- To facilitate this, I would try to suggest to you, my dear African friends, my interpretation of some of the “newspeak” terminology used by the Western (and pro-Western) “commentators” or “communicators”.
- “Propaganda, disinformation, misinformation, false narratives, etc.” is when someone else expresses ideas and provides information that does not necessarily please the West.
Image: Courtesy
My dear Kenyan friends!
You might have noticed that Russia is being regularly accused of “spreading disinformation, manipulating the narratives, exploiting social media, weaponising the media and communications to disseminate misleading stories, etc.”
And all that with the “evil” purpose of “strengthening Russia’s ties with Africa and bolstering its image as the most reliable ally of Africans and (God Almighty!) taking the side of developing countries on the international stage”. Can you imagine such villainy?
We have always been positive about public debate, because an open (and honest) exchange of even diametrically opposed views usually serves the truth and stimulates the search for solutions to existing problems. We are ready to engage in such a debate. And we are eternally grateful to the Kenyan media for their fairness and professionalism that allows us to share, from time to time, Russia’s perspective of events. However, to make the conversation meaningful, we should, probably, clarify the terms and definitions and understand what they exactly mean.
To facilitate this, I would try to suggest to you, my dear African friends, my interpretation of some of the “newspeak” terminology used by the Western (and pro-Western) “commentators” or “communicators”.
Let’s start with the big “philosophical” things.
“Rules-based order” means a set of rules that no-one has ever seen, no-one has ever agreed to and no-one has the right to doubt, let alone contest. Its only characteristic is that it perfectly fits, at any given moment, the political, military and, most importantly, commercial interests of the collective West. The “rules” may change, but no-one (except the West itself) can question it. And the changes to those “rules” are never announced to the rest of the world.
“Free and fair elections”. The term in most cases describes elections that result in the victory of pro-Western candidates.
“Elections that do not meet best electoral standards” are elections won by candidates whom the West does not like.
“Human rights” means the rights of certain groups of people inside countries other than the West that, for some reasons, may interest them for the projection of their influence and interests (including commercial ones). In other cases, “human rights” almost never apply to people that represent no interest to West’s ruling class.
“Legitimate use of force” is when the West or its clients use force (including heavy lethal weapons) against other countries or their own people.
“Aggression or atrocities” is when someone not from the West uses any kind of force for any kind of reasons either inside or outside their countries without the West’s permission.
And so on and on and on. Now, let’s look closer to our subject-matter – information and media.
“Freedom of speech and expression” is when the West (or their clients) speak or express themselves in their own interests or disseminate any kind of information, however false or misleading. The preferred vehicle for that are the Western Mainstream Mass Media (MMM).
“Propaganda, disinformation, misinformation, false narratives, etc.” is when someone else expresses ideas and provides information that does not necessarily please the West. Routinely, any deviation from direct quotations of the MMM and official statements from the Western establishment is considered suspicious.
“Leveraging social media platforms” means that someone publishes facts and information that enjoy support from subscribers because they resonate with their own experience and perception of reality, and not the imaginary world projected by Western MMM or establishment. Social media are considered especially dangerous by the West because they provide direct contact with the public and immediate feedback from them.
“Sowing discord around the world” means reminding the developing world of scientifically established facts, such as responsibility of the West for the colonization and pillage of Africa, slave trade, and neo-colonial exploitation. As if without the “sowing of discord”, the world would be living in harmony and concord. Especially disturbing to them is any reference to Europeans and Americans being guilty of systemic racism. BLM is a subject that can be touched upon exclusively by the West itself.
“Urgent concerted effort using proactive measures, setting up safeguards” against the above means plain and simple CENSORSHIP and muffling of free speech and expression.
My dear African friends, I hope that this little newspeak glossary will help you better understand what some of the “commentators” and “communicators” really mean, and what they are trying to impose on Africa to dominate and control the information and mass media landscape of the continent.
The writer is Dmitry Maksimychev Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Kenya