Social:Working Group on Syria, Propaganda and Media

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Short description: Academic group researching Syrian War propaganda


The Working Group on Syria, Propaganda and Media (SPM) is a controversial group of academics and activists whose stated purpose is to study propaganda and information operations surrounding the Syrian civil war.[1] It was formed by environmental political theory professor Tim Hayward and former academic Piers Robinson in 2017.[2][3][4]

Activities

The group has gained attention and attracted criticism for disputing the veracity of the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Civil War as well as for its claims that the Syrian White Helmets civil defence organisation has staged false flag attacks in order to trigger Western retaliation against the Syrian government.[5][6][7]

The group has produced a number of reports.[1] The SPM's first publication, entitled, "Doubts about 'Novichoks'," questioned whether Russia's secret nerve agent programme – through which Novichok chemical weapons were developed – had ever existed.[2]

In subsequent publications, the SPM has argued that the 2018 Douma chemical attack was faked by the White Helmets civil defence organisation.[8] The SPM report accused Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, the former head of Britain's Joint Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Regiment, of being an agent working on behalf of a British covert influence programme.[9]

According to Bellingcat, the group used other entities such as Berlin Group 21 (BG21)[further explanation needed] as their front for publishing "statements of concern".[10][11] In October 2019, a former Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) employee later identified as Brendan Whelan presented his dissent with the OPCW's findings about the investigation of the Douma chemical attack. Members of the Courage Foundation who attended included Kristinn Hrafnsson, Jose Bustani, Helmut Lohre and Gunter Meyer.[12][13] Courage Foundation published the Statement of Concern at the same time as "Berlin Group 21".[14][15][16] Whelan later leaked OPCW documents to WikiLeaks.[17][18]

Controversies

In early 2018, The Times newspaper ran a series of articles critical of the SPM, in which it said the group intentionally spreads "disinformation" in support of the government of Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian Civil War and "conspiracy theories promoted by Russia".[2][19][20] The Times described the group's members as "apologists for Assad" and likened them to Holocaust deniers.[2][21][20] In response, the SPM said that its members have a shared interest in "investigating the 'information operations' (...) associated with the Syrian conflict" and stressed that "the Working Group does not take any position for or against the Syrian government."[22]

In 2019, The Huffington Post wrote that SPM "reported on the poisoning of Sergei Skripal, chemical attacks in Syria and a British organisation that counters Russian propaganda but its findings have been described by experts as “speculation”, “distortion” and “in the realm of conspiracy theorists”". It quoted Kristyan Benedict, a crisis response manager for Amnesty International UK, who accused SPM of promoting conspiracy theories and denying war crimes. It also noticed that SPM cofounder Piers Robinson is a 9/11 truther.[23]

In 2021, Commission for International Justice and Accountability (fr) (CIJA) reported on its sting operation targeting SPM member Paul McKeigue, in which CIJA posed over email as a Russian agent named "Ivan." McKeigue corresponded with "Ivan" over the course of several months, believing that he was communicating with Russian secret services. According to CIJA, SPM attempted to coordinate with Russian diplomats including Alexander Shulgin, Russia's ambassador to the Netherlands, on publications about Syria. The report also stated that McKeigue obtained legal advice from Melinda Taylor, one of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange's personal lawyers, on how to make litigious claims against the OPCW which McKeigue referred to as "lawfare", a term generally used to describe frivolous or harassing litigation. McKeigue and Taylor also discussed promoting claims of fraud against CIJA.[24][11]

According to CIJA, its "investigation revealed that, far from being fringe conspiracists, these revisionists, employed by some of the UK’s top universities, were collaborating with Russian diplomats in four countries; were willing to co-operate with presumed Russian security agents to advance their agenda and to attack their opponents; were co-ordinating dissemination of disinformation with bloggers, alternative media and Russian state media; appeared to be planning the doxxing of survivors of chemical attacks; and admitted to making up sources and facts when necessary to advance their cause."[25]

