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Will the Media Finally Learn Something From Its Fake “Havana Syndrome” Debacle? – Jacobin magazine

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3 years ago

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Will the Media Finally Learn Something From Its Fake “Havana Syndrome” Debacle?

By

Branko Marcetic

Yet more evidence emerges that the so-called Havana Syndrome caused by a “microwave weapon” in US diplomats and intelligence personnel was a psychosomatic illness. Maybe it’s time for national security reporters to stop letting anonymous officials make wild claims to stoke conflict and inflate their budgets.

A rally against the US embargo passes by the US Embassy in Havana, Cuba, August 5, 2021. (Joaquin Hernandez / Xinhua via Getty Images)

In news that won’t be news for many observers of US-Cuba relations, Buzzfeed reported Thursday that a thorough scientific investigation completed in 2018 by an elite government science advisory body determined that the so-called Havana Syndrome that US spies and diplomats have suffered in recent years was most likely caused by crickets. Yes, those crickets.

The report, commissioned by the State Department and kept classified until last week, backs up what various observers have been saying from almost the very beginning: that the neurological injuries reported around the world by US personnel, including dizziness, headaches, and hearing loss, were most likely psychosomatic. In other words, they were probably caused by stress or emotional strain, and spread to others through the power of suggestion.

What’s critical to understand here is that since mid-2017, anti-Cuban hawks, using the establishment press as their megaphone, have baselessly and incessantly claimed that the illness was actually the result of “attacks” carried out by Washington’s geopolitical adversaries, and using a mysterious, never invented microwave weapon. This campaign began on August 9, 2017, when the Associated Press, in a report republished everywhere, from CNBC and CBS to Politico, regurgitated the supposed conclusions of nameless “US officials” that “the diplomats had been exposed to an advanced device that operated outside the range of audible sound and had been deployed either inside or outside their residences,” for which Washington expelled two Cuban diplomats as retaliation.

Within days, nameless US officials were popping up in a variety of trusted liberal-leaning mainstream outlets like CNN and the Guardian to make the same assertions or, as in the Washington Post, to tell the public they were investigating it as an attack. Here’s just a small sampling of the reporting that helped solidify this narrative in the public imagination:

  • “U.S. Diplomats in Cuba Were Injured by a ‘Sonic Weapon,’” a Time magazine headline flatly stated on August 10.
  • “The illnesses appeared to be caused by some kind of sonic wave machine . . . said a person who was briefed on the situation but was not authorized to comment,” reported the New York Times on August 11.
  • The Daily Beast wrote about “the sonic attacks” and “sound-based assaults” suffered by the diplomats in Cuba as part of a “long history of sonic warfare dating back millennia” on August 12.
  • “Did Russia attack U.S. officials in Cuba?” asked Newsweek on August 10, speculating wildly that “a third country, such as Russia, even could have launched the recent attacks, possibly without Cuba’s knowledge.”

(Unfortunately, that last one wasn’t an outlier. Just this year, “three current and former officials with direct knowledge of the discussions” were the basis for a Politico report that these “directed-energy” attacks [read: likely cricket noises] were really the work of a different villain — namely, Russian military intelligence.)

Despite constant statements from scientists and other experts that the symptoms seemed like classic cases of psychosomatic illness, that the sounds recorded sounded suspiciously like crickets, and that there was no evidence such a microwave weapon had ever actually been invented, mainstream outlets continued broadcasting these unsubstantiated charges from anonymous US officials for the next four years. One particular gem was this NBC News piece citing a report that stated that “nothing like [the symptoms] had previously been documented in medical literature,” then following with a quote that these symptoms were “consistent with the effects of directed, pulsed radio frequency (RF) energy.”

This practice went on right up to the very week this Buzzfeed report dropped, and weeks after the Biden administration officially began referring to the illness as “unexplained health incidents” instead of attacks. “CIA and State Department officials face increased Havana Syndrome attacks,” asserted Fox News, warning of “a rise of such attacks” all over the world through a “directed-energy source,” this time in Serbia. “Havana Syndrome Attacks Widen,” blared the Wall Street Journal. “The attacks — and they do seem to be deliberate attacks — now total more than two-hundred cases,” wrote the Washington Post editorial board.

The fact that, for almost the entire time, these claims were being made by officials from the Trump administration, which was exceptionally hostile to Cuba and which, just two months before they first leveled these claims, began the cruel policy of “maximum pressure” it maintained for the rest of its term, didn’t seem to give many reporters pause. The press spent the next four years mostly lending credence to the dubious assertions of a coterie of anti-Cuba hawks in government, letting them make wild claims without even putting their names on the record despite their clear interests in vilifying and ratcheting up tensions with the Cuban government.

