Last week I spoke to Sebastian Seibt from France 24. We talked about how neo-Nazi groups were using Hurricane Hélène. They aimed to show themselves as civil society actors, amplifying misinformation and conspiracy theories about the relief efforts favouring migrants.

I argued that the misinformation spread by US Presidential candidate Donald Trump was very damaging. His false claims about the Biden administration not supporting victims influenced the behavior of vulnerable citizens. They were more likely to turn to extremist groups like Patriotic Front for information and support than the authorities. In effect, they exploited this crisis to rebrand themselves as legitimate, credible actors.

Many thanks to Sebastian for the invitation. 

The article can be read (in French) here.