My pet peeve is when people blame "the media" for telling them about bad things happening. Unlike most people, we don't get to "unplug". I was offline for a day last weekend and it was amazing. But then I had to catch up on everything I missed, otherwise I'm not doing my job.
Which is totally fine; it's a stressful occupation and I love it! I just wish people wouldn't stereotype and scapegoat so much. It's exhausting to weigh each headline and sentence when writing a story, assuming that people will leap to odd conclusions unless we're very careful.
I was amazed when UBC computer scientist @NP_tokumei offered me a first crack at his new platform, which tricks China's Great Firewall into showing precise blocking data. We worked on this research all summer!
Latest investigation by me, based on research from @DisinfoEU:
A website spread disinformation about Canada. Why did major Indian outlets treat it as news? via @torontostarthestar.com/politics/feder…
@DisinfoEU @TorontoStar IFFRAS appeared to be the last active Canadian node of a large fake news network.
This story highlights how disinformation can be weaponized to distort and misrepresent Canada to outsiders — and how it can malign diaspora in the process. @TorontoStarthestar.com/politics/feder…
@DisinfoEU @TorontoStar “These are sophisticated and purposeful activities meant not just to support the false information ecosystem within India for local consumption but to present false information to outsiders — including politicians and the public in Canada.”
#Breaking NDP is tabling a motion asking for David Johnston to step aside as special rapporteur on foreign interference “given clear appearance of bias.” @JennyKwanBC will also speak about her briefing with CSIS after she told @TorontoStar she was a “person of interest” to China.
“Whoever is putting pressure on me, they won’t succeed,” says @JennyKwanBC, who said she’ll continue to stand with people of Hong Kong and China. She “recommits herself to this fight” and “no amount of foreign interference would change that.” Confirms targeting is from China.
#EXCLUSIVE Canada set to name foreign labs, universities that pose risk to national security
Leading universities say they'll avoid working with the entities altogether — despite potential $100M loss in annual funding from foreign partners. thestar.com/news/canada/20…@TorontoStar
The list will include foreign entities at “higher risk” of engaging in research theft, unwanted knowledge transfers and interference, according to documents I saw.
The Canadian government confirmed to me this list is coming - likely first of its kind. thestar.com/news/canada/20…
NEW: Canada's list appears to be the first to serve as a “blanket ban” for federal funding for research with "higher risk" entities. And universities will apply more broadly.
Canada’s top-rated research university will end all its partnerships with Chinese telecoms giant #Huawei.
“We are disentangling ourselves from this company,” Charmaine Dean, vice-president of research at the University of Waterloo, told me exclusively. thestar.com/news/canada/20…
Waterloo’s decision — which @M_Johnston1 called extremely significant and possibly precedent-setting — will affect dozens of deals between the university and Huawei, including the school’s Waterloo-Huawei Joint Innovation Lab. thestar.com/news/canada/20…@TorontoStar
My story on knowing the ABCs of foreign influence coming out soon @TorontoStar. I went on to explain here that the RCMP and CSIS definitions of “foreign influence” are different.