Mainstream Misinformation

There’s an obvious point to be made here in the midst of a long-running establishment freak-out over “misinformation” and the ongoing push to stamp it out by censoring independent, alternative media platforms.

Here, as so often is the case, the misinformation came from mainstream outlets, where it reached, and was trusted by, far more people than a Substack post, YouTube video, or Facebook ad, all with the aim of stoking conflict with a foreign government. If the solution to potentially harmful online and social media misinformation is heavy-handed censorship, why wouldn’t we do the same thing for these mainstream outlets? And if we object to that because we quite correctly understand the dangers to press freedoms in going down that road, then how does it make sense to keep pushing for it when it comes to social media?

But maybe an equally important question here is whether establishment press outlets finally learn something from this episode, and treat inflammatory official claims that stoke tension with an adversary government with skepticism — or, at the very least, not grant them the anonymity to make all kinds of wild claims. The case of the Havana Syndrome is part of a long-running pattern, always in the direction of laying the basis for war and otherwise aggressive foreign policy.

Not long ago, when the Trump administration was working on a withdrawal from Afghanistan, the headlines were lit up by an anonymously sourced report that Russia was paying the Taliban “bounties” to kill US soldiers in the country. Even as everyone involved denied the story, and even as the commander of US forces in Afghanistan publicly doubted it, the claim was broadcast everywhere, especially on MSNBC, and spurred a successful congressional effort to halt the withdrawal.

Similarly, the entire Russiagate fiasco, which did immeasurable damage to public trust in the press, was one part retribution for Donald Trump’s public insults against the CIA and one part a successful attempt to push the former president into a more aggressive posture toward Russia. Having campaigned on, and elicited establishment horror with, a promise of better relations with the country, anonymous national security officials began leaking what we now know were baseless falsehoods to the press, painting Trump and his inner circle as compromised by the Kremlin — and baiting the administration into overcompensating in the opposite direction, including by sending lethal weapons to Ukraine. At one point, a story fed to the Washington Post by anonymous officials spread far and wide that Russia had hacked the Vermont electricity grid, scaring the pants off a broad swath of the public, only for the whole story to quickly fall apart.

But just as with Cuba, Trump officials were more than willing to play this same game when it meant stoking conflict elsewhere. With Trump seemingly bent on attacking Iran in the final year of his term, we were treated to a number of anonymously sourced stories intended to create a pretext for this attack. There was the September claim from an unnamed US official that Iran was planning to kill the US ambassador to South Africa, only for South African intelligence to say there was no evidence for it. That same month, a single anonymous official told Reuters that “Iran could have enough fissile material for a nuclear weapon by the end of the year,” part of a long tradition of similarly wrong predictions dating back to the 1990s.

The year before that, the Associated Press agreed to give an official anonymity to claim — “without offering any evidence,” as the piece noted — that Iran carried out an attack on four oil tankers off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, then the next day reported on satellite images showing the ships had taken no damage. Unfortunately, this is just a small sample of stories of anonymous officials feeding scary-sounding charges to the press that never come to pass. “A senior US military official with knowledge of the region said Monday that Iran may try to take advantage of America’s troop withdrawals from Iraq and Afghanistan,” relayed one December 2020 Associated Press piece.

Or recall back when Trump did one of the few genuinely good things of his presidency and attempted to hold peace talks with North Korea. Thanks to the glut of cash-in memoirs from Trump officials, we now know explicitly that Trump’s neocon appointees worked to sabotage the negotiations. But that was clear long before. As the Nation’s Tim Shorrock pointed out at the time, US officials rushed to NBC, the Post, and the Wall Street Journal to distort the findings of a classified intelligence study of North Korea’s nuclear program and charge that its government was trying to pull one over on Washington.

Of course, the granddaddy of all of these episodes is the buildup to the Iraq War, where war hawks perfected the art of obtaining anonymity from media outlets to feed them lies and misinformation that would build the case for war while shielding themselves from accountability. In one particularly notorious case, Bush officials told New York Times reporters a lie (anonymously) suggesting Saddam Hussein was pursuing nuclear weapons, then did the rounds in TV interviews citing that story — their own leaks — to make the case for attacking Iraq. (Amusingly, another key Iraq War lie — that one of the September 11 hijackers had met an Iraqi intelligence official in Prague — was lazily recycled fifteen years later for the purpose of Russiagate.)

After that catastrophe, the press said never again. And yet, as the Havana Syndrome stories and so many more show, that lesson was swiftly forgotten. The mystery “directed-energy” weapon may be wholly disproven, but don’t worry — something new will take its place as soon as US officials decide to stoke conflict somewhere else.

