3.08.23 Update: A post by the Facebook page “I Ucnobi” was added to the article. The post was deleted after labellig it as false.
On August 1-2, 2023, Facebook users (1,2,3,4,5) including Dimitri Samkharadze, an MP from the ruling Georgian Dream party, as well as the Facebook page of the “Conservative Movement in Rustavi,” shared a photo of the alleged cover of the Turkish satirical magazine, LeMan. The cover depicts a caricature of the protest that took place in the Georgia city of Batuni over the Russian cruise ship. The cover also shows the following inscription: “Georgian animators are taking away the monopoly of entertaining Russian tourists’ from the Turks.” [“Gürcü animators Rus turistleri eğlendirme tekelini Türklerden alımı”]
On August 2, the caricature was also published on the Facebook page “I Ucnobi.” Nonetheless, the post has been deleted.
Notably, on August 1, 2023, Kremlin propagandist Vladimir Solovyov published the cover on his Telegram channel; while on August 2, the Kremlin’s propaganda media outlets Аргументы и Факты [Arguments and Facts] and Forpopst:Севастопол published the news under the title “LeMan magazine ridiculed the nationalists organizing the Russophobic rally in Batumi.”
The cover disseminated under the name of LeMan is fabricated. A similar caricature has not been published on the publication’s official website or social media. The fact that the cover is fake was also confirmed by LeMan itself.
Issue number 1636 and the release date of August 2 are indicated on the cover, although the photo of the cover was already circulated on social media on August 1. Additionally, the magazine’s last issue with the number 1635, was out on July 26, and the publication has yet to release cover photos of the next issue on its social media. The cover illustrations of the July 26 issue look as follows:
The fact that the disseminated cover is fabricated was also confirmed by LeMan itself by addressing the issue on Twitter (1,2,3).
On July 27 and 31, 2023, the Russian cruise ship Astoria Grande entered Batumi port, which started its route from Sochi. On both days, citizens protested the entry of the Russian ship into the port. On July 31, the police detained 23 people at the rally. According to reports, Batumi is no longer included in Astoria Grande’s future cruise itineraries.
Photos of fabricated covers of the Turkish satirical magazine LeMan and other foreign publications, which carried Russian propaganda content, have been published many times in the past:
- FABRICATED CARICATURES OF THE PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE IN THE NAME OF WESTERN PUBLICATIONS DISSEMINATED AFTER THE NATO SUMMIT
- FABRICATED CARICATURE ABOUT ARMED FORCES OF UKRAINE DISSEMINATED IN THE NAME OF COURRIER INTERNATIONAL
- FABRICATED COVER OF THE SPANISH SATIRICIAL MAGAZINE EL JUEVES
- FABRICATED COVERS DISSEMINATED IN THE NAME OF POLISH AND GERMAN OUTLETS
- HOW DOES KREMLIN PROPAGANDA FABRICATE THE COVERS OF WESTERN OUTLETS TO DISCREDIT UKRAINE?
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