The Russian Propaganda War in the Americas

 


As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues, another front in the war between Russia’s authoritarian
allies versus the Western world has been going on for some time. The propaganda battle has been
ongoing in Latin America for years. A trio of media networks controlled by Russia and Iran has built a
popular following among Spanish speakers. These networks peddle a misinformation narrativethat aims to delegitimize the West and portray Russia, Iran, and other authoritarian regimes
as a counter-imperialist force that supports worldwide democracy.

This narrative may seem laughable to many in the West, but about 500 million Spanish speakers within Latin America and the United States follow these authoritarian-backed news sources. According to foreign policy experts such as Clifford D. May, these propaganda news outlets include TelesSur, Russia Today, and HispanTV. This trio of news platforms began emerging back in 2005 and has gained a sizable following since.

The misinformation narrative portrays Western leaders as hypocritical strongmen who

push an imperialist agenda to control and manipulate the rest of the world. In contrast, Russia, Iran,

and other authoritarian regimes are shown as anti-imperialist ‘good guys who are combating the

West in an underdog resistance fight supporting democracy and fighting authoritarianism around the

world under a protagonist anti-American banner.

Viewers within Latin America are often receptive to this anti-American narrative.

United States foreign policy in Latin America has in the past supported anti-Communist movements

sometimes at the expense of democratic movements. As a result of these past grievances, some in

Latin America view this Russia-backed narrative as more plausible. This anti-Western rhetoric masks

a currently much more forceful, violent, and pernicious imperialist agenda of Russia, Iran,

China, Maduro of Venezuela, and other countries.

One of the trio’s primary contributors is Pablo Jofre Leal, who works with the

Spanish language department of Al Mustafa University. Al Mustafa University is an Iranian

propaganda machine under the direct management and supervision of Iran’s supreme leader.

Prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Pablo stated that the threat Russia posed to

Ukraine was a lie invented by Western-backed media. Later, Pablo stated

that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was actually a defense of Russian minorities who were victims of genocide, and he also

downplayed any killing of Ukrainian civilians by Russian forces.Pablo Jofre Leal is just one of many such individuals spreading propaganda in Latin America. These popular anti-Western media sources serve as a means to influence elections in

Latin America and sway United States’ neighbors against the United States and the West.

The propaganda news sources have been gaining momentum for many years now, and the threat is only now becoming obvious to many in light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

At this point, the counter-propaganda war is playing catch up to an audience that is already

sympathetic toward the world’s authoritarian interests. Washington and the West need to pick

up the pace and move toward countering the propaganda war that has been brewing for some time.

Many countries in Latin America have been gravitating toward left-leaning politics that

demonize the West and maybe predispose the region toward developing further authoritarian

sentiments in the future.

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