What happened to the people who fell down the rabbit hole into a world of conspiracy theories? How far have they fallen – and how far will they go? In this 10-part series, the BBC’s Disinformation and Social Media Correspondent Marianna Spring investigates the legacy left by the rise in conspiracy movements in the UK and the media machine at its heart. She exposes how radical they have become and how action is spilling offline. At the extreme end, we’ve seen conspiracy-theory driven riots at the US Capitol and a coup-attempt foiled in Germany. But what’s happening in the UK ..read more

Citizen journalism – reporting by self-taught people, often on the ground – can play a vital role in the coverage of conflict. However, not everyone who contributes to this coverage is as 'independent' as they’d like their followers to believe. Roddy’s distrust of the media led him to start his own podcast. He also follows self-styled citizen journalists who are roaming around inside Ukraine. In this episode of War On Truth, the BBC’s specialist disinformation reporter Marianna Spring investigates some of their work. She speaks with an expert who has analysed some of their coverage, tries to u ..read more

On the first day of the war, Ukraine gained a new patriotic hero and Tetyana thought she had lost a son. But the story wasn't quite as it first seemed. Tetyana’s son, Roman became world famous for defiantly swearing at a Russian warship which had threatened to bomb him and his fellow border guards on Snake Island, if they didn’t surrender. A recording of the exchange went viral and the Ukrainian government declared that Roman and his comrades had died as national heroes. Tetyana was plunged into grief as her son was celebrated as a symbol of national resistance. But, as she recounts, events so ..read more

After Russia’s first independent radio station was taken off air by the Kremlin, the journalists who worked there are finding ways to get round censorship of the war in Ukraine. Sergei Buntman helped to found Echo of Moscow which for more than three decades provided an alternative to the news on Russian state media. In the days following the invasion of Ukraine, his radio station and several other news organisations were forced to shut down for challenging the official narrative about the war. Yet despite threats of violence and imprisonment, Sergei and some of his fellow Russian journalists a ..read more

Marianna Vishegirskaya is the pregnant woman who has unwittingly found herself at the centre of one of the most disputed events of the war. In a previous episode we looked at how Russia falsely accused her of helping fake photos of the aftermath of its attack on a maternity hospital, in which at least three people were killed. But now Marianna has told her side of the story, after escaping the besieged city of Mariupol with her husband and newborn baby. Her interview, given to a pro-Kremlin journalist, flatly contradicts much of what Russia has said up to now. But some of her comments have bee ..read more

What does the invasion of Ukraine have in common with the coronavirus pandemic? On the face of it not much at all, but disinformation about the war is also fuelling existing conspiracy movements around the world. Covid denialists who claimed the pandemic was invented by a shadowy elite to impose a tyrannical global government, now believe that the conflict in Ukraine is part of the same evil plot. It’s a bizarre offshoot of the extraordinary information war that’s being fought over Ukraine, in parallel to the military campaign on the ground. So how and why are these baseless conspiracy theorie ..read more

When Russia bombed a maternity hospital in Mariupol, it claimed that a wounded pregnant woman was faking it. Her friends told us something different. Images of Marianna Vyshemirska fleeing the aftermath of the attack caused an outcry around the world. But they were also seized upon for a furious disinformation campaign, waged by people including Russian diplomats, that sought to justify the bombing. But we’ve found clear evidence that the Russian story is false, and that the pregnant woman who was bombed was targeted again online - by pro-Russian trolls. Marianna’s friends say she’s become a p ..read more

Masha is one of the most famous faces on Ukrainian TV and a huge social media star. But the Russian-speaking celebrity has taken on a new role. Her Instagram posts about skin care tips have been replaced by patriotic propaganda. The former Eurovision Song Contest host says she is one of around 200 influencers who are using their social media accounts to help the Ukrainian government to get its message out. As the military battle for Ukraine rages, influencers on all sides are playing a part in the other conflict that is being fought in parallel – an information war. And like the conflict on th ..read more

When social media star Maxim was shelled out of his home, he didn’t expect to be called a liar by some of his followers. But did the hostility come from real people - or automated accounts? As the battle for Ukraine rages, another conflict is being fought in parallel – an information war. And like the conflict on the ground, this fight also has real consequences for the people whose lives it touches. Russia’s military assault has been accompanied by an onslaught of disinformation and propaganda from state media, trolls and influencers. With all sides seeking to capture and control the narrativ ..read more

What’s fake, what’s real? Stories from the information war over Ukraine. BBC disinformation reporter Marianna Spring speaks to people caught up in the battle for the truth ..read more