The fight against fake news and fake Facebook accounts should be based on a single principle

Recently, fake news spread that the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia congratulated the US President on the rocket strike on high-ranking Iranian military officials in Baghdad. This false news spread rapidly in the Azerbaijani and Iranian media. According to a report released by the NSS (National Security Service) of Armenia, the Facebook user who spread the fake news was later found and arrested.
“Media Advocate” Initiative urges the Armenian authorities to act faster and make official statements operatively in such cases so as the public and private organizations and individuals operating in the information field act properly and information and propaganda resources of other countries lack access to information or information vacuum coming from official circles.
“Media Advocate” Initiative states that the fight against fake news and fake Facebook accounts is an important issue for Armenia. It, at the same time, expresses hope that the declared fight against fake news cannot be an end in itself and be carried out by a principle of double standards. It is unbearable to divide into insiders (ours) and outsiders (theirs), those who spread fake news and those who breed “fake” factories because there is a high risk that under the name of fake news and fake accounts, one witnesses regular demonstrations of restriction of freedom of speech. We urge the Armenian authorities to fight against fake news and “fake” accounts within the framework of the laws operating under a single principle that is by revealing the perpetrators and bringing them all to justice.