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Trump could cash out his DJT stock within weeks. Here’s what happens if he sells

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3 weeks ago

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August 23, 2024

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Former President Donald Trump is on the brink of a significant financial decision that could have far-reaching implications for both his personal wealth and the future of his fledgling social media company, Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG). As the lockup period on his shares in TMTG, which owns Truth Social, nears its end, Trump could soon be free to sell his substantial stake in the company. However, the potential payday, which makes up a large portion of his net worth, comes with considerable risks for Trump and his supporters.

Trump’s stake in TMTG comprises nearly 59% of the company, amounting to 114,750,000 shares. As of now, this holding is valued at approximately $2.6 billion. These shares are currently under a lockup agreement, a common feature of initial public offerings (IPOs), designed to prevent company insiders from immediately selling their shares and potentially destabilizing the stock. The lockup, which began after TMTG’s merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), is set to expire on September 25, though it could end earlier if certain conditions are met.

Should Trump decide to sell his shares after the lockup expires, the market could respond in unpredictable ways. The sale of a substantial number of shares by a major stakeholder like Trump could flood the market, potentially driving down the stock price. Daniel Bradley, a finance professor at the University of South Florida, suggests that the market might react negatively to such a large sale, particularly if there aren’t enough buyers to absorb the supply. This could lead to a sharp decline in the stock’s value, impacting both Trump’s personal wealth and the company’s market standing.

Moreover, Trump’s involvement in Truth Social has been a key driver of investor interest. The platform, marketed as a free speech alternative to mainstream social media, has attracted a loyal user base largely due to Trump’s presence. If Trump were to sell his stake, it might signal a lack of confidence in the company, potentially shaking investor confidence and further depressing the stock price.

Trump’s decision is also influenced by his ongoing legal battles, which have already cost him over $100 million in legal fees. Selling his shares could provide a significant financial boost, helping him cover these mounting expenses. However, this move could also have political ramifications, especially as he continues his bid for the Republican nomination in the 2024 presidential race.

Trump Media’s success is closely tied to Trump’s political fortunes. The company’s stock has shown volatility in response to developments in the presidential race, with Trump’s chances of winning having a direct impact on the stock’s value. If Trump sells his stake, it could be interpreted as a lack of confidence in his own political future, potentially undermining both his campaign and the company’s prospects.

Truth Social, the flagship product of TMTG, has faced challenges in generating traffic and advertising revenue, especially compared to established social media giants like X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook. Despite this, the company’s valuation has remained high, fueled by investor speculation on Trump’s political future. If Trump remains in the race and manages to secure the presidency, the value of his shares could increase. Conversely, any missteps on the campaign trail could have the opposite effect, further destabilizing the stock.

As the lockup period comes to an end, Trump faces a critical decision that could shape the future of both his personal finances and Truth Social. Whether he chooses to hold onto his shares or cash out, the outcome will likely have significant consequences for the company, its investors, and Trump’s political aspirations.

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Arizona man accused of social media threats to Trump is arrested

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3 weeks ago

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August 23, 2024

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Cochise County, AZ — Law enforcement officials in Arizona have apprehended Ronald Lee Syvrud, a 66-year-old resident of Cochise County, after a manhunt was launched following alleged death threats he made against former President Donald Trump. The threats reportedly surfaced in social media posts over the past two weeks, as Trump visited the US-Mexico border in Cochise County on Thursday.

Syvrud, who hails from Benson, Arizona, located about 50 miles southeast of Tucson, was captured by the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday afternoon. The Sheriff’s Office confirmed his arrest, stating, “This subject has been taken into custody without incident.”

In addition to the alleged threats against Trump, Syvrud is wanted for multiple offences, including failure to register as a sex offender. He also faces several warrants in both Wisconsin and Arizona, including charges for driving under the influence and a felony hit-and-run.

The timing of the arrest coincided with Trump’s visit to Cochise County, where he toured the US-Mexico border. During his visit, Trump addressed the ongoing border issues and criticized his political rival, Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, for what he described as lax immigration policies. When asked by reporters about the ongoing manhunt for Syvrud, Trump responded, “No, I have not heard that, but I am not that surprised and the reason is because I want to do things that are very bad for the bad guys.”

This incident marks the latest in a series of threats against political figures during the current election cycle. Just earlier this month, a 66-year-old Virginia man was arrested on suspicion of making death threats against Vice President Kamala Harris and other public officials.

