Opinion: people easily driven into information vacuum in the West
Belarusian mass media constantly face enormous information pressure. In his talk with Alfa Radio, Ivan Eismont, the Chairman of the Belarusian State TV and Radio Company, explained how fakes are being countered in Belarus and how people in other countries live in an information vacuum.
According to Mr. Eismont, a revolution of lies took place in Belarus in 2020, and the main information agenda was based on that.
“Our company tried to explain to people that there was false information around at that time. However, a wave of information was enormous; it was observed against the background of the pandemic and with the support of the West. It is one thing when some Belarusian rubbish sources covered the events, and another thing when The Washington Post, The New York Times, CNN wrote about them. Years have passed. Do you remember our President saying that big things are seen from afar? Step by step, material by material, video by video, we have been disclosing all those people [who wrote fakes about Belarus]. We know these people, and we have found out that these fugitives are crazy urbanists, loudmouths and ordinary freaks. In the worst case, they are seriously sick people. In the best case, someone is misleading and playing with them. At present, this is all in our favour. People started to understand what sort of persons they are,” Mr. Eismont said.
The expert noted that most people in Belarus are now very sceptical about what is being written in the Western media. “We have been convinced a hundred times that all this information has no connection with reality. Of course, there are still people who are guided by the events of 2020, but they do not know the basic things. When asked about what happened then, they cannot answer since they have not read or followed anything: they have no idea. Naturally, such people look at what is happening now in a completely different way, not knowing the foundation and background of all this. It is necessary to work with them and explain the truth. The videos – prepared by our TV company – are now screened in schools and universities. I am glad about it, I have been advocating it for it for a long time, it is good,” he said.
Mr. Eismont explained that the West is trying to remake society and turn it against Russia and Belarus, “The world is now struggling for redistribution of the world. Western countries present themselves as saints so that people do not have doubts. They have erased all the media that can tell a different point of view. You see, Westerners are in a less advantageous position, for example, than Belarusians. We know English, but they do not know Russian. We have Russian-language versions of Western media on our territory, but they do not have anything of the kind. Therefore, it is very easy to drive these people into a vacuum. I watch Polish TV, read their newspapers, know the language well and I can assure you that people there are just going crazy. There is a very tough propaganda going on there. You should have seen what they are saying there about the events, about us, about Russia. This is what independent journalism is doing! This is actually complete absurdity, which gives Poles no chance to hear a different opinion! After all, those spreading the news of Belarusian and Russian media are fined there. An information ghetto is in place there, and no one will prove the opposite to me.”
