Fake News Propaganda Maligning Pakistan’s Global Image

In many contemporary societies, especially Pakistani society, fake news has become a major battleground. Tandoc Jr., Lim, and Ling (2018) developed a typology of Fake News that encompassed everything from lawful expression (e.g., news parody and satire) to full-blown propaganda. It now appears that the term “Fake News” now refers to two distinct things: (1) a fake news story, which is crafted to look like real news, but which focuses on things that never happened; and (2) an attempt by a politician to discredit a report that portrays their actions in a negative light, usually via an allegation against the media.

Both concerns are clearly separate in principle, but the distinctions between them have always been muddled in practice. In contemporary society, it is commonly accepted that Type-1 Fake News exists, thus even seemingly valid news should be taken with a grain of salt. Although unscrupulous politicians have been able to utilize Type-2 Fake News charges to cover up their own wrongdoing because of the presence of Type-1 Fake News. The confusion caused by Type-2 Fake News may lessen the impact of genuine news even if the truth is later revealed. Declaring anything to be fake news so becomes an effective political tactic, with some politicians using it as standard rhetoric, and this ploy has been extensively used by Pakistani politicians.

News Outlets Propagating Fake news Against Pakistan:

According to research, more than 1,100 news outlets and domains that are mostly Indian spread anti-Pakistan sentiment around the world for the last 15 years, and influencing public opinion. The anti-Pakistan campaign relied heavily on information and deception from these sources, which were not even questioned by important authorities in the United States and Europe.

Much of the mainstream media’s reporting on Pakistan is still merciless and adversely prejudiced in its portrayal of the country. Some of the most senior state officials in the United States and Europe have agreed with the false propaganda of websites and other media outlets.

• Claims Validated by the EU Disinfo Lab:

Europe’s leading anti-fake news organization, the EU DisinfoLab stated that the Srivastava Group, an Indian conglomerate, has been running an anti-Pakistan propaganda campaign. Hundreds of news outlets and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) — ten of which were accredited by the United Nations — were discovered by the EU DisinfoLab to be part of a massive, cross-continental network that maligned Pakistan’s image and may have been used as extensions and promoters of Indian foreign policy objectives.

As many as 750 media sites and 550 domains from 119 countries were involved in the EU DisinfoLab’s Indian Chronicles investigation. It appears that this network had two purposes.  In the first place, it emphasised New Delhi’s foreign policy objectives and secondly,  it portrayed Pakistan and China in a negative light.

The substantial findings of the report, which ‘uncovered an entire network of coordinated UN-accredited NGOs’, a few of which tied ‘directly to the Srivastava family’, imply that the campaign was aimed at maligning Pakistan internationally and blowing up its internal problems such as minority rights and security. It was also intended to influence the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and the European Parliament’s decision-making process.

Additionally, the campaign stole the name and image of former European Parliament President Martin Schulz and a former British government minister, James Purnell . While many other organisations were brought up from the dead to serve as proxies for Pakistan, CSOP (Commission to Study the Organization of Peace) was one of the most prominent.

The agencies that were evidently used to bring Pakistan into disrepute included NGOs such as Balochistan House, Gilgit Baltistan Forum, Balochistan Forum, European Organization for Pakistani Minorties, and the South Asia Democratic Forum (SADF).

According to the Indian Chronicle, these UN-accredited NGOs collaborated with non-UN-accredited think tanks and minority-rights NGOs in Brussels and Geneva.

There were at least eleven activities that the SADF is said to have arranged according to the report, including rallies at the UN Broken Chair Monument in Geneva, the UN Headquarters in New York, and gatherings at the Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. Richard Czarnecki and Fulvio Martusciello, two members of the European Parliament, helped Balochistan House organise European Parliament seminars and activities in Brussels and Strasbourg.

There are several examples of occurrences that slammed Pakistan and were used to challenge its policy on topics like terrorism and minorities. Alaphilippe said it was their “biggest network” of deception that they had ever uncovered. A portion of the network was uncovered by the watchdog in 2019, but it now appears to be much broader and more resilient than previously thought.

Pakistan’s Vulnerabilities Exploited by the Fake News Propagators:

Shia–Sunni conflicts, terror groups, and angry ethnic Pashtun and Baloch movements have all contributed to Pakistan’s inability to deal with the unfavorable exposure it has received. ANI, Zee News, New Delhi Times, and hundreds of its partners throughout the world exploited these internal fault-lines, but Islamabad failed to notice this fact.

When reporting on Pakistan, these three news organisations concentrated on Balochistan, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), and religious minorities as their key sources of information.

“The Indian government’s inability to prohibit this kind of harmful conduct tells a lot about them,” says Claude Rakisits, an ANU professor. There is no evidence to suggest that New Delhi was behind the effort, but they sure as hell didn’t care.

For Pakistan, whose image has been tarnished by India’s long-term campaign against it, the Indian Chronicles study may constitute an opportunity for savvy diplomacy. In light of this scandal, it is clear that the world’s largest democracy is engaged in a purposeful and targeted disinformation campaign. Nazir Gilani, a British jurist, says that Pakistan has a strong case to make in the European Union and the United Nations.

Latest Incidents Spreading Misinformation:

Simultaneously, such non state groups are still operating to spread more deception and negatively portraying Pakistan’s relations with its friendly countries. For example, a news was circulating last week which entailed that our Muslim brother country Turkey has tightened visa policy for Pakistanis. As per our research, the news is totally fake, but has been shared by a number of authentic platforms. There are many similar instances as well. Conclusively, the authorities would have to take a staunch approach in tackling this menace.

Preventive Measures Taken by the Incumbent Govt to Curb fake news:

Marriyum Aurangzeb, the newly sworn-in Information Minister of the incumbent government, said  that the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) laws would be amended to “eliminate fake news.”

According to a source, the decision was taken following a meeting between the information minister and the Media Joint Action Committee (MJAC), with the forum agreeing that fake news harms national security and communal harmony.

The government must acts with resilience and caution by devising a regulatory framework after amending PEMRA laws. The matter holds much significance as it involves our national integrity and global image.

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