In today's #vatniksoup, I'll introduce a social media personality and LARPer, @trollstoy88 AKA Richard Z. He's best-known for acting to be Russian, and for his pro-Russian tweets on the Russo-Ukrainian War.
Most of the research presented here was done by the NAFO Team.
1/22
.@Trollstoy88 belongs to the "big three" of pro-Russian Twitter analysts/political commentators, the other two being a Serbian nurse, @200_zoka, and Austrian IT support guy, @GeromanAT.
There's also @WarMonitors, but he seems to be more anti-NATO than pro-Russia.
2/22
For a long time, Dick's been claiming to be Russian. In reality, he lives in West Germany in a small town near Düsseldorf and Cologne. Ironically, he's even called for Russia to invade Berlin, declaring that it's actually a Baltic Prussian city named Veletian.
3/22
His tweets are something you'd expect from an actual Russian: praise of Putin, Russia's military and its culture (especially women). He really embraces the "third Holy Rome" versus the "decadent West" idea, and regards Putin as some kind of savior of humankind.
4/22
Dick also often overestimates and praises the Russian equipment, mocks Zelensky, blames NATO and the West for the war. And of course he blames the West for the "coup" that didn't take place during the Revolution of Dignity in 2014.
5/22
Interestingly, he's also played the reverse card on the genocide accusations, stating that Ukrainians and Russians are brother-nations, and that it's actually the West that's committing "world genocide" and "will be stopped".
6/22
In his analysis, Richard relies heavily on Douglas Macgregor's views on the Russo-Ukrainian War. As many of you know, Dougie has been wrong about absolutely everything, starting from the first days of the war.
Per Macgregor, Ukrainians have lost over 300 000 men already.
7/22
He's focused on another new narrative spread by the conspiratorial wannabe-president RFK Jr., who claimed that there was an agreement between Russia and Ukraine made in Apr 2022, which caused Russia to withdraw its troops from around Kyiv.
Now that's some strong Copium!
8/22
Dickie is all about them "Ukrainian Nazis". He likes to talk about "institutionalized nazi structures", claiming that it's a "continuation from ww2 period", and that these "evil Nazis" were sent to administrate Eastern Ukraine after the 2014 "coup". Man he sounds Russian!
9/22
As the number 88 in Dicky's nickname doesn't refer to his birth year, I wonder what it could be reference to? Only thing that comes to my mind is a certain failed Austrian painter that later became a German politician. He's also referred to number 1488 in one of his tweets.
10/22
He condemned the Prigozhin/Wagner mutiny very strongly, declaring that "those who did it will have to pay for their deeds." If he was actually from Russia, he'd known there are absolutely no consequences for the mutineers and/or their leaders.
11/22
He's also knowingly or unknowingly shared videos and photos out of context & has been struck with Community Notes on a few occasions. As is tradition,he hasn't made any corrections, but I mean, the man is lying about his whereabouts so I'm not sure if all that even matters.
12/22
Richard has attacked NAFO on many occasions. As usual, his attacks focus on appearances only, even though Dicky himself isn't built like a Greek statue.
But that's just how it often goes with pro-Russian pundits: when you're out of arguments, go for the irrelevant stuff.
13/22
Dick has another Twitter account, @Mad_in_Germany. The content is pretty much the same, but there are two big differences: he writes in German and absolutely no one cares about his tweets. Lesson learned again: for maximum engagement, it's better to LARP as a Russian.
14/22
Dickie has also launched a some sort of "free speach [sic] social media" site, where "all political views are respected." He's posting the same content on his Meld content, but as expected, his site is mostly a ghost town with just a few active users.
15/22
Dick also often posts with his German, non-LARP accounts about the right-wing, populist political party Alternative für Deutschland, or AfD for short. They're best-known for their close ties to the Kremlin, and they've been strongly against the sanctions. In Sep 2022,five..
16/22
...AfD politicians traveled to Moscow and planned a trip to the Russian-controlled areas in Donbas, Ukraine. One of their MEPs, @KrahMax has often appeared as a commentator on RT and also on CCP-controlled People's Daily.
17/22
Another member of AfD, Markus Frohnmaier, was described to be under Kremlin's "absolute control" in a 2017 strategy paper. He's also named as a recipient of financial benefits in OCCRP investigation of Russia's International Agency for Current Policy.
18/22
Imagine being a +60-year-old tanker bridge attendant from West Germany, who pretends to be a Russian political commentator. At the same you're living in a NATO country, and your taxes are used to support it. Dickie, are you sure you don't want to move to Russia for real?