A March 2021 BBC News article stated that the SPM had, "echoed [...] Russian disinformation narratives," in a number of publications by suggesting that the governments of the United States and United Kingdom had a motive to kill Russian dissident Sergei Skripal in order to prevent him from testifying in a libel case against former British intelligence agent Christopher Steele.[26] The view of the UK government is that Skripal, a former Russian spy, was poisoned by Russian secret service agents.[27]

Members

Members of the SPM include:

Members of its advisory board have included:

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 "About" (in en-US). 25 January 2018. https://syriapropagandamedia.org/about. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Keate, Georgie; Kennedy, Dominic; Shveda, Krystina; Haynes, Deborah (14 April 2018). "Apologists for Assad working in British universities" (in en). The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/apologists-for-assad-working-in-british-universities-2f72hw29m. 
  3. ↑ Kennedy, Dominic (12 June 2020). "Conspiracy theories spread by academics with university help - News". https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/conspiracy-theories-spread-by-academics-with-university-help-9g09xtc73. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 York, Chris (29 January 2020). "The 'Useful Idiots': How These British Academics Helped Russia Deny War Crimes At The UN". https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/the-useful-idiots_uk_5e2b107ac5b67d8874b0dd9d. 
  5. ↑ "'We were their only hope'" (in nl). 12 September 2021. https://www.groene.nl/artikel/we-were-their-only-hope. 
  6. ↑ "Mysterious death of White Helmets co-founder spotlights toxic propaganda". 24 December 2019. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/mysterious-death-of-white-helmets-co-founder-spotlights-toxic-propaganda. 
  7. ↑ "Syria: on academic freedom and responsibility". https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/north-africa-west-asia/syria-on-academic-freedom-and-responsibility/. 
  8. ↑ "Mysterious death of White Helmets co-founder spotlights toxic propaganda" (in en-us). 24 December 2019. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/mysterious-death-of-white-helmets-co-founder-spotlights-toxic-propaganda. 
  9. ↑ Loyd, Anthony (4 September 2020). "Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, the Iraq veteran on the front line of the war against chemical weapons in Syria - Magazine". https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/hamish-de-bretton-gordon-the-iraq-veteran-on-the-front-line-of-the-war-against-chemical-weapons-in-syria-kfq7w76pm. 
  10. ↑ "Berlin Group 21, 'Ivan's' Emails and Chemical Weapons Conspiracy Theories" (in en-GB). 2021-05-14. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2021/05/14/berlin-group-21-ivans-emails-and-chemical-weapons-conspiracy-theories/. 
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "How an Email Sting Operation Unearthed a pro-Assad Conspiracy—and Russia's Role In It" (in en). 2021-04-20. https://newlinesmag.com/reportage/how-an-email-sting-operation-unearthed-a-pro-assad-conspiracy-and-russias-role-in-it/. 
  12. ↑ Whitaker, Brian (2023-02-15). "A Notorious Syria Conspiracy Theory Is Definitively Debunked" (in en). https://newlinesmag.com/argument/a-notorious-syria-conspiracy-theory-is-definitively-debunked/. 
  13. ↑ Team, Bellingcat Investigation (2020-10-26). "Unpublished OPCW Douma Correspondence Casts Further Doubt on Claims of 'Doctored' Report" (in en-GB). https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2020/10/26/unpublished-opcw-douma-correspondence-raises-doubts-about-transparency-of-opcw-leaks-promoters/. 
  14. ↑ "Statement of Concern: The OPCW investigation of alleged chemical weapons use in Douma, Syria | Courage Foundation". 2021-04-10. https://couragefound.org/2021/03/statement-of-concern-the-opcw-investigation-of-alleged-chemical-weapons-use-in-douma-syria/. 
