Stories from Abroad

The Kremlin-backed Russian Internet Research Agency operated dozens of Twitter accounts masquerading as local American news sources that collectively garnered more than half-a-million followers. More than 100 news outlets also published stories containing those handles in the run-up to the election, and some of them were even tweeted by a top presidential aide. These news imposter accounts, which are part of the 2,752 now-suspended accounts that Twitter Inc.

Myanmar is the latest country to piggyback off of a dangerous rhetorical strategy made popular by President Trump. The New York Times reports that an official in Myanmar’s Rakhine state recently said: “there is no such thing as Rohingya. It is fake news.” Rohingya is the Muslim minority in Myanmar facing sweeping persecution from hardline Buddhists. Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya people have fled the country in the wake of what a top UN official called ethnic cleansing.

Australia’s competition watchdog has begun an investigation into the market power of Facebook, Google and other digital platforms to determine if they are harming the media and advertising industries. The probe follows an order by the government of a formal inquiry into the internet giants’ impact on the industry, as part of a shake-up of media laws in September.

Google and Facebook are set to attract 84 percent of global spending on digital advertising, excluding China, in 2017, according to a forecast from GroupM, the WPP-owned media buying agency, underscoring concerns that the two technology companies have become a digital duopoly. The research predicts that total global ad spending will increase by about $23 billion, or 4.3 percent, in 2018.

More than 5 million people in the United Kingdom could be entitled to compensation from Google if a class action against the internet giant for allegedly harvesting personal data is successful. A group led by the former executive director of consumer body Which?, Richard Lloyd, and advised by City law firm Mischon de Reya claims Google unlawfully collected personal information by bypassing the default privacy settings on the iPhone between June 2011 and February 2012. They have launched a legal action with the aim of securing compensation for those affected.

[Commentary] President Donald Trump is right. There is an epidemic of “fake news” in America. Only it’s being perpetuated not by his political opponents but by him and his supporters. Trump is quickly undoing America’s traditional role as a champion of free speech and free press in the world. He sounds very much like an authoritarian, even if he lacks the power of one, and actual authoritarians are cheered by his words.

President Donald Trump shared three inflammatory anti-Muslim videos on Twitter posted by a far-right British activist.  The videos — whose authenticity could not be independently verified — were first shared by Jayda Fransen, the deputy leader of Britain First, which bills itself as a political party but has been widely condemned as an extremist group that targets mosques and Muslims.

President Donald Trump attacked CNN International hours after President Vladimir Putin signed a law that requires certain American media outlets working in Russia to register with the government as foreign agents, essentially identifying them as hostile entities. Putin’s allies had previously signaled that CNN International could be affected. For now, CNN appears untouched by the new regulations in Russia.

[Commentary] The United States is a nation quarreling with itself right now. Most of the country’s population wants to keep the internet an equitable and free place, embracing net neutrality rules as a necessary guardian against corporate overreach. But the current political administration seems hellbent on dismantling net neutrality and handing internet service providers the freedom to mold, shape, manipulate, and price internet access in whatever fashion they like.

The European Union has agreed a plan obliging online retailers operating in the bloc to make electrical goods, concert tickets or car rental available to all EU consumers regardless of where they live. Putting an end to “geoblocking”, whereby consumers in one EU country cannot buy a good or service sold online in another, has been a priority for the EU as it tries to create a digital single market with 24 legislative proposals.