Days after Bloomberg blamed ‘India-based Twitter accounts’ for the violence in Leicester in England’s East Midlands area, a researcher uncovered how the worldwide information company had been deceptive its readers with click-bait headlines.
On November 16, Bloomberg revealed an article titled, “India-Based Twitter Accounts Fanned UK Unrest, Researchers Say” and claimed social media exercise, originating in India, was chargeable for violence in Leicester.
The worldwide information company shrewdly put the onus of its doubtful declare on ‘researchers’ of the Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) of Rutgers University.
Screengrab of the article by Bloomberg
“Social media was rife with videos claiming to show mosques being set alight and claims of kidnapping, forcing police to issue warnings that people should not believe misinformation online,” the report said, with out mentioning that the disinformation marketing campaign was the handiwork of Islamists in Leicester.
“Many of the Twitter accounts that amplified the unrest originated in India, researchers said,” it claimed. OpIndia had reported how Islamists had falsely blamed the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) for supposedly making an attempt to kidnap a 15-year-old Muslim lady.
A Hindu man was dubbed as a paedophile and his deal with was leaked on Facebook, as a part of the onslaught. Later, it turned out to be faux information.
Today’s replace, overlaying the earlier 24 hours 👇 pic.twitter.com/CSB5ZtpZvS
— East Leicester Police (@LPEastLeics) September 14, 2022
Bloomberg additionally relied on the assertion of Leicester Mayor Peter Soulsby, who had no qualms about assembly Majid Freeman, an ISIS-sympathising Islamist and a conspiracy theorist. Interestingly, Majid has been on the forefront of fuelling anti-Hindu sentiments in Leicester by peddling faux tales.
“US technology companies played a key role in fanning the confrontations, according to Leicester Mayor Peter Soulsby, numerous media reports and participants including Adam Yusuf, a 21-year-old who told a judge that he brought a knife to a demonstration and was “influenced by social media,” Bloomberg claimed in its report.
We had a productive assembly final evening with Peter Soulsby (@MetropolisMayorLeic) the place he made some commitments re the rise in #Islamophobia, acknowledged the #Hindutva ideology is inflicting chaos & lack of funding for youth golf equipment. Thanks Active Muslims Leicester (AML) for facilitating. pic.twitter.com/rH4nEyFDLG
— Majid Freeman (@Majstar7) October 11, 2022
The information company additionally discovered a method to rope in Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and prompt that the anti-Hindu violence in Leicester was the fallout of ‘rising intolerance for Muslims’ in India.
“Anti-Muslim sentiment has been rising in majority-Hindu India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, leading to a narrative that Hindus outside the country, some of whom are not Indian, subscribe to Hindutva, a kind of Hindu nationalism,” it claimed.
Researcher slams Bloomberg for quoting her report out of context
It should be reiterated that Bloomberg relied on a analysis report [pdf] by the Network Contagion Research Institute of Rutgers University for drawing weird inferences and making unsubstantiated claims.
On Tuesday (November 22), the lead writer of the report, Prasiddha Sudhakar, slammed the information company for distorting her findings with respect to the Leicester violence.
As a lead writer & researcher on the Leicester report launched by @ncri_io, I’d prefer to set the report straight after a @enterprise headline has been picked up and circulated prolifically by different shops. It’s a distortion of our report & findings. pic.twitter.com/sswmeJhKpg
— Prasiddha Sudhakar (@prasiddhaa_) November 22, 2022
She identified that the contentious headline chosen by Bloomberg didn’t even characteristic in her research. “The headline is not a cherry-picked sentence from our study. Nor does it misstate a finding therein. Instead, it concocts a conclusion nowhere present in our report,” Prasiddha Sudhakar added.
While stating the deceptive nature of the article by the information company, she mentioned, “The irony that Bloomberg chose a headline that deliberately continues to push a false narrative that our report *debunks and nuances* isn’t lost on me. However, it is indicative of systemic misreporting of the Hindu diaspora and India that infects Western media.”
The irony that @enterprise selected a headline that intentionally continues to push a false narrative that our report *debunks and nuances* isn’t misplaced on me. However, it’s indicative of systemic misreporting of the Hindu diaspora and India that infects Western media.
