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Comment by geoka9 | Hacker News Reader

Modern Russian TV is full of crazy hoaxes that people are quick to believe. The difference is that they are manufactured by the state at scale as part of its "hybrid warfare" campaigns (currently in Syria and Ukraine), as opposed to a lone prankster trolling people for fun. One could even say that Kurekhin's prank was a wildly successful POC.

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The problem is so serious that EU has official site to counter Russian disinformation warfare.

https://euvsdisinfo.eu/

The site is run by EEAS East Stratcom Task Force (EEAS is the European Union's diplomatic service).

My mother lost her mind recently. When I checked her youtube account, I found that it's full of these Russian hoaxes. She watched them extensively for last few years.

I don't know whether to believe you. Can you give an example?

Oh man, I'm sorry.

Could you give an example of a hoax that has the same monumental scale and consequences as, say, the weapons of mass destruction hoax that led to the 2003 Iraq war?

You almost made me think that "Wag the Dog" is a Russian movie [1].

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wag_the_Dog

Remember seeing it back in Ukraine growing up; the premise was so outlandish to me that it was pretty much sci-fi. And it seemed to be especially impossible as Internet was becoming the norm.

Boy was I wrong. There are so many alternative realities out there now that soon it'll be hard to find two people living in the same one.

> There are so many alternative realities out there now that soon it'll be hard to find two people living in the same one.

They were always there. Absolutely nothing has changed about how crazy people are. Now it's merely easier to commiserate or fight about it with more people.

Мы рождены, чтоб сказку сделать былью.

Well USA has Trump, UK has Brexit, ... seems a pretty widespread phenomenon. Only difference is perhaps it is coming from the state machine vs people who are major authorities in the state machine?

We've certainly been lied to on major issues recently by our State machine in the UK too.

Lies are probably necessary at some times; but these don't seem to have been.

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