An analysis of the EDMO fact-checking network. Organizations that contributed to this analysis: Greece Fact Check; Pagella Politica/Facta news
The EDMO fact-checking network detected a new development in the Russian operation “Pravda network”, already the subject of an EDMO investigation published at the end of April.
The fact-checking organization Greece Fact Check, in cooperation with Pagella Politica and Facta news, noticed that after the uncovering of the network in all the EU member states, plus other European countries, Pravda* tried a new route to convey large amounts of disinformation and pro-Russia propaganda to EU public opinions.
A new wave of Pravda websites covering EU languages, that use a slightly different URL than before, was registered in Russia at the end of May. Instead of the previous URL pravda-xx.com, now the websites have as URL xx.news-pravda.com (where “xx” are the two-letter country codes).
All the various versions of this URL are pertinent to a single domain that was registered in Russia (Moscow) on May 23, 2024 and that is set to expire on May 23 of the next year.
Versions of this new Pravda website have been detected in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Greek, Polish, Dutch, Bulgarian, Danish, Czech, Estonian, Romanian, Croatian, Finnish, Portuguese, Swedish, Hungarian, Slovak, Lithuanian, Latvian, Irish and Slovenian.
In comparison with the previous Pravda domains – still active, even if with little impact so far – the new ones maintain exactly the same look and in part the same source (eg. Telegram accounts and Russian media), but it seems to have also expanded, using more pro-Russian websites as sources, such as news-front.su, a website established in August 2023 that is available in multiple languages.
In addition to propaganda, the websites are also used to spread demonstrably false news and disinformation stories. The new English version of the website, for example, spread the false story that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had bought a luxury casino hotel in the Turkish-occupied area of Cyprus, which was proven false by local fact-checking organizations that are part of the EDMO network.
Moreover, the automated translation to languages other than English has improved significantly and it should be also noted that minor pro-Russian politicians who run for the EU elections are quoted by state media such as Ria and then further amplified by the Pravda network, in what seems an attempt to magnify their relevance.
* Not all the existing “Pravda” websites are part of this network, only the ones with the specific URLs listed in the article. Of course, other “Pravda” websites and news outlets exist – one, https://pravda.org.pl/, for example, is a member of the EDMO fact-checking network.
Thanos Sitistas, founder and director of Greece Fact Check, and IFCN Advisory Board member
Tommaso Canetta, deputy director of Pagella Politica/Facta News and coordinator of EDMO fact-checking activities
Enzo Panizio, journalist at Pagella Politica/Facta News and EDMO
Photo: Flickr, Peter