— Prasiddha Sudhakar (@prasiddhaa_) November 22, 2022
She reiterated how Bloomberg attributed their self-concocted conclusions to the researchers. “Nowhere did researchers claim Indian accounts tweeted 500x a minute, nor that this “fanned religious violence in the UK,” the lead writer of the report added.
As however one illustration, @enterprise cyber editor @jeffstone500 tweeted this:https://t.co/qrwtXdACSm
Nowhere did researchers declare Indian accounts tweeted 500x a minute, nor that this “fanned religious violence in the UK”
— Prasiddha Sudhakar (@prasiddhaa_) November 22, 2022
The researcher continued, “Our report exhaustively documents the way on-the-ground riots in Leicester were mobilized by local social media accounts, not those in India.”
She famous, “Our report notes that an Indian SM echo chamber amplified blame on Muslims, where some escalated to anti-Muslim rhetoric. There’s no evidence to suggest they “fanned UK unrest,” as Bloomberg places it. The NCRI report is obvious.”
Our report notes that an Indian SM echo chamber amplified blame on Muslims, the place some escalated to anti-Muslim rhetoric. There’s no proof to counsel they “fanned UK unrest,” as @enterprise places it. The @ncri_io report is obvious.
— Prasiddha Sudhakar (@prasiddhaa_) November 22, 2022
“Our findings suggest that a “Hindutva bogeyman” was constructed domestically to mobilize violence. Violence in opposition to Hindus & temples was justified underneath the guise of responding to “Hindutva extremism.” False narratives of Hindu violence unfold,” Prasiddha Sudhakar identified.
As researchers whose goal was to check the unfold of misinformation, we additionally really feel an obligation to be exceedingly clear and to do all the things doable to curb the unfold of false narratives that @enterprise has sadly sparked off.
— Prasiddha Sudhakar (@prasiddhaa_) November 22, 2022
She concluded, “As researchers whose objective was to study the spread of misinformation, we also feel a duty to be exceedingly transparent and to do everything possible to curb the spread of false narratives that Bloomberg has unfortunately sparked off.”
Other media publications amplify disinformation
Without adhering to journalistic rules of verification and non-sensationalism, a number of media organisations re-published the contentious article by Bloomberg information company.
In the absence of due diligence, the disinformation that India-based Twitter accounts have been one way or the other chargeable for the unrest in Leicester was additional amplified to the readers (each in India and overseas). Singapore-based newspaper ‘The Straits Times’ was on the forefront of peddling the faux data.
Screengrab of the information report by The Straits Times
The Indian Express, which hails itself for its journalism of braveness, was additionally chargeable for the amplification of the deceptive information.
Screengrab of the information report by The Indian Express
Given that the Bloomberg report not directly blames Indian Hindus and portrays the Muslim group because the victims in Leicester, it was additionally picked up by Radio Pakistan for consumption by its brainwashed readers.
Screengrab of the information report by Radio Pakistan
Think tank discovered no proof of RSS, or Hindutva gangs in Leicester
Earlier this month, a UK-based suppose tank debunked the false claims made by Islamists concerning the presence of ‘RSS terrorists’ and ‘Hindutva extremist organisations’ in Leicester metropolis.
The disinformation was peddled by Islamists to rationalise their focusing on of the Hindu group and camouflage their acts of aggression as violence perpetrated in self-defence.
The Henry Jackson Society (HJS), based in 2005, launched a 39-page report [pdf] on November 3 and concluded that the false allegations had uncovered the Hindu group in Leicester to hate, vandalism and assault.
“Contrary to press reports at the time, the investigations did not find Hindutva extremist organisations operating in Leicester, but instead discovered a micro-community cohesion issue falsely presented as an issue of organised Hindutva extremism and terrorism,” the abstract of the report learn.
HJS emphasised, “It finds that false allegations of RSS terrorists and Hindutva extremist organisations active in the UK has put the wider Hindu community at risk from hate, vandalism and assault.”
“Some members of the Hindu community in Leicester imposed a voluntary curfew, some relocated to stay with family or friends until they felt safe to return, while still others were unable to return to work owing to fears for their personal safety,” it additional added.