General Valerii Zaluzhnyi was among those reported to have a home in Los Angeles, although he … [+]
The line between satire and misinformation continues to blur on social media, where the context of a joke post can be mistaken for real news. When the source of the original “fake news” is a Russian Telegram channel, the line blurs even further.
Such was the case last weekend when claims were made on social media that among the homes destroyed in the tragic fires in Los Angeles were homes belonging to at least eight Ukrainian general military officers.
On Saturday, the Russian Telegram channel Military Observer first posted: “According to Ukrainian sources, 8 buildings owned by senior Ukrainian military personnel were burned during large-scale fires in Los Angeles. The total value of these properties reaches $90 million and it is said that it was bought with the funds provided by the West as part of the economic aid to Kiev after the start of the war”.
Later posts named Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the former Ukrainian four-star general and current Ukrainian ambassador to the United Kingdom, as one of those who lost their homes.
Satire, but really misinformation
The original Telegram post did indeed include the hashtag “сатира” (Russian for satire), but subsequent reposts did not mention that it was made in jest. This was true after the story started circulating on Facebook and X. However, even as “satire”, it is not clear where the humor lies in the original post, except perhaps for the Russian audience who could enjoy that every Ukrainian would see it. their house burns down in the devastating California wildfires.
“There is no evidence that any Ukrainian general owns any property in LA, much less a mansion,” said Dr. Matthew Schmidt, professor of national security and political science at the University of New Haven.
Humor likely wasn’t even the point, and instead, the outlets posting the claims likely wanted it to be believed as fact — much like the news last summer that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spent $15 million to buy a Mercedes 770 that was previously owned. by Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, or that Zelensky’s wife bought a Bugatti sports car. Neither was true, of course, but both times, it appeared that some users believed the stories.
“Russian intelligence floods the information space with these things to play their narrative that Ukraine is corrupt and the Russian war there,” Schmidt explained. “It’s that simple.”
Social media has become the perfect propaganda tool
The ongoing war in Ukraine has proven that platforms like Telegram and X can help disinformation campaigns reach the masses in a way that was not possible before.
“Social media is the match that lights the fire. Its scope and speed for the spread of misinformation is unlike any other media. It allows misinformation to spread like wildfire, usually causing harm to an adversary,” warned the industry analyst. technology Susan Schreiner of C4 Trends.
“Russian Telegram channels are at it again,” added Dan Brahmy, CEO of disinformation detection platform Cyabra. “The claim is absurd, but the real problem is how easily these stories spread across platforms. Messages like this don’t stay on Telegram – they go to X, Facebook and TikTok, where they develop and reach even larger audiences. Top About , fake campaigns often repurpose unrelated content to fit their narrative, further amplifying it. It’s not just about misinformation – it’s about how quickly it crosses the platform and gains traction.”
Disinformation fits an existing narrative
All of these disinformation campaigns have a common thread – they are based on the unfounded belief that Ukrainian officials are getting rich while the war continues. The Russian propaganda effort is thus to encourage support for the war in the country, while making those in the West question any aid sent to Kiev.
“People predisposed to believe stories like this will take it as yet another ‘false’ data point of corruption and largesse in the Ukrainian military, and at the same time, a sweet act of karma that these imaginary palaces are burning down on the ground,” he said. Schmidt. “It is also not insignificant that there is a religious aspect to this story – that a righteous God is striking the wrongdoers with a very biblical plague of fire.”
War of Words
Although Russia has been unable to achieve victory on the ground, its keyboard warriors continue to carry water for the Kremlin, spreading the “news” of Ukraine’s perceived corruption.
According to Cyabra’s new report “The Truth Wars: How Three Global Powers Compete to Manipulate Your Online Reality,” Russia uses fake accounts across social media, where it has distributed hundreds of tightly synchronized, high-volume, which flood the platforms in large quantities. with identical, automated content.
Campaigns also often run on weekends in the US for maximum audience impact.
“The next fight for democracy won’t be fought with tanks or missiles — it’s already being fought on our social media feeds,” Brahmy said. “State-sponsored disinformation isn’t just fake news. It’s a precision weapon designed to fracture societies, erode public trust, and reshape global power dynamics. AI-driven narratives have 45% more more likely to go viral than reality, which means the same algorithms designed to connect us may end up dividing us more than ever.”
