Could #IStandWithUkraine be a manipulation?

Aresearch team at the Australian University of Adelaide analyzed shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine more than 5 million tweets and found that 90.2 percent came from accounts that were pro-Ukraine, with fewer than 7 percent of the accounts being pro-Russian.

The tweets were part of a covert propaganda campaign originating from automated fake “bot” accounts that on the first day of the invasion fired as many as 38,000 tweets each hour with the #IStandWithUkraine hashtag rising to 50,000 tweets an hour by day three of the war.

The results were published in August 2022 in a research paper, titled “#IStandWithPutin versus #IStandWithUkraine: The interaction of bots and humans in discussion of the Russia/Ukraine war,” by the University of Adelaide’s School of Mathematical Science. The report was largely ignored by Western establishment media whose media professionals were probably uncomfortable with the finding that the vast majority of the bot tweets were pushing the #IStandWithUkraine hashtag. With the rise of the internet and the social media giants, propaganda as a weapon in war and armed conflict will never be the same. We are already well into a new digital era where military, political and economic conflicts are being waged and manipulated by AI generals and armies of bots and fake accounts.

The nature of social media is to enhance each of us in our attitudes. This has created a new environment where public opinion can be manipulated at a very large scale. We are all carrying in our pockets a powerful weapon that is firing relentlessly at our brains and emotions from AI driven manipulator engines created to deceive. Even the most critical human beings will not be able to defend themselves against cyber-attacks and digital information and disinformation campaigns on such a massive scale.

It is a scary thought that also this editorial could just be an example of how I have been manipulated into creating “angst” among the public for the ability of these AI generals to wage their digital warfare campaigns against us.

ScandAsia is a printed magazine and online media covering the people and businesses of Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland living and working in China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar.

Who should subscribe:

ScandAsia subscribers are typically Nordic expats and companies from the Nordic countries living in and active in Asia. Another group of subscribers are Nordic people living in the Nordic countries who subscribe to ScandAsia for personal or business reasons. We also have many Asian subscribers, who for a wide range of reasons are following the activities of the Nordic expats and companies via a subscription to ScandAsia.

The ScandAsia magazine is produced every month and distributed to all print version subscribers via postal services and to all eMagazine subscribers via email. Subscribing to the eMagazine is FREE - simply sign up on the ScandAsia.com website.

Become a ScandAsia user/ get free digital ScandAsia magazine or paid subscription via www.scandasia.com!

Publisher : Scandinavian Publishing Co., Ltd. 211 Soi Prasert Manukitch 29 Prasert Manukitch Road Bangkok 10230, Thailand Tel. +66 2 943 7166-8

Fax: +66 2 943 7169

E-mail: news@scandasia.com

Editor-in-Chief : Gregers A.W. Møller gregers@scandmedia.com

Gregers Moller Editor in Chief

Advertising : Finn Balslev finn@scandmedia.com

MB: +66 81 866 2577

Graphic Designer : Peerapol Meesuwan Peerapol@scandmedia.com

Production Manager: Sopida Yatprom

Printing : Win-Win Digital Printing Co., Ltd.

To develop leadership skills, children need teachers who can instill within them the confidence to move to a different drum beat. Well-trained and experienced teachers guide our students to explore and challenge themselves. Our strong pastoral programme develops resilience and social attributes that will make children successful contributors to their global and local communities.