Blame Games and Deluding Claims

Disinformation and conspiracy in a time of global panic

Blame Games and Deluding Claims

Abstract

On the 24th March 2020, a letter was circulated throughout Italy, in which Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and his Government appeared to announce the reduction of the monthly salary of civil servants to 600 EUR for the duration of the Covid-19 crisis (pictured above, left). The letter, circulated online and via WhatsApp, and convincingly formatted as the Gazzetta Ufficiale (the official journal of record of the Italian government) was soon debunked as a fake, however it had not taken long for the letter to reach recipients throughout the country.

March, 30 2020.
Security, Defence & Migration

Author

Sophie Kenneally

Project Designer and junior Researcher
Agenfor International Foundation

Sophie Kenneally, Project Designer and Junior Researcher specializing in the prevention of human trafficking for sexual exploitation and the intersection of human rights and security. She has experience working in the emergency reception centres for asylum seekers in Vienna, where she also worked closely assisting young refugees to overcome integration challenges, improving their language skills and helping them access key public services. She has further experience volunteering with an immigration lawyer in London, developing an insight into the moral and legal themes associated with immigration. Having completing her Bachelor degree at the University of Vienna and her Master degree at University College London, Ms Kenneally is fluent in German and English, will further knowledge of Italian, Russian and French.