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How Forums Are Being Taken Over By Pro-Arab Groups, Who Flood The Forums With Hate Propaganda
Ha'aretz ^ | June, 5, 2002 | Mary Sagi-Maydan

Posted on 06/05/2002 3:36:46 AM PDT by the_second_moon

PALO ALTO – When he discovered anti-Israeli propaganda in an Internet site devoted to baking bread, Doron Gal was dumfounded. It would seem that Islamic and anti-Israeli forces discovered the world wide web long before Israelis did, and they are running a well-oiled machine to create public opinion in cyberspace. For such purposes, a site on making cookies is just as good as a political vehicle.

Asked why such groups infiltrate non-political sites, Gal, a doctor in geophysics and a co-founder of the startup DigiGroups, explains that like movie stars – bad publicity is better than no publicity at all. Even if other participants in the forum ask them to change the subject, it takes time until their claims drop to the bottom of the screen. Meanwhile, people see them and take in the message.

"They have set criteria by which to choose sites," Gal says: sites that can boast heavy surfer traffic, or that are popular with younger people, because the young tend to be more radical. And, of course, sites devoted to political debate.

Moreover, they have clever ways to promote their agenda. For instance, the writer could claim that he can’t concentrate on baking bread because his uncle in Bethlehem was just killed by Israelis. That attracts attention.

Only after Gal had visited several sites over several days did he cotton on. It can't be that every time somebody starts to break the eggs into his bread dough in Palestine, his uncle gets killed. Something methodical was going on. The following sentence, after mentioning the uncle's demise, would take a more militant tone, for instance a description of how Israelis murder babies and sell their organs.

The hate-drenched lies appear in thousands of sites. Googling for "intifada" leads to some 50 pro-Palestinian sites, and barely two or three pro-Israeli ones. That is because Google's technology leads to the most popular sites. Popularity is measured, in part, by the number of links to the site on Internet. The Palestinian sites link to one another, and Google identifies them as outstandingly popular.

Methodology of disseminating hate

The Islamicist extremists are cunning in their exploitation of the electronic media, , Gal admits. One method is for several activists to log on to a forum or chat room together, and discourse between them. One raises the claim about Israelis selling body parts of murdered Palestinians. When the argument turns tense, another comes in ostensibly holding more moderate views – making the other chatters feel he is objective.

"It is very hard for a private individual to handle this kind of propaganda on the Internet," Gal says. If the situation is to be amended, it has to be handled in an organized fashion.

"When I realized how serious the situation is, given my experience in Internet communities (through his startup DigiGroups), I decided I want to undertake the mission. I don't see myself as a propagandist and don't see it as a career. But I know what has to be done and how to return war."

Gal, 37, is at a good time in his life to undertake the job. His startup was sold in a stock swap. Given the tough market he'd be better off looking for a new job right away, but as an Israeli who cares – he feels compelled to tackle this mission first.

Doron Gal founded digiGroups in 1999 together with Uri Sarid and Eran Liron. The company created a web-based platform for building business communities. Gal says he was less attracted by the hope of making millions, and more by the opportunity to be at the fore-front of technological advance, and to create something big of use to people. Back then, he says wryly, naivete was okay. The three ex-academicians thought they were joining a brand new world –mistakenly, of course.

Anyway, they managed to raise $14 million for their startup, settled for unusually low salaries (for that time) and settled down to work very, very hard. At its peak the company boasted 40 employees, but it targeted vertical marketplaces, which turned out to be a bad move. As its market dried up, the company started to seek new angles, Gal tells.

"It isn't easy to take a glove and find it a new hand," he says. The company adapted its product to big enterprises. But the sector, and Internet, were at a nadir. The venture capital funds figured it would take ages to return their investment, and when digiGroups got a takeover offer – they pushed, and it bit. Despite prior understandings, the buyer, Noosh, cut the staff in half and Gal too found himself on the sidewalk, holding a block of Noosh shares, living in an expensive neighborhood with his wife Michal and two kids, and with no salary.

Seduced by Internet propaganda

It may not have gone public, but digiGroups brought Doron Gal to the world of Internet communities.

"I noticed that several big forums in which hundreds of thousands of people participate are being taken over by anti-Israeli and pro-Arab groups, who flood the forums with hate propaganda," Gal says. "If you consider that in the U.S. alone, 134 million people are linked to Internet, and half of them actively participate in all kinds of groups, you see that the impact of such propaganda can be enormous."

"The deeper I probed, the graver the things I uncovered," he continues. "A typical story might run like this.

'Here's proof there never were gas chambers (in the Holocaust – the writer links to several sites). 'It's a bunch of Jewish lies to divert attention from their massacres of Palestinians.' (More links.) 'The Jews aren't strategic allies. All the States needs is oil, but it supports the Jews because they control Congress and the media. (More links to prove his case.)

