The spread of the troll factory’s hashtag among English-language users was therefore minimal. Even its Russian-language spread was limited.

Nevertheless, the next step in the propaganda chain was for Russian state “information weapon” RT to run a lengthy article (eight paragraphs and 27 embedded tweets) claiming that “Twitterati” were “disappointed” with Freeman’s comments, headlining the hashtag.

RT’s headline and lede from the article on September 20, 2017, just a few hours after AgitPolk launched its campaign. Archived the same day. (Source: RT)

The article skillfully avoided stating how little reach the troll factory’s campaign actually achieved in English, using indeterminate terms such as “some users have gone as far as saying they have lost respect for the Hollywood star,” “People said that the ‘democracy’ statement is pure hypocrisy,” and “people on social media said that Freeman’s video is itself ‘shameful’ propaganda.” It also referred to the traffic as an “outcry,” and linked to an article terming Freeman’s comments “anti-Moscow hysteria.”

Tellingly, although the article and accompanying tweet headlined the troll factory’s hashtag, only six of the tweets it quoted mentioned it— all of them from primarily Russian-language accounts. Just two tweets out of the twenty-seven quoted defended Freeman; they were in the final paragraphs.

The article therefore appears to have served two purposes: to amplify attacks on Freeman in general, and to boost the troll factory hashtag in particular.

From RT to the fringe

RT was the hashtag’s main amplifier, spreading the troll factory’s Twitter campaign to new platforms. Its Facebook post of the article was shared a modest 67 times, and drew 662 reactions, not all positive.

RT’s Facebook share of its own article. (Source: RT / Facebook)

A separate share, reproducing Freeman’s video, but adding the caption “Anti-Russia Rant” and the link to the RT article on #StopMorganLie, was viewed over half a million times and shared over 3,700 times.

RT’s annotated share of the Freeman video; note the number of views at the foot of the image. (Source: RT / Facebook)

RT’s article was picked up by a number of disparate sources. They included a Pinterest page focused on socialism and politics; an aggregator site called pressaspect.com; an ostensibly travel-focused site based in Hawaii; and a site dedicated to Russians in Florida.

The RT article did not spread to other mainstream outlets, and, as our scan indicated, the hashtag had limited reach on social platforms. However, it did achieve some further reach on fringe and clickbait sites.

Conclusion

The importance of the #StopMorganLie campaign was in what it showed us about the Russian propaganda machine.

The hashtag was launched by a website which appears to be run from the troll factory. Initially, it was amplified by Twitter and VK accounts, human and automated, run by the same organization.

The campaign was then amplified by the verified accounts of Russian diplomatic missions, which added their own memes to the mix. It was further boosted by RT, which used carefully vague wording and selective tweets to make it look more significant than it really was.

Each of these outlets claims to be a separate institution; in a genuine, pluralist democracy in which the media are editorially independent of the state, they would be. However, their independence is a facade: on this evidence, they work together to promote a common narrative.

The troll factory, RT and Russia’s diplomatic missions are all parts of a full spectrum state communications effort. To understand Russia’s information and influence operations, it is important to understand that approach.