Canadians ‘Russian to conclusions’ on Tenet Media worsens effects of foreign interference, say digital media researchers

A probe by the Canadian Digital Media Research Network found thousands of social media posts falsely linking the Conservatives to Russian interference after the U.S. indictment of Tenet Media.

In the wake of the unsealed U.S. indictment implicating Canadian Lauren Chen, left, in a Kremlin-backed influence campaign, social media users quickly—and without evidence—accused Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and his party of collusion, posting thousands of comments with hashtags like #PierrePutin in the following days.The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade and Screenshot courtesy of ParlVu

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BY STUART BENSON

January 3, 2025

Armed with newfound awareness about foreign interference, Canadian social media users have demonstrated a pattern of leaping to conclusions for partisan purposes, according to researchers examining the online response to the recent indictment of two Canadians accused of part...

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