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Disinfo: The New York Times sends stories to the US government for approval

Summary

The New York Times sends its pieces to US government for approval.

Disproof

This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative painting Western media outlets as subservient to their respective national governments and militaries. This claim that the New York Times sends articles to the US government for approval is misleading. The newspaper's "admission" that government officials were approached regarding the details of an ongoing story proves only that its reporters rely on sourcing - a standard and founding practice of investigative journalism. Moreover, the same officials are not able to modify or retract the details of any story they had been consulted on, given that the New York Times banned quote approval in 2012.

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Sputnik English (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 156
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 25/06/2019
  • Language/target audience: English
  • Country: US
  • Keywords: fake news, Mainstream media, Propaganda, The New York Times
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Joe Biden is behind the protests in Georgia

Joe Biden, the US presidential candidate, is behind the latest protests in Georgia, in which he has financial interests. Biden’s commercial interests are linked to the deep-sea port project in Anaklia which will be accomplished only in one case – if Mikheil Saakashvili returns to Georgia.

Jun 24, 2019
Disproof

No proof is given. Recurring pro-Kremlin narrative claiming that public protests (also known as colour revolutions) in various countries are organised/ financed by the US, and bringing into the mix two other narratives relevant for Georgia. This is not the first time Biden is linked to Georgia. Previously Russian TV spread disinformation as if Joe Biden is behind the human organ trading organised by Mikheil Saakashvili and his wife. The Anaklia deep sea port has been a target of Kremlin propaganda for a long time. Over the past months, Russian and pro-Russian actors have been continuously raising the issue of construction of deep sea ports in Georgia. These actors exploit 3 main narratives against the port:

  • The Anaklia port is unacceptable for Russia and it will not allow their construction;

  • The Anaklia port is actually designed for U.S. and NATO military bases;

  • From economic point of view, Georgia does not need deep sea ports; they only have military-political importance.

See disinformation narratives on the Anaklia deep sea port here and here. Background of the protests: The protests in Georgia started spontaneously in the morning on June 20th, when a Russian MP from the Communist Party, Sergei Gavrilov, addressed delegates from the Georgian Parliament Speaker's seat during an annual meeting of the Inter-parliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (IAO). The opposition boycotted the presence of the Russian delegation in Tbilisi, later developing into the protests in front of the Parliament. As a response, Vladimir Putin has temporarily banned Georgian airlines from flying to Russia and called on Russian citizens in Georgia to leave the country.

The protests in Georgia are a Russophobic absurd theatre

The protests in Georgia are an absurdist theatre that has been going on for 30 years. The recent outbreak of protests was carefully planned and prepared in advance. The fascist “Nationalist” opposition was well prepared. There can be no doubt that everything was a meticulously planned and organised provocation. The “protocol incident”, when a member of the Russian parliament appeared in the chair of the Parliament’s speaker, was only the trigger of the events. Rustaveli Avenue is not only a beloved landmark of the Georgian capital, but also an almost sacred place for the people of Tbilisi, who used to walk on the Avenue just as believers go to the Temple. The opposition has turned the Rustaveli into a fiery volcano with mud-throwing geysers. This is the price of democracy à la America.

Jun 24, 2019
Disproof

This is a recurring pro-Kremlin narrative casting civil uprisings in other states as US-funded "colour revolutions", also present in the case of Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus, Venezuela. It is also consistent with multiple pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about the US and its global role. The current protests in Georgia were a spontaneous public reaction calling for the resignation of key national officials after Russian State Duma Deputy Sergei Gavrilov sat in the Georgian parliamentary speaker's seat while addressing a council of lawmakers from predominantly Orthodox Christian countries -- the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (IAO). Gavrilov is known for his support of Russia's occupation of Georgia's Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions, which is a particularly hot-button issue for Georgians.

The protests in Georgia is a part of a larger programme of CIA destabilisation

One thing is certain in any such mass protest – few, if any of them, are spontaneous protests by ordinary citizens. Careful planning goes into any attempted coup or regime change—and that usually comes from the West. This has especially been the case in Georgia, dating back to the so-called Rose Revolution of 2003, and even earlier, to the free fire zone days of the early 90s. Now Georgia is again in the news, not only over how the weaponisation of gay pride is part of a larger programme of CIA destabilisation.

Jun 24, 2019
Disproof

No evidence given. This is a recurring pro-Kremlin narrative casting civil uprisings in other states as US-funded "colour revolutions", also present in the case of Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus, Venezuela. Consistent with multiple pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about the US and its global role.