Russia's Media Mentions of 2020 Presidential Candidates (Update 1) - Bernie Gains Ground!

[TomCADem]

Bernie is gaining more positive media mentions by Russian media since the last update, which may be due to Tulsi's fade. Bernie is now the only other candidate other than Tulsi who is in net positive category with the Russians. What is interesting is that the split is not really by ideology with progressive Warren getting three times more negative mentions than Amy Klobuchar. Finally, the Russians really seem to have it in for Joe Biden.

https://www.fpri.org/fie/november-and-december-2019-russias-media-mentions-of-2020-presidential-candidates-update-1/

In FIE 2020’s first two analyses, we examined which candidates received the most coverage from Russian state-sponsored media and the manner in which those candidates were discussed. President Donald Trump garnered the overwhelming majority of mentions, given his position as head of state and 2020 presidential candidate. In the Democratic field, Vice President Joe Biden saw the highest percent of negative mentions, Senator Bernie Sanders received generally neutral coverage and Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard saw the highest percent of positive mentions.

As the election cycle progressed through November and December 2019, Russian media mentions of the 2020 candidates have evolved. Since our prior two assessments in November 2019, we have surveyed an additional 685 articles (194 RT stories and 491 Sputnik News stories) offering insights into shifting narratives in the outlets’ coverage of Election 2020. There was no significant change in tenor by which RT and Sputnik News discussed the candidates, save for the addition of former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

[Cha]

1. haha.. Gabbard wins with posittivity on russian tv.. and

BS is 2nd place.

And, who is gabbard suing?

[oasis]

2. I won't comment on Tulsi's great Russia ranking. I can't afford a lawyer.

[Cha]

4. lol.. I just added the question.. "And,

who is gabbatd suing?"

Before I read yours.

[oasis]

7. I don't wish Tulsi any bad luck, no good luck either.

[Hortensis]

15. :) I wish her good riddance but don't expect it.

[comradebillyboy]

3. The Russians love Bernie and Tulsi.

[TomCADem]

6. Revealed: Russia's strategy to help re-elect Trump -- and the Democrats the Kremlin is boosting

The latest stats in the OP just confirm this article from last August regarding who the Russians are boosting. How has Bernie voted on supporting NATO, Election Security and Russian sanctions issues?

https://www.salon.com/2019/08/09/revealed-russias-strategy-to-help-re-elect-trump-and-the-democrats-the-kremlin-is-boosting_partner/

“When it comes to elections,” Davis explains, “all Americans are Putin’s foes, and those who can best divide them are the Kremlin’s hand-picked favorites. Putin’s government has a strong preference for the populists who reject the establishment and promote the agenda of inward-looking America. The Kremlin’s ultimate goal is the retreat of the United States from global affairs, which would allow the rest of the world to be quietly devoured by despots.”

Russian state media, according to Davis, has echoed Trump’s “Sleepy Joe” rhetoric and dismissed former Vice President Joe Biden as an “elderly candidate.” And the Russian media described Sen. Kamala Harris as someone who had “her dirty deeds exposed in front of the audience of millions.”

But according to Davis, Russian media’s coverage of two other Democratic presidential primary candidates, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, was more favorable. Gabbard was described as “the Democrat who stood out at debates among a pack of radical progressives,” and there no negative references to Sanders’ age by Russian media — despite the fact that the Vermont senator is slightly older than Biden.

Davis indicates that state-owned Russia media have an ulterior motive in pretending to be pro-Sanders in their coverage: they believe that “Sanders is too radical for most voters, ultimately pushing them away and causing a fraction of Democrats to vote for Trump.”

[KPN]

9. No they don't! You are lying. The stats in the OP confirm

nothing of the sort. See my post below.

I don’t usually do this, but if you are going intentionally make up false subtitles and false claims in your lead ins and summaries of articles in order to maliciously undermine a candidate, you deserve to be called out on it.

[TomCADem]

14. That literally is the title of the Salon article.

It is a direct quote of the title from the Salon article:

Revealed: Russia's strategy to help re-elect Trump -- and the Democrats the Kremlin is boosting

[KPN]

18. That wasn't the title of your OP.

[Hortensis]

16. She receives Russia's assistance without denouncing it,

supports pro-Russian positions that would harm western security, and quotes Russian state propaganda as her own beliefs.

We don't like Trump doing the same things and strongly believe he's actively betraying his country. How does she get a free pass without extending it to him?

