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One Professional Russian Troll Tells All
Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) ^ | March 25, 2015 | Dmitry Volchek and Daisy Sindelar

Posted on 03/26/2015 7:55:01 AM PDT by WhiskeyX

More and more, posts and commentaries on the Internet in Russia and even abroad are generated by professional trolls, many of whom receive a higher-than-average salary for perpetuating a pro-Kremlin dialogue online.

There are thousands of fake accounts on Twitter, Facebook, LiveJournal, and vKontakte, all increasingly focused on the war in Ukraine. Many emanate from Russia's most famous "troll factory," the Internet Research center, an unassuming building on St. Petersburg's Savushkina Street, which runs on a 24-hour cycle. In recent weeks, former employees have come forward to talk to RFE/RL about life inside the factory, where hundreds of people work grinding, 12-hour shifts in exchange for 40,000 rubles ($700) a month or more.

St. Petersburg blogger Marat Burkhard spent two months working at Internet Research in the department tasked with clogging the forums on Russia's municipal websites with pro-Kremlin comments. In the following interview, he describes a typical day and the type of assignments he encountered.

(Excerpt) Read more at rferl.org ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; Russia
KEYWORDS: disinformation; internetresearch; propaganda; russia
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To: tcrlaf

“Anything not pre-approved Ukraine State Government Propaganda, or anything that might make the coup government look bad, no matter what the facts are, is “Supporting Putin”.”

That is another of your false propaganda lies and a strawman argument.

1. As you have been repeatedly reminded, the Verhovna Rada is the legitimately elected government of the Ukraine and cannot in any way, shape, or form be honestly described as a “coup” government. Even Putin’s Russian government recognized the Verkhovna Rada as the legitimately elected government of the Ukraine until Russia conducted the criminal invasion, occupation, and conquest of the Ukraine’s territories.

2. Ukrainian and non-Ukrainian news sources and blogs routinely publicize news stories about the corruption in the Ukrainian government and the role of Soros and others to propagate their own propaganda, true and false.

So, you can either retract your above lies or face popular condemnation as a pro-criminal disinformation propagandist for Putin and Russia.


41 posted on 03/26/2015 9:55:19 AM PDT by WhiskeyX
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To: tcrlaf

There you go again with your efforts to change the topic of this thread again.


42 posted on 03/26/2015 9:56:30 AM PDT by WhiskeyX
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To: mac_truck

that’s awesome mac


43 posted on 03/26/2015 9:58:05 AM PDT by roofgoat
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To: WhiskeyX
cannot in any way, shape, or form be honestly described as a “coup” government.
44 posted on 03/26/2015 9:58:08 AM PDT by tcrlaf (They told me it could never happen in America. And then it did....)
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To: WhiskeyX

We get it...

The violent coup wasn’t actually a “Coup” coup...
Those Nazi’s aren’t actually “Nazi” Nazi’s...
The Civil War is not a “Civil War” Cvil War...

Yada, yada, yada...
You give Orwellian propagandists a bad name.


45 posted on 03/26/2015 10:00:52 AM PDT by tcrlaf (They told me it could never happen in America. And then it did....)
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To: tcrlaf
So the US, Russia and Ukraine have Oligarchs controlling all or some of the country and economy.

You side with Russia

Why?

46 posted on 03/26/2015 10:03:01 AM PDT by lormand (Inside every liberal is a dung slinging monkey)
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To: WhiskeyX

You post paid Obama-controlled State Department propaganda, which says the Russians are using paid propaganda.

I’m guessing the IRONY of that is completely lost to you, isn’t it...


47 posted on 03/26/2015 10:05:46 AM PDT by tcrlaf (They told me it could never happen in America. And then it did....)
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To: lormand

any more strawmen?


48 posted on 03/26/2015 10:06:43 AM PDT by tcrlaf (They told me it could never happen in America. And then it did....)
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To: Paid_Russian_Troll

Are you or have you ever been paid to post on this website called FreeRepublic.com? /sarc

49 posted on 03/26/2015 10:09:54 AM PDT by McGruff (Boy that Ted Cruz sure is catching alot of flak.)
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To: tcrlaf

“Violent fantasy now, as well, eh??