"I sat down to reply at length, to refute his case," Gal says. "I showed that the links were misleading. In retrospect, I realize I was amateurish. When you encounter such claims for the first time, it takes ages to prove they're fatuous. Meanwhile tons of people have seem them and the debate has changed subject. The key is that the answer has to come fast.

"The more experience I gained, the more I understood the need for fast, catchy answers. It isn't just a war over opinions, it's a propaganda war. Sometimes the answer needs to be clear and informative, sometimes just a disparaging comment like 'Don't you get tired of writing that crap? Go fly a plane into a skyscraper.'

"It's a war, and we're coming to it too little, too late. The assumption is that they have hundreds of thousands of activists and about 10 to 20 times as many inactive supporters, meaning, millions. They are well organized, they have access to easy, convenient-to-use information, and they are trying to delegitimize Israel by rewriting the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Results in half a year

"The war isn't lost," Doron Gal declares. There are pro-Israeli groups that produce solid information, but their efforts are too scattered and purely pathetic compared with the smooth operation of the anti-Israeli groups.

DigiGroups taught Gal the power of Internet communities, in which leaders wield tremendous clout. "I believe we can round up several hundred volunteers, including Israelis with good command of English. Our purpose is to support our activists, and organize material and technology allowing efficient use of Internet for them." The idea would be to insert replies within seconds to hate-propaganda on websites.

Gal believes that organizing and training people will take a few months. Results should become evident within half a year. He needs $580,000 to make it happen, a fraction of the cost of big ad campaigns.

"As a family man and father to two children, I should have started looking for a job right away," he admits. "My wife Michal hates uncertainty." But a cause is a cause and Gal is confident the money for the anti-anti-Israel campaign can be found, enabling him to devote all his attention to the project.

And if it can't? He'll have to take a day job, and devote his evenings, weekends and holidays to the cause. "It may not be efficient," he realizes, "but I'd rather fight the war with one hand tied behind my back, than not fight at all."


TOPICS: Activism/Chapters; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: arabs; forums; hate; israel; propaganda
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To: Lion Den Dan
It is so un-PC to criticize Israel.

Huh?
So I guess this means that NPR is not politically correct.
And a lot of European media outlets as well!

Who'd a thunk it?
101 posted on 06/05/2002 2:20:36 PM PDT by VOA
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To: Gerfang
Before I take the time to find out where the snakes are coming from, I need to kill the one that is an immediate danger to me. What danger, do you ask? On 9/11, the danger was fundy islamics killing Americans. Has that changed one iota? Is Bin Laden dead? Is Al Qaeda no more? Has high-level fundy islamics come out against terrorsit attacks against Americans? Has Islamic Jihad, Al Qaeda, Hezzbollah, and about every other pro-palestinian group stopped their terrorism?

I was not even posting about Israel. Israel was not a big deal with me, until 9/11. Look, I felt the Treaty of Versailles was a bad deal for the Germans, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't have fought each and every Nazi after Hitler declared war on us in 1941.

The turning point is that fundy islam declared war on the USA and committed war against Americans. Don't let those 3,000 lie unavenged! After the terrorist fundy islamics are dead I'll worry about Israel.

102 posted on 06/05/2002 3:05:44 PM PDT by Alas Babylon!
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To: Alas Babylon!
Did I take a left turn into a Berkeley site? Where'd all these mindless terrorist synchophants come from?
103 posted on 06/05/2002 3:17:06 PM PDT by A Navy Vet
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To: MarMema
Bumping this June 2002 article.
104 posted on 09/17/2002 2:05:17 AM PDT by 2sheep
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To: 2sheep
Bookmark.
105 posted on 10/27/2003 12:02:03 PM PST by KentTrappedInLiberalSeattle ("The Clintons have damaged our country. They have done it together, in unison." -- Peggy Noonan)
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To: Lion Den Dan
You're so right. I don't understand why we still support Israel after 19 of their citizens funded by the Mossad flew four hijacked American jetliners into two of America's highest skyscrapers, one into the Pentagon and only American bravery stopped the fourth one from presumably the Capitol.
I for one was imprewsed by the average Arab showing their undying suppot for America.

They get their women and children to strap on bombs and board crowded busses full of commuters which they then blow up killing sometimes EVERYONE on board.

They have no respect for anyone's religion but their own. They demand we stop making war on their holy days like Yom Kippur yet they murder with reckless abandon during the month of Ramadon when the peace loving islmacists try in vain to quietly worship their moon G-d.





