THEY'RE COMING AFTER THE FEDERALIST, EPOCH TIMES, NEWSMAX, AND PRAGERU

 

Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, public health officials have warned about the dangers of a parallel “infodemic” — the spread of conspiracy theories, misinformation and disinformation about the virus. 

Some of that misinformation, it seems, has been spread by media outlets that have benefited from the federal government’s COVID-19 relief program. 

According to a joint analysis conducted by the counter-disinformation consulting firm Alethea Group and the nonprofit Global Disinformation Index, at least five companies behind some of the internet’s top sources of false, misleading or conspiratorial information related to COVID-19, including the Epoch Times, Newsmax and the Federalist, received sizable loans from the federal government as part of the Paycheck Protection Program. 

“These outlets are getting money from the government in response to a pandemic that they are having an active role in prolonging,” said Danny Rogers, chief technology officer at GDI, which uses a combination of expert analysis and machine learning technology to track the spread of disinformation narratives online.

GRTWT.