Russian Campaign to Spark Racial Tension Invaded 'Pokémon Go'
Facebook recently came under fire after it was discovered that multiple Russian accounts used the social media site to propagate information that would spark tension regarding politically sensitive matters, such as racism and sexuality. Recent reports have revealed that the campaign did not only affect Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, but also Niantic's popular release "Pokémon Go."
According to reports, the campaign began last year, through a Tumblr page that was discovered to be linked to the Russian Internet Research Agency (IRA). It encouraged those who supported the cause of Black Lives Matter to take part in multiple activities in order to raise awareness. The Tumblr page was linked to Don't Shoot Us, and detailed other pages related to the campaign, such as their own website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The Facebook page of Don't Shoot Us was recently taken down after it was proven to be linked to Russian interference with the U.S. Presidential Elections.
"Pokémon Go" was mainly used to encourage fans to change their names to the victims of police brutality, which had been a clear indication that the campaign was trying to incite racial tension that would ruin Americans' relations with each other.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"It's clear from the images shared with us by CNN that our game assets were appropriated and misused in promotions by third parties without our permission," Niantic told CNN. "It is important to note that Pokémon GO, as a platform, was not and cannot be used to share information between users in the app so our platform was in no way being used. This 'contest' required people to take screen shots from their phone and share over other social networks, not within our game. Niantic will consider our response as we learn more."
It is unclear as to whether the awards and gift cards that were promised to those who took part in the campaign were ever given to the fans. Regardless, all the social media giants have agreed to testify in court on Nov. 1.
