An image that was posted on Roger Stone‘s Instagram account earlier Monday that Stone said was a “random” photo from the internet happens to have been used on pro-Russian websites, and recently.
Stone, in case you missed it, shared and then deleted the following image of Judge Amy Berman Jackson today:
At first glance, all you can really see clearly in the image is the crosshairs. When you do a quick reverse Google image search the photo leads to websites like “Russia News Now” and a blog called “Americans for Innovation,” among others.
Russia News Now’s mission statement is pretty… interesting:
Therussophile.org is an aggregator of news about Russia from alternative sources. We also aim to cover news from neighboring countries and countries connected with Russian interests, like Syria, China, Iran etc. We want this site to be the main location for you anyone who wants hourly updated reports from alternative news sources but don’t have the time or wish to search all over the Internet for such news.If you feel for contributing to the existence of this site, you can do so by clicking the button below. Please note that the amount you enter is in Russian Rubles.
The full image of Judge Jackson shown on the website looks this way:
As you can see, next to the crosshairs are the words “corruption central” and Jackson is presented as a person doing the dirty work for Hillary Clinton and The Clinton Foundation. In the upper right corner of the image is a gas mask icon and the words “toxic attorney.”
Stone referenced “corruption central” in a later post.
“What some say are crosshairs are in fact the logo of the organization that originally posted it something called corruption central,” he said. “They use the logo in many photos.”
At the very top of the page on which this photo of Jackson is pictured is a YouTube video titled “We’ve nailed Hillary and Mueller in the act!! UNBELIEVABLE.”
It’s true — Jackson wasn’t the only figure on the website with a photo edited in this way, apparently for the express purpose of promoting propaganda. Nor was it the only website doing so, and all of these show that the image was featured in articles published as recently as Feb. 2019. The post appears to have originated on a website called aim4truth.org, an “American Intelligence Media” property. American Intelligence Media does not hide what it is for:
The American Intelligence Media is more than an alternative news site or a cutting-edge news aggregator. Citizens are rewriting history–real time, based on truth, not on the lies of the main stream media and government controlled propaganda. The mission of AIM4Truth is to archive the progress we are making as we find out who we really are and where we really came from and are headed. The site consists of two main features–daily news and research articles. The daily news is gathered at the top of the site and focuses on the unfolding current events that support the truth of our history. The articles below the CAT Reports make up our “mountain of evidence of HIGH TREASON, mounting every day as we post our deeply researched articles on the people, places, and events that have conspired to take away Americans’ life, liberty, and property.
The New York Times and others previously explored how American-sounding/patriot-friendly websites have been used by Russia to spread disinformation and propaganda, whether in 2016 or beyond. It’s not clear if the website mentioned immediately above is one of those, but the content you might find there speaks volumes about its mission.
The Twitter and YouTube accounts for AIM4Truth were created in February 2017. The YouTube about section shows that their videos have been watched more than 12,000,000 times. The 92,000 subscribers — “Citizens Addicted to Truth” — are invited to participate in a process that will lead to absolute political enlightenment:
Join the Anonymous Patriot spokespersons and hosts of the AIM Radio network, Thomas,and Betsy, as they discusses a wide variety of topics that are pertinent to the saying that “history repeats itself.” Discover the trends and moods that reoccur in history and how a deep understanding of these can make you the smartest guy and gal in your network of friends, family, and colleagues. These high level presentations and discussions with special guests will electrify the interests of political scholars as well as arm chair analysts. For those new to political esoteric conversation, you will be amazed when you see the big picture and how all the pieces of scattered news and events fit into a world view. Visit www.aim4truth.org for the deep truth of the world around you.
The pinned tweet on the Twitter account is an apology to QAnon conspiracy theorists.
Editor’s note: this story was updated after publication with additional information.
[Image via Mark Wilson/Getty Images]