It cannot hardly be described as a fantasy for a metaphor, because it is an accurate description of how your Putin’s Russia treats dissenters who dare to speak out against Putin’s regime or simply end up being assassinated or murdered execution style.

It is also an accurate insofar as you have a habit of coming into FR threads to defend Putin’s Russia and/or change the subject to something critical of the United States and U.S. allies. When you attempt to change the subject like that you typically employ what Wkipedia describes as follows:

Tu quoque [1] Latin for “you, too” or “you, also”) or the appeal to hypocrisy is an informal logical fallacy that intends to discredit the opponent’s position by asserting the opponent’s failure to act consistently in accordance with that position. It attempts to show that a criticism or objection applies equally to the person making it. This attempts to dismiss opponent’s position based on criticism of the opponent’s inconsistency and not the position presented.[2] It is a special case of ad hominem fallacy, which is a category of fallacies in which a claim or argument is rejected on the basis of fact about the person presenting or supporting the claim or argument.[3] To clarify, although the person being attacked might indeed be acting inconsistently or hypocritically, such behavior does not invalidate the position presented.

“Sorry your propaganda try got quashed by the facts yet again, but there ya have it.”

In your fantasies only.


50 posted on 03/26/2015 10:10:09 AM PDT by WhiskeyX
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To: McGruff

Not yet, to be honest. Thought to start with it when folks pinged me to this thread. Changed my mind upon learning how low the pay is.


51 posted on 03/26/2015 10:20:34 AM PDT by Paid_Russian_Troll
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To: PatHimself

ANd if you follow the Soviet propaganda and lines from RT and the like you may as well throw in that they are nothing more than propaganda machines by the evil running dog capitalists.

Pick up the phone. Alex wants to chat


52 posted on 03/26/2015 10:21:14 AM PDT by Nifster
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To: mac_truck

Pick up the phone. Alex and Vlad want to chat


53 posted on 03/26/2015 10:22:07 AM PDT by Nifster
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To: PieterCasparzen

Oh for crying out loud....go away already. You know nothing of the US or how it works.


54 posted on 03/26/2015 10:23:48 AM PDT by Nifster
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To: tcrlaf

And you have a love affair with the dictator that is Putin and his silly arguments. You have consistently ignored anything that suggests that what happened in the Ukraine and the Crimea is part of Putin’s KGB mind set.

You and Alex have a lot in common


55 posted on 03/26/2015 10:29:19 AM PDT by Nifster
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To: WhiskeyX; All

While you are shilling paid propaganda about Ukraine, it looks like it may soon become a THREE-WAY CIVIL WAR.

Kolomoisky is calling for Nationwide Demonstrations against Kiev for Saturday.
And Yarosh has already said Right Sector won’t follow Poroshenko’s orders.
http://www.ipnews.in.ua/index.php/2015/03/26/kolomoyskiy-rassyilaet-prizyivyi-k-protestam/


56 posted on 03/26/2015 10:30:15 AM PDT by tcrlaf (They told me it could never happen in America. And then it did....)
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To: WhiskeyX

Wall Street Journal, the Guardian, they’ve all reported this. The Putin supporters are so abrasive, it’s hard to match their dinginess.

I wonder if this plant in St. Petersburg has equipment, computers to disguise the trolls location.


57 posted on 03/26/2015 10:31:13 AM PDT by BeadCounter
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To: Nifster

“You have consistently ignored anything that suggests that what happened in the Ukraine and the Crimea is part of Putin’s KGB mind set.”

No, I haven’t.
If you’d been paying attention, you would already know that I noted his background many times, since this first began.

But that isn’t really the point of your comment, is it?


58 posted on 03/26/2015 10:32:04 AM PDT by tcrlaf (They told me it could never happen in America. And then it did....)
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To: tcrlaf

Your acceptance of the Soviets take over of a country they had NO right to invade I still find interesting...and delusional


59 posted on 03/26/2015 10:36:34 AM PDT by Nifster
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To: tcrlaf

There is nothing ironic about it. During the Second World War one of the most successful radio propaganda operations was the U.S. broadcast of radio shows, news, and music to the German Kriegsmarine and U-boat crews, who had good reason to know from personal experience that the propaganda could be relied upon to be truthful.


60 posted on 03/26/2015 10:36:48 AM PDT by WhiskeyX
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