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News > Bolivia

Facebook Removes Right-Wing Disinformation Network

  • The self-proclaimed President Jeanine Añez in La Paz, Bolivia, August 6, 2020.

    The self-proclaimed President Jeanine Añez in La Paz, Bolivia, August 6, 2020. | Photo: EFE

Published 3 September 2020
Opinion

Besides discrediting the governments of Venezuela and Mexico, the network posted information in favor of Bolivia's coup-born regime led by Jeanine Añez.

Facebook Tuesday informed it eliminated a U.S.-based disinformation network that was financed by Bolivia’s Interim government as the company considered it a threat to democracy.

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Besides posting information in favor of Bolivia's coup-born regime, such a network targeted Latin American users and offering them publications in support of political groups opposing Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro and Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO).

This right-wing network used fake accounts to publish content as if it originated from independent media, social organizations, and political forums.

Facebook erased 55 accounts, 42 pages, and 36 Instagram accounts, which were operated from the United States. 

This network was associated with a Washington-based public relations firm CLS Strategies, which received significant amounts of money from the administration of Jeanine Añez. Besides, the disinformation network purchased about US$3.6 million in ads.

“CLS has worked for Bolivia, according to Foreign Agents Registration Act documents filed last December with the Justice Department,” international outlet PRWeek recalled.

Facebook also mentioned that over 509,000 users followed the erased accounts, while about 43,000 people followed the Instagram accounts.

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