Fourest: “Behind the social media hype about the Italian boxer’s case is Moscow’s hybrid war”

PARIS – The intellectual Caroline Fourestdirector of the weekly Free-Shooteran expert in disinformation systems, had already denounced Russia’s “hybrid war” against the Paris Games a few weeks ago. “Today we see it in action,” Fourest observes regarding the controversy over the boxer Imane Khelif – but as a first response I would like to say that we must not fall into a trap.”

Which?

“It is not enough to say that it is just fake news or that it is only a manipulation of the pro-Russian far right. We must unmask the irrational and excessive element of this disinformation campaign on the Algerian boxer but at the same time recognize that there is a legitimate debate on how to create sports categories that help restore the balance of competitions. The gender issue exists, it runs through sport, but it must be addressed calmly and serenely, and not in the rush of a sporting retirement that is then exploited.”

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What do you think about Angela Carini’s abandonment?

“Beyond the real motivations of the Italian boxer, it seems clear to me that we are faced with a typical ‘disinformation blitz’. Let’s start from the beginning. This rumor is spreading, pushed by the Russian agency Tass, according to which the Algerian boxer did not pass a femininity test by the Iba boxing federation. First objection: the federation denies that there was a chromosomal test, so what are we talking about? A femininity test means nothing. Second objection: the disqualification of the Algerian boxer was decided by a federation that is no longer recognized by the IOC precisely because it is in the hands of Gazprom and the Russians, with serious reliability problems. So we have a boxing federation discredited in the world of sport that does a femininity test that does not correspond to anything, exaggerated by a Russian agency to pass off a female boxer as a man. The registry office says that she is a woman, as do her photos as a child. But here are all the ingredients together to create exactly the kind of controversy that Russian robots and the far right like, within the aim of preventing the normal running of these Games.”

Why?

«Paris 2024 is a bête noire for Vladimir Putin. All Russian disinformation systems are mobilized at this stage. And the gender issue is one of their many obsessions to radicalize opinions and allow the polarization of the debate as is happening with the Algerian boxer. Before the opening of the Games, we published on Free-Shooter a long investigation with researcher David Colon, demonstrating that Russia has created from scratch sites and profiles resembling normal news outlets to produce and spread fake news about Paris 2024. The disinformation service of the GRU – Russian military intelligence – thanks to artificial intelligence can create hundreds of thousands of fake accounts and comments that seem real in a few minutes. At that point, many real profiles, which find content that corresponds to their vision of the world, amplify the spread. The official accounts of the usual pro-Russian far-right profiles add strength to the entire operation. Russia’s financial support for these parties has already been evoked in the past. The sum of all these mechanisms makes it very easy to sow chaos on a delicate or sensitive topic.

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Was this also the case with the controversy over the queer banquet being described as a parody of the Last Supper?

«The mechanism is the same. What happened? There was a moment of the ceremony that could be vaguely inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s painting. But there was also a singer (Philippe Katherine, ndr.) painted in blue with a crown of grapes on his head, a clear reference to Dionysus, the god of celebration and wine, on the Greek theme of Olympus. Russian robots have managed to amplify the voices of all those who wanted to see Jesus, and not Dionysus. From my point of view, it would not be serious if it had been an inspiration for the Last Supper, it would be part of a typically French irreverent artistic approach. The fact is that the author of the show, director Thomas Jolly, denies it and says he wanted to show a pagan banquet. In this case too, Russian propaganda has worked to distort reality. It is part of the hybrid war that Russia is waging against the West. These Olympics, in which the Russians are not present because of their invasion of Ukraine, are held in France, one of the countries that is standing up to Moscow in the conflict. These are two sufficient reasons to try to destabilize Paris 2024 by any means».

On boxer Khelif as on the show of Thomas Jolly there is no legitimate debate, but a campaign of hate. Jolly has received death threats.

«Il The risk of a far-right terrorist shooting Jolly or someone else involved in these campaigns is becoming serious. The Islamic threat in France has not diminished, but the risk of far-right terrorism is the second highest because of the level of hatred continuously poured into the debate. It is not just a question of geopolitical or informational manipulation, we must also keep in mind that these excesses can endanger people’s lives.

Is there a way to defend yourself?

“We still suffer from a certain amount of naivety among those who have to defend our democracies, but we are making progress. In France, for a long time the French secret services did not dare to talk about these attempts at destabilization. More than a year ago, it was decided to start communicating openly about the intercepted operations. It will take time. We started late. There are even studies that show that on social media, lies travel six times faster than the truth. This is therefore a hybrid and asymmetric war. The only way to try to win is to identify and unmask these mechanisms of manipulation, explaining to citizens what drives them and why. It’s like a 100-meter race. The truth travels more slowly, but when it arrives, it has the last word.”