Press: University of Edinburgh academic Tim Hayward accused of spreading propaganda

A university professor has been accused of spreading Russian propaganda about the war in Ukraine after tweeting a link to an article suggesting that the attack on a Mariupol theatre was a false flag operation.

Dr Aliaksandr Herasimenka, a fellow at Oxford University’s Oxford Martin Programme on Misinformation, Science and Media, said:

“It’s normal to question and verify whatever information is coming from conflict. However we must be very careful when doing it.

“These are narratives that have previously been spread by Russian official state-backed media outlets and these outlets are currently engaged in a massive disinformation campaign.

“The outcome of that campaign is unfortunately loss of lives in Ukraine.

“Putin wants people to concentrate on these toxic news outlets rather than paying attention to serious topics like whether he’s about to use chemical weapons.”

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