Ignore Bad Information From Russia And China On The Coronavirus Crisis

Social media is great for keeping in touch with family and friends while we practice social distancing. It offers an easy and convenient way for people to check in with loved ones, watch movies together, and play games. But it is also a great way for states like Russia and China to drive us apart and sow chaos by pushing false information. It is important to remember that Russia and China have and continue to claim that the United States is their enemy. Their national strategies and foreign policies reflect this.

This is nothing new. The intelligence community report on interference by Russia in the 2016 election is loaded with examples. Indeed, Moscow tried to inflame racial division in the United States by pitting African Americans against law enforcement, stirred up religious animosity between Christian and Muslims, and more. Moscow found cracks in our society and sought to add more fuel to the fire. Unfortunately, it had some success.

During the late stages of the Cold War, the Soviet Union launched what is known as Operation Infektion, an active measure campaign that sought to place the blame for the AIDS epidemic on American biological weapons experiments. If you are wondering whether or not Operation Infektion was successful, there are plenty of conspiracy videos out there that echo what is, essentially, Soviet Union propaganda. With the coronavirus pandemic, Moscow is simply dusting off an old playbook during this crisis.

Outlets that back the Kremlin are pushing a host of competing narratives designed to create confusion, muddy the waters, and divide the Western alliance. This is everything from tweets suggesting that the coronavirus is no worse than the flu, to suggesting it will end civilization as we know it, and others echoing propaganda and speculating if the coronavirus is a biological weapon that was deployed by London or Washington.