How disinformation, propaganda and manipulation shape our online discourse (Chapter 1)
From local mayors to Russian intelligence agencies to energy lobbyists and presidents, those seeking to boost their political power and influence increasingly turn to the dark arts of propaganda and disinformation to distort our world-view and further their agendas.
For example, in recent years we have seen the rise of anonymous Twitter accounts, vocal activists and obscure non-profits that have taken to the streets, the courts and the pages of social media under the banner of “radical economic transformation”. The person holding the grenade launcher was Shampene Mphaloane, a young, dedicated proponent of radical economic transformation . But at the time, we only knew him by the Twitter handle Superblack .
Three days before, on 17 September, we had sent detailed questions to both Numsa general secretary Irvin Jim and the chairman of the Numsa Investment Company, Khandani Msibi. By 20 September, Superblack not only knew about our questions, but knew who had sent them. Of the 41 tweets posted that day using #HandsOffNumsa, half came from Mphaloane’s Superblack account.The first time we heard Mphaloane’s name was when the newly formed SA Natives Forum approached the Western Cape High Court in February 2018, seeking to permanently stay the corruption charges against former president Zuma.
What followers of Superblack were not told was that he was being paid a salary by the company he was defending.
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