Disinformation has become a powerful weapon in the modern world: with the speed of a living virus, it spreads through blogs and traditional media, infiltrating book covers and scientific publications. How do fakes emerge, what principles do they follow, and what can counter them? This is essential knowledge for those who create content and those who consume it.
One of the most widespread and effective disinformation campaigns went down in history as "Operation Infection." In 1986, the KGB deceived the entire world into believing that AIDS had been developed by the Americans in a secret laboratory as a new type of biological weapon. Beginning with a single newspaper article, this disinformation quickly dominated front pages around the world, penetrated scientific circles, and continues to circulate even forty years later.
Documentary filmmaker Igor Sadreev has explored "Operation Infection" in several of his films. At the meeting, he will discuss how the KGB devised this campaign, the role journalists and scientists played in it, and what we can all do to protect ourselves.
The meeting is being held in cooperation with the Quarteera e. V. project, with the support of Civil Society Cooperation and the Auswärtiges Amt.