  15. ↑ "Additional Background Information (provided by the Berlin Group 21) Regarding the OPCW FFM Investigation of the Alleged Chemical Attack in Douma, April 7, 2018 | Courage Foundation". 2021-04-10. https://couragefound.org/2021/03/additional-background-information-regarding-the-opcw-ffm-investigation-of-the-alleged-chemical-attack-in-douma-april-7-2018/. 
  16. ↑ Waters, Nick (2021-05-14). "Berlin Group 21, 'Ivan's' Emails and Chemical Weapons Conspiracy Theories" (in en-GB). https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2021/05/14/berlin-group-21-ivans-emails-and-chemical-weapons-conspiracy-theories/. 
  17. ↑ Weiss, Michael; Goldsmith, Jett (2021-04-20). "How an Email Sting Operation Unearthed a pro-Assad Conspiracy—and Russia's Role In It" (in en). https://newlinesmag.com/reportage/how-an-email-sting-operation-unearthed-a-pro-assad-conspiracy-and-russias-role-in-it/. 
  18. ↑ Goldsmith, Michael Weiss, Jett (2021-04-20). "Syria Chemical-Attack Deniers Admit Links to WikiLeaks and Russia" (in en). The Daily Beast. https://www.thedailybeast.com/syria-chemical-attack-deniers-admit-links-to-wikileaks-and-russia. 
  19. ↑ Blanchard, Georgie; Keate, Sam (28 May 2020). "To say Douma attack was staged is to enter an Orwellian world" (in en). The Times. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/professors-shut-down-debate-over-assad-s-chemical-attacks-n899fjdkm. 
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Webster, Ben (16 April 2018). "Academics accused of speaking for Assad condemn Syria raids" (in en). The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/academics-speaking-for-assad-question-justification-for-raids-sm6qthxkx. 
  21. ↑ "Assad's Useful Idiots" (in en). The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/assad-s-useful-idiots-hddlzn0vz. 
  22. ↑ "Working Group Response to Smears" (in en-US). 25 June 2019. https://syriapropagandamedia.org/public-statements-and-media-appearances/working-group-response-to-media-smears. 
  23. ↑ Chris York (2019-02-28). "A UK Thinktank That Examines Propaganda Just Recruited A Pro-Russian Propagandist". https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/vanessa-beeley-syria-piers-robinson_uk_5c570a53e4b08710475471a6. 
  24. ↑ Goldsmith, Michael Weiss, Jett (2021-04-20). "Syria Chemical Attack Deniers Admit Links to WikiLeaks and Russia" (in en). The Daily Beast. https://www.thedailybeast.com/syria-chemical-attack-deniers-admit-links-to-wikileaks-and-russia. 
  25. ↑ Jelacic, Nerma (2021). "Spinning bomb". Index on Censorship 50 (2): 16–23. doi:10.1177/03064220211033782. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/03064220211033782. 
  26. ↑ Hadjimatheou, Chloe (26 March 2021). "The UK professor and the fake Russian agent" (in en-GB). BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/stories-56524550. 
  27. ↑ "Sergei Skripal: former Russian spy poisoned with nerve agent, say police" (in en). 2018-03-08. http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/mar/07/russian-spy-police-appeal-for-witnesses-as-cobra-meeting-takes-place. 
  28. ↑ York, Chris (20 February 2021). "Jewish Students 'Intimidated' By Professor's Comments As Williamson Defends 'Free Speech'". https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/jsoc-bristol-university-david-miller_uk_602bd532c5b680717eea7b39. 
  29. ↑ York, Chris (28 February 2019). "A UK Thinktank That Examines Propaganda Just Recruited A Pro-Russian Propagandist". Huffington Post UK. https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/vanessa-beeley-syria-piers-robinson_uk_5c570a53e4b08710475471a6. 
  30. ↑ Kennedy, Dominic (10 April 2020). "British academics sharing coronavirus conspiracy theories online - News". https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/british-academics-sharing-coronavirus-conspiracy-theories-online-v8nn99zmv. 
  31. ↑ Hammond, Philip (17 April 2018). "Syria: stop asking questions!" (in en). https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/opendemocracyuk/syria-stop-asking-questions/. 

External links



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