106 posted on 10/27/2003 12:30:40 PM PST by Lx (Vote for Hillary because Satan wasn't born here although his daughter is eligible.)
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To: SJackson; Yehuda; Nachum; Paved Paradise; Mr. Mojo; Thinkin' Gal; Bobby777; adam_az; Alouette; ...
Ping.
107 posted on 10/27/2003 2:23:37 PM PST by yonif ("If I Forget Thee, O Jerusalem, Let My Right Hand Wither" - Psalms 137:5)
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To: Lx; yonif; Yehuda; veronica; dennisw; Alouette; Salem; Catspaw
How odd, I thought it was 15 Saudis, 4 Egyptians.

Tricky critters, those Jews.

Care to post any proof to back it up?

108 posted on 10/27/2003 2:26:39 PM PST by SJackson
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To: Lion Den Dan
Are you French?
109 posted on 10/27/2003 2:29:19 PM PST by Catspaw
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To: northernwilson; Poohbah; dighton; aculeus; general_re; L,TOWM; Constitution Day; Thinkin' Gal; ...
"This is the most likely reason that many Europeans tend to sympathize with the Palestinians and are more critical of Israel."

More than likely, it's for the same reason the French, Dutch, Belgians, and Chamberlain's Britain were so "understanding" of the German need for the Austrian Anschluss and the Czechoslovakian dismemberment ...

...too cowardly to stand up and fight, hoping against hope that the whirlwind they were feeding wouldn't turn in their direction and eat them as well.

110 posted on 10/27/2003 2:37:56 PM PST by BlueLancer (Der Elite Møøsenspåånkængrüppen ØberKømmååndø (EMØØK))
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To: Catspaw; Lx
You twits make my case.
111 posted on 10/27/2003 3:00:43 PM PST by Lion Den Dan
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To: Lion Den Dan
You're all charm.
112 posted on 10/27/2003 3:01:15 PM PST by Catspaw
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To: BlueLancer
Northernwilson has gone west.
113 posted on 10/27/2003 3:16:55 PM PST by dighton (Nasty Little Clique™)
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To: dighton
another one bites the dust...
114 posted on 10/27/2003 3:20:05 PM PST by Catspaw
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To: BlueLancer; Poohbah; dighton; aculeus; general_re; Constitution Day; Thinkin' Gal; Catspaw; ...
Still posting to me, you Zionist infidel dog?

Allahu K-bar
Kareem O'weet
ululululululululululu...

115 posted on 10/27/2003 3:41:49 PM PST by L,TOWM (Liberals, The Other White Meat)
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To: L,TOWM
Kareem O'weet

Didn't he play center for the Bucks, then the Lakers? Then was in a movie or two?

Ooops, wrong Kareem.

116 posted on 10/27/2003 3:46:36 PM PST by Catspaw
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To: SJackson
I didn't read what the others you posted to wrote but I was parroting the B.S. lines the Palestinian apologists always say. I mean, c'mon, Islamacists in the streets supporting the U.S? Remember how happy the Palestinians were on 9/11, I can still see that one wearing the blank tent making that hideous sounds they do when they celebrate.

Incidentaly, Islamacists comes back as "Islam cists" in the Word 2000 spell checker. LOL.
117 posted on 10/27/2003 3:50:54 PM PST by Lx (Vote for Hillary because Satan wasn't born here although his daughter is eligible.)
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To: the_second_moon
MSNBC, about 6 or 7 years ago, had these types on the politcal message board. They were the same three, and all their IP's ( don't know if MSNBC still lists them ) were from Toronto, Canada.
118 posted on 10/27/2003 4:09:20 PM PST by Tench_Coxe
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To: Lion Den Dan
Y'Know, .. UNTIL I see or "Hear About" a "Sabra" Suicide Bomber, my Moral Choice is Unequivocal.

The "Islamicists" have UTTERLY SQUANDERED any "Moral Legitimacy" they MIGHT have "Laid Claim to," by their indiscriminate Murder of Innocents.

NO culture which promotes/advocates the Murder of Innocents has ANY "Moral Legitimacy!"

The "Pali's, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Al Queda," & MANY OTHER groups of Psychopaths who use "Islam" as a "Justification" for their Murder of Innocents have removed Themselves from ANY consideration as "Human Beings." These Groups have--by Their Words & Actions--declared themselves mortal enemies of Humankind. They are "Bugs" we must exterminate in order to create a stable, Civilized, Human Society.

I Base my beliefs on an old, longstanding belief in Human Culture; "any Creature which Knowingly Harms another Intelligent Creature is a 'Varmit!'"

Aggressive, Dangerous Varmits are routinely exterminated.

Many Human Settlements have been Saved by the Above Rule!

Our current "War" is NOT a battle between Human Civilizations; it is a battle to exterminate a number of annoying & dangerous Varmits!

We'll do Better when we understand the nature of our attackers--& deal with them accordingly!

Doc

119 posted on 10/27/2003 4:52:49 PM PST by Doc On The Bay
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To: Lx
Not to worry, I don't use /sarcasm either :>)
120 posted on 10/27/2003 6:39:46 PM PST by SJackson
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