How SA fake news hit Russian media and 5 highlights from 'Vrye Weekblad'

An obscure SA news website nearly caused an international incident when its fake news story was spread as the gospel truth in Russian media.

Shortly after Ukranian Airlines flight PS752 was shot down by Iranian government forces in January, LiveReport posted their story stating that the American government was responsible for the incident, in which all 176 passengers and crew died.

The article, which was of course fake news, was picked up by the Russian media and spread fast. Even after the Iranian government admitted that they shot the passenger plane down (by accident) the story kept on circulating.

It crossed language and continental borders and could have had dire consequences. Fake news is not a victimless crime and it can have unintended consequences that are difficult to control.

In this week's edition of Afrikaans digital weekly Vrye Weekblad. we take a look a look at how the article spread and try, and fail, to find out why it was published in the first place.

Fake news is nothing new, but the approach and technique have been modernised to such an extent that a little SA page can create a diplomatic incident. And in this case, the 176 victims and their families were exploited for political gain.

But why on earth did they publish a story that is so completely baseless?

We could not figure out if the motive for the planted story was financial, as the site appears not to run ads, which is vital if you want to make money out of a fake news site.

The company address given on the LiveReport site is only a street address for a building with multiple offices in the Joburg CBD, and the only contact option is a gmail address.

We could not reach them to ask what their motive was.  

The law has not yet caught up with fake news, and it is unclear what recourse there is for individuals, companies or governments who suffer damages or loss due to fake news.

Just know that if you share fake news, whether it is news that could start World War III or a silly (fake) story about the police minister requesting that you keep your lights on during load-shedding (he didn't), you are either playing someone's political game or making them a lot of money.

Read the full article in this week's Vrye Weekblad

Must-read articles in this week's Vrye Weekblad

>> Browse the full February 21 edition

THE WEEK IN POLITICS | South Africans will have to acknowledge that the EFF is a threat to the democratic order, and the media had a large role to play in it. And also, Cyril Ramaphosa will have to realise that you can't bring a silk handkerchief to a knife fight, writes Max du Preez.

WE TALK TO HERMAN | Herman Mashaba tells Anneliese Burgess why he will spend the rest of his life working to bring the ANC to a fall, and shares what he really thinks of Helen Zille.

FREE TO READ — KARMA CATCH-UP | FW de Klerk further tarnished his legacy with his utterances about apartheid last week, but perhaps this debate about crimes against humanity has brought a new moment of introspection for whites, writes Max du Preez.

FREE TO READ — BILLIONS FOR BLUE LIGHTS | Government spends a fortune to protect VIPs, but don't expect this budget to be cut any time soon, says Willem Kempen.

FREE TO READ — IT'S A WHITE THING | There is deep-seated hate for black liberals in SA. You are either a revolutionary or you are a sell-out and nothing in between, writes Ismail Lagardien.