Lesbian Syrian blogger=White American male

Anything on the news and elsewhere in the media with evidence of digital manipulation, bogus story-lines and propaganda
Gracist
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Joined: Mon May 02, 2011 1:58 pm

Lesbian Syrian blogger=White American male

Unread post by Gracist »

I recently heard about this and thought it was a perfect example of the kind of ongoing and widespread media fakery that is at play in the world behind the scenes of these Middle East "uprisings" and so on. I also see this as a perfect example of the kind of social engineering that is going on continuously in society.

http://www.alternet.org/story/151319/wh ... t_burdens/

"Araf’s blog featured her erotic poetry and her coming-out story—risky material since homosexuality is illegal in Syria. She also spread news of the government’s brutal crackdown on protestors, prompting Time.com to call her “an honest and reflective voice of the revolution.” In late April, Araf claimed that Syrian security forces visited her father’s home and accused her of “conspiring against the state,” “urging armed uprising,” and “working with foreign elements.” Subsequent posts found Araf “going underground,” although she was still able to “encourage other women in Syria to be more upfront” via an email interview with cbsnews.com. Last week, a cousin posted a dramatic account of Araf’s abduction by three armed men. Like the rest of “Gay Girl in Damascus,” that entry is now unavailable to the public.

Because they’re human beings, members of the LBGT and progressive blogosphere took to Twitter, Facebook and petition sites demanding information and protection for Araf. Days later, the blogger’s “Catfish”-style caper unraveled due to skeptical tweets from an NPR reporter; news of fake photos on Araf’s Facebook page; and an unnerving interview with a Montreal woman “Araf” had seduced via Facebook. On Sunday, The Washington Post revealed “Araf” to be Tom MacMaster, a white 40-year-old from Virginia who was raised a Mennonite and attends a graduate program at the University of Edinburgh."

Also, I may be being a little too suspicious but I work with, know, and live around a lot of Mennonite people and I find the surname MacMaster a little suspicious. I just looked up several large lists of Mennonite surnames and didn't see any beginning with "Mac" or "Mc" and I find it strange that they even mentioned he was raised Mennonite. Is it common for articles to mention a person's upbringing like that? I just thought it was weird because I didn't see how it was relevant to the article but maybe I'm just reading too much into this.