[KPN]

22. That is unrelated to my comment/reaction.

[Cha]

21. NO.. Tom is not "lying".

[Cha]

13. No clue why.. lol

[peggysue2]

5. Joe Biden already called this one

He has said that neither Trump nor Putin wanted him running in the 2020 election.

Hummmm. Wonder why?????

[KPN]

8. FALSE lead in TomCADem ... and just another one of your fake Sanders hit pieces

The two go hand in hand.

Your lead in and subtitle for the article are both totally FALSE. The article in no place said anything, it said ZERO about “Sanders Gaining Ground”. Read the article.

It did not say that Sanders is getting more positive mentions by Russian media. You made that up. In essence, you lied.

In fact the article says almost nothing about Sanders other than his numbers are mostly neutral. The article highlights surges in media mentions by tRump, Biden, Warren and Buttigieg — not Sanders! It also said that none of the candidates moved much in percent of positive vs negative articles.

Shame on you!

[TomCADem]

11. Check the Prior Survey. Bernie Gained More Positive Russian Media Mentions

Don't you even wonder why Russia is pushing pro-Bernie media stories? Besides Tulsi, who else is in net positive territory?

[KPN]

12. No. I know why. They are sowing division ... and it's working.

Ps — I did check the prior survey.

[TomCADem]

23. Okay. Why Favor Tulsi?

You suggest that Russian support is entirely random, but the evidence is that it is not. But putting aside Bernie, what about Tulsi? Are you going to say that there is no rhyme or reason behind Russia's efforts to boost her? Might it have to do with her policies?

If so, how do Tulsi's foreign policy and trade views differ from Bernie, particularly with respect to NATO and Russia?

[bluedye33139]

10. Tulsi is going to be angry

[JonLP24]

17. You are paying more attention to what Russia media is saying

Than I am. Here is an easy for Russia media to not mention you at all -- don't run for President.

[TomCADem]

19. New data suggests Russians targeted Bernie Sanders voters to help elect Trump (April 2019)

Why is Russia boosting Bernie Sanders again? That is the question. Why Tulsi and Bernie? No Bernie supporters has bothered to explain why Russia either boosted Bernie before or why they are boosting both him and Tulsi now. Why?

It could be Bernie's history of pro-Russia votes whether it is the Magnitsky Act, Russian Election Sanctions (2017) and lifting Russian sanctions again in 2019. Or, it could be because Bernie is so divisive, since he has attacked the Republicans, Democrats, Elections, Media, etc. as all corrupt, thus promoting a false equivalency between Republicans and Democrats as well as undermining faith in U.S. Democracy.

https://www.salon.com/2019/04/12/new-data-suggests-russians-targeted-bernie-sanders-voters-to-help-elect-trump/

Russia’s effort to target Bernie Sanders supporters after the 2016 primaries in a bid to help swing the election to Donald Trump was more “central” to their strategy than previously known, according to an analysis by researchers at Clemson University.

* * *
It’s impossible to say how many tweets targeted Sanders supporters without mentioning his name, but researchers found that around 9,000 Russian-sourced tweets used the word “Bernie.” The tweets were “liked” 59,281 times and retweeted 61,804 times. Thousands of other tweets were also targeted at Sanders supporters in an attempt to dissuade them from backing Hillary Clinton but did not mention Sanders by name.

“I think there is no question that Sanders was central to their strategy. He was clearly used as a mechanism to decrease voter turnout for Hillary Clinton,” Clemson communications professor Darren Linvill told the Post, adding that the analysis shows the targeted tweets came at a “ higher volume than people thought.”

Many of the tweets were aimed at disillusioned Sanders supporters who believed he was treated unfairly by the Democratic Party. Other tweets simply disparaged Clinton.

[JonLP24]

20. I think it had an effect more on Republicans

Look on some level I do agree with you only because there is Grayzone media which is big in Russia denial as well as Jimmy Dore who is a Russia denialist and they have a lot of influence on progressives.

The reason why I said it has more of an effect on Republicans is because I read the book Cyberwar by Kathleen Lee Jamieson and there was this fake GOP account that gained over 10,000 followers in a week after tweeting on #BasketofDeplorables which the Russia trolls got trending which the Trump campaign pointed to the hashtag in demanding an apology from Hillary Clinton.

Of course Putin wonders where America is having problems and how he can make it worse and this division in the Democratic Party is another thing to exploit.

[betsuni]

24. K&R