. Coordinated by the White House National Security Council, the unprecedented intelligence releases have been so frequent and voluminous, officials said, that intelligence agencies had to devote more staff members to work on the declassification process, scrubbing the information so it wouldn’t betray sources and methods.
Observers of all stripes have called it a bold and so far successful strategy — although not one without risks.
Full Article : nbcnews.com
What else is New????
This article emphasizes what is standard practice of media and news – publicizing information passed on to them by either government or political agencies in order to form, deter, influence or substantiate public opinion. It is not just confined to the international agencies, it is the same media practice used in everyday reporting locally. In the United States some newsrooms such as CBS, NBC and CNN will put their ‘signature’ on some reports by either confirming or acknowledging evidence of the news they publish. And that’s a good thing. Many times you will read or hear them say “We have not independently verified this report”, even though they are reporting it. Maybe, our local media can take a page out of this verification practice when it comes to reporting news. Such practice will definitely
be an indicator that they are not careless in thier presentation of
local news. Until then, we must remain suspect of anything published in local media.