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Trump Media & Technology Group Faces Declining Stock Amid Financial Struggles and Increased Competition

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August 20, 2024

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Tech News in Canada

Trump Media & Technology Group’s stock has taken a significant hit, dropping more than 11% this week following a disappointing earnings report and the return of former U.S. President Donald Trump to the rival social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. This decline is part of a broader downward trend for the parent company of Truth Social, with the stock plummeting nearly 43% since mid-July. Despite the sharp decline, some investors remain unfazed, expressing continued optimism for the company’s financial future or standing by their investment as a show of political support for Trump.

One such investor, Todd Schlanger, an interior designer from West Palm Beach, explained his commitment to the stock, stating, “I’m a Republican, so I supported him. When I found out about the stock, I got involved because I support the company and believe in free speech.” Schlanger, who owns around 1,000 shares, is a regular user of Truth Social and is excited about the company’s future, particularly its plans to expand its streaming services. He believes Truth Social has the potential to be as strong as Facebook or X, despite the stock’s recent struggles.

However, Truth Social’s stock performance is deeply tied to Trump’s political influence and the company’s ability to generate sustainable revenue, which has proven challenging. An earnings report released last Friday showed the company lost over $16 million in the three-month period ending in June. Revenue dropped by 30%, down to approximately $836,000 compared to $1.2 million during the same period last year.

In response to the earnings report, Truth Social CEO Devin Nunes emphasized the company’s strong cash position, highlighting $344 million in cash reserves and no debt. He also reiterated the company’s commitment to free speech, stating, “From the beginning, it was our intention to make Truth Social an impenetrable beachhead of free speech, and by taking extraordinary steps to minimize our reliance on Big Tech, that is exactly what we are doing.”

Despite these assurances, investors reacted negatively to the quarterly report, leading to a steep drop in stock price. The situation was further complicated by Trump’s return to X, where he posted for the first time in a year. Trump’s exclusivity agreement with Trump Media & Technology Group mandates that he posts personal content first on Truth Social. However, he is allowed to make politically related posts on other social media platforms, which he did earlier this week, potentially drawing users away from Truth Social.

For investors like Teri Lynn Roberson, who purchased shares near the company’s peak after it went public in March, the decline in stock value has been disheartening. However, Roberson remains unbothered by the poor performance, saying her investment was more about supporting Trump than making money. “I’m way at a loss, but I am OK with that. I am just watching it for fun,” Roberson said, adding that she sees Trump’s return to X as a positive move that could expand his reach beyond Truth Social’s “echo chamber.”

The stock’s performance holds significant financial implications for Trump himself, as he owns a 65% stake in Trump Media & Technology Group. According to Fortune, this stake represents a substantial portion of his net worth, which could be vulnerable if the company continues to struggle financially.

Analysts have described Truth Social as a “meme stock,” similar to companies like GameStop and AMC that saw their stock prices driven by ideological investments rather than business fundamentals. Tyler Richey, an analyst at Sevens Report Research, noted that the stock has ebbed and flowed based on sentiment toward Trump. He pointed out that the recent decline coincided with the rise of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic presidential nominee, which may have dampened perceptions of Trump’s 2024 election prospects.

Jay Ritter, a finance professor at the University of Florida, offered a grim long-term outlook for Truth Social, suggesting that the stock would likely remain volatile, but with an overall downward trend. “What’s lacking for the true believer in the company story is, ‘OK, where is the business strategy that will be generating revenue?'” Ritter said, highlighting the company’s struggle to produce a sustainable business model.

Still, for some investors, like Michael Rogers, a masonry company owner in North Carolina, their support for Trump Media & Technology Group is unwavering. Rogers, who owns over 10,000 shares, said he invested in the company both as a show of support for Trump and because of his belief in the company’s financial future. Despite concerns about the company’s revenue challenges, Rogers expressed confidence in the business, stating, “I’m in it for the long haul.”

Not all investors are as confident. Mitchell Standley, who made a significant return on his investment earlier this year by capitalizing on the hype surrounding Trump Media’s planned merger with Digital World Acquisition Corporation, has since moved on. “It was basically just a pump and dump,” Standley told ABC News. “I knew that once they merged, all of his supporters were going to dump a bunch of money into it and buy it up.” Now, Standley is staying away from the company, citing the lack of business fundamentals as the reason for his exit.

Truth Social’s future remains uncertain as it continues to struggle with financial losses and faces stiff competition from established social media platforms. While its user base and investor sentiment are bolstered by Trump’s political following, the company’s long-term viability will depend on its ability to create a sustainable revenue stream and maintain relevance in a crowded digital landscape.

As the company seeks to stabilize, the question remains whether its appeal to Trump’s supporters can translate into financial success or whether it will remain a volatile stock driven more by ideology than business fundamentals.

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