19/22
Richard is solid reinforcement to the rather strong pro-Russian fifth column in Germany, and his strength is probably in his double-role - he's actively spreading disinformation and propaganda on two languages and under many accounts.
The thing that I appreciate about Richard is that he doesn't block people easily.
Now, Mr. @trollstoy88, maybe you can answer my question: Why lie? Why pretend to be something you're not? Is it a (sexual) fantasy, or some kind of personality disorder? Just curious.
21/22
Oh, and one more question: What is your new website with the logo Z about and does it comply with the German law?
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll cover the agenda-setting and flood of disinformation that spread on X and other platforms right after Charlie Kirk’s assassination. It’s far from the first or last time a tragedy has been weaponized for political purposes.
1/18
Every major political event, especially those involving violence, attracts massive attention. In the immediate aftermath, reliable information is scarce, making it highly vulnerable to both coordinated and improvised disinformation campaigns.
2/18
As I’ve mentioned in my previous soups and lectures, in disinformation campaigns, being first with a narrative is crucial, as people often remember the first version best — psychology studies show it sets the mental schema, and later updates rarely overwrite it.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce American social media personality David Freeman, AKA Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman). He’s best known for spreading political disinformation on X and shamelessly sucking up to Trump, Putin, and other authoritarian leaders.
1/22
David is a textbook example of someone profiting from MAGA grievance politics. He uses extreme, provocative language to farm engagement on X and never hesitates to flatter anyone who might give him more exposure — or money.
2/22
But David wasn’t always like this. At some point, in his mid-40s, he even tried a real job: he trained to become a cop. He spent three years with the Metro Transit PD, but after that he either got fired or quit, and never looked back.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce a Russian-Estonian businessman, Oleg Ossinovski. He is best-known for his deep ties to Russian rail and energy networks, shady cross-border dealings, and for channeling his wealth into Estonian politics.
1/14
Oleg made his fortune via Spacecom Trans & Skinest Rail, both deeply tied to Russia’s rail system. Most of this is through Globaltrans Investments PLC, a Cyprus-based firm with 62% held via Spacecom and tens of millions in yearly profits.
2/14
Ossinovski’s Russian-linked ventures made him Estonia’s richest man in 2014, with an estimated fortune of ~€300M. His business empire stretched across railways, oil via Alexela shares, and Russian bitumen imports from Help-Oil, a supplier to the Defense Ministry.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce a Swiss/French writer, Alain Bonnet, aka Alain Soral (@officielsoral). He’s best known for his rabid antisemitism and for his pathetic support for all the worst authoritarian regimes from Russia to North Korea.
1/22
Alain’s childhood was problematic, as his father has been characterized as a “narcissistic pervert” who beat his children and did jail time for fraud. Alain himself has said he was “programmed to be a monster.” Born Alain Bonnet, he took the stage name of his sister,…
2/22
… actress Agnès Soral. She wasn’t too happy about this, commenting “How would you like to be called Agnès Hitler?”. Like many grifters, he became a pick-up/seduction artist writer, à la late Gonzalo Lira, writing books and even making a B-movie, “Confessions d’un dragueur”.
3/22
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll explain the Alaska Fiasco and how it marks the peak of Trump’s two-year betrayal of Ukraine. What was sold as “peace talks” turned into a spectacle of weakness, humiliation, empty promises, and photo-ops that handed Putin exactly what he wanted.
1/24
Let’s start with the obvious: Trump desperately wants the gold medal of the Nobel Peace Prize, mainly because Obama got one. That’s why he’s now LARPing as a “peace maker” in every conflict: Israel-Gaza, Azerbaijan-Armenia, India-Pakistan, and of course Ukraine-Russia.
2/24
Another theory is that Putin holds kompromat — compromising material such as videos or documents — that would put Trump in an extremely bad light. Some have suggested it could be tied to the Epstein files or Russia’s interference in the 2016 US presidential election.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll talk about engagement farming: a cynical social media tactic to rack up likes, shares, and comments. From rage farming to AI-powered outrage factories, engagement farming is reshaping online discourse and turning division into profit.
1/23
Engagement farming is a social media tactic aimed at getting maximum likes, shares, and comments, with truth being optional. It thrives on provocative texts, images, or videos designed to spark strong reactions, boost reach, and turn online outrage into clicks and cash.
2/23
One subset of engagement farming is rage farming: a tactic built to provoke strong negative emotions through outrageous or inflammatory claims. By triggering anger or moral outrage, these posts often generate 100s or even 1,000s of heated comments, amplifying their reach.