‘Buff Bernie’ Sanders Used By Russians To Hurt Hillary On Social Media
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
By Nathan Guttman November 2, 2017
Sign up for Forwarding the News, our essential morning briefing with trusted, nonpartisan news and analysis, curated by senior writer Benyamin Cohen.
The Russians didn’t only back President Trump to attack Hillary Clinton — they also used social media to back rival Bernie Sanders.
And they did it but trying to turn the tousle-haired senior citizen into a cartoon superhero.
One such ad attributed to a group called LGBT United, promoted a “Buff Bernie” coloring book, which, the ad notes, includes “very attractive doodles of Bernie Sanders in muscle poses.”
Another, bought for 500 Russian Rubles ($8.56), shows Sanders speaking out against Clinton Foundation donations. “So, why are so many people going to vote for her?” ask authors of the ad, which is attributed to a user called “Born Liberal.”
These ads, only a small taste provided by Congress from thousands of social media paid postings purchased by Russians before the elections, demonstrate part of the Russian thinking in their campaign to block Clinton – promoting Sanders as a viable candidate before the primaries ended, and using his popularity after Clinton clinched the nomination, to discredit her as a candidate.
Contact Nathan Guttman at [email protected] or on Twitter @nathanguttman
