REGISTER: Bette's Tuesday Happy Hour with Dietmar Pichler’s update on Europe increasing prosecutions of ‘throwaway agents’ — hosted by Heidi & Mo’
Bette members: please register for Bette’s Happy Hour, where Mo’ & I will be joined by Vienna-based disinformation analyst Dietmar Pichler, noon Pacific, Tuesday, November 4, on breakers from EU & US
***Bette members will find the registration link below the paywall. To join our community events and to help support independent investigative journalism in a time of grave peril, please upgrade to a paid membership. All new investigative content at Bette Dangerous is free, and your paid memberships make that possible.***
Bette members are invited to our Tuesday Happy Hour, November 4, Noon Pacific, 3 pm Eastern, where EuroFile’s Monique Camarra will be joining me from Italy to co-host this event, featuring Dietmar Pichler, a disinformation analyst from Vienna, Austria.
Among the topics we’ll be discussing is this EuroNews report, featuring quotes from Dietmar:
Here is an excerpt from the report by Johanna Urbancik.
From neo-Nazis to left-wing groups, Russia is exploiting ideological overlaps and disinformation campaigns to sow chaos, division and insecurity in Germany.
About a month after the Hamas-led terror attack in Israel on 7 October 2023, which killed almost 1,200 people and saw more than 250 taken hostage, blue Stars of David began appearing on walls across Paris.
At first, the incidents were assumed to be antisemitic, but investigations later suggested they were part of a Russian disinformation campaign.
Two Moldovan couples are said to have spray-painted the stars on walls in the French capital for a small fee, following instructions from someone abroad.
The intention was to create confusion and mistrust rather than to send an explicitly antisemitic message.
From Putin memes to sabotage
In Germany, too, people are being hired to carry out small‑scale sabotage and espionage on behalf of foreign actors.
The Federal Intelligence Service (BND), the Federal Criminal Police (BKA), the domestic intelligence service (BfV) and the Military Counterintelligence Service (MAD) believe Russia is behind the recruitment of so‑called “low-level agents”.
These “agents” are usually recruited via social media and paid small sums to carry out minor tasks, such as photographing critical or military infrastructure, committing arson, or spray‑painting graffiti.
“Sometimes they are recruited for ideological reasons,” explained Austrian disinformation analyst Dietmar Pichler. “What you’re looking for are answers to the following questions: are they in any social media groups, have they already been radicalised? Are they desperate,” Pichler told Euronews.
“Here in the West, there are often people who like Putin images or share related memes. They are then contacted, with the aim of slowly drawing them in and building them up,” he added.
We have invited Dietmar to speak to our community about the concept of ‘throwaway agents’ frequently, and this subject will only grow in relevance until the punishment meted out to those working for the terrorist mafia state of Russia exceeds the sums paid to commit acts of sabotage. One Russian agent just received a 17-year sentence, and that strikes me as an appropriate deterrent.
As this Reuters report notes:
LONDON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - The ringleader of an arson attack on Ukraine-linked businesses in London last year was on Friday jailed for 17 years for what prosecutors described as “a sustained campaign of terrorism and sabotage on UK soil”.
Dylan Earl, 21, admitted aggravated arson over the 2024 blaze which targeted companies delivering satellite equipment from Elon Musk’s Starlink to Ukraine, which is vital for its defence against Russia’s continuing invasion.
He also became the first person convicted under the National Security Act for his role in a plot targeting a wine shop and restaurant in London’s upmarket Mayfair district, with plans to kidnap the owner, a critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Prosecutors said on Thursday that Earl also discussed with his handler from Russia’s Wagner mercenary group plans to kidnap the co-founder of finance app Revolut and torch a warehouse in the Czech Republic.
It’s vitally important to see European nations striking back against Russian-paid operatives on their soil.
Currently, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced a “new comprehensive action plan“ to counter hybrid threats, under review by the National Security Council.
Dietmar will explain what exactly throwaway agents do to disrupt democratic nations. Commonly, you’ll find low-level saboteurs creating accidents and explosions, instigating pro-Russian protests or rallies, spurring chaos by starting fires and using graffiti to twist the public discourse and incite fear among the communities targeted.
In the US, pro-Russian provocateurs walk the halls of Congress and hold the highest offices. It’s our job to call them out for who and what they are, and it’s much easier when we can clearly define their actions and motivations as part of hybrid warfare.
Expect lots of news from around the world, as Bette’s All-Stars offer their profound expertise and insights to help our community see our way through the Great Propaganda Wars more clearly.
In addition to Monique and Dietmar’s updates, I will update you on my latest Hot Type column in Byline Supplement, which focuses on how Musk is ‘gaming the internet for fascism’ — a great quote by Dr Michael MacKay, who is featured in the report. I’ll post an excerpt after it’s published today in Byline Supplement.
I look so forward to seeing everyone as Mo’, Dietmar, and I dish news.
More info about our guests:
Dietmar Pichler is an advisor on strategic communication against foreign interference, founder of the Disinfo Resilience Network, and an editor at Inved.eu.
Monique Camarra writes EuroFile, which brings daily news on the war in Ukraine, as well as global breaking news. She served as co-host of the Kremlin File, which focused on Russia and the spread of authoritarianism throughout the world. She is based at the University of Siena.
A note for new members: the Happy Hour began two and a half years ago, when I noticed many Bette members in despair. I thought a weekly wellness checkin for newsies was in order, and it evolved into a session where global guests offer news from around the world. The title was always meant to be ironic, but I know I feel better when our community comes together.
Lastly, a heartfelt thank you to those of you who are renewing your memberships and those who continue to support me at the Founding Member level. Your support means everything to me.
Keep scrolling below the paywall for the registration link.
****
****
Bette Dangerous is a reader-funded magazine. Thank you to all monthly, annual, and founding members.
I expose the corruption of billionaire fascists, while relying on memberships for support.
Thank you in advance for considering the following:
Share my reporting with allies
Buying my ebooks
A private link to an annual membership discount for older adults, those on fixed incomes or drawing disability, as well as activists and members of the media is available upon request at bettedangerous/gmail. 🥹
More info about Bette Dangerous - This magazine is written by Heidi Siegmund Cuda, an Emmy-award winning investigative reporter/producer, author, and veteran music and nightlife columnist. She is the cohost of RADICALIZED Truth Survives, an investigative show about disinformation and is part of the Byline Media team. Her Hot Type column appears in Byline Supplement. Thank you for your support of independent investigative journalism.
🤍
Begin each day with a grateful heart.
🤍
REGISTRATION LINK FOUND HERE
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Bette Dangerous to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.