Original article (in Montenegrin) was published on 11/01/2023
Some theories have no expiration date. As such, they often serve those spreading disinformation and hunting for likes as “rewarding” material to animate the wider masses. When two strongest forces in the world are brought into the mix – the clickbait reaches its full potential.
A photo that has been travelling around the world for decades has been given a new life. This time on Facebook. In a short time, it attracted about 300 likes and 70 shares. In the photo, one can see the former president of the USA, Ronald Reagan, visiting Moscow. Around him are grey “suits” and the man who is at the centre of the pomp. The caption reads:
Reagan with Putin…you still think it is all a coincidence!?
The photo was taken in 1988 on Red Square. The mystery surrounding the photo concerns the man in the left corner, in a striped shirt, with a camera. Many claim that the man in the photo is the current president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, and a narrative has been created that Putin was spying on the highest officials from the West back then. It is known that Putin was a KGB spy in his youth, but at the time of Reagan’s visit to the then leader of the Soviet Union, Gorbachev, he was on duty in Dresden, East Germany.
Some 20 years later, the author of the photo, Pete Souza, also caused some confusion. He fuelled theories that the person in the photo was really Putin. However, in 2021 he denied the claims himself and said that there was no evidence that the person in the photo was really the current first man of Russia:
“In January 2009, I was hired as the chief photographer for President Obama. A few days before the inauguration, I did an interview with Steve Inskeep of NPR. I shared this story as an example of how the relevance of presidential photographs can change over time. As soon as one sees the photo, they think – ‘Oh my God, that’s really him (Putin)’ – these were my exact words. Big mistake. I should not have said that because it was never actually confirmed.”
The story of the young Putin, who was, allegedly, in close contact with Reagan, was reported by the world media. Some, however, proved that it was not true. In addition to the information that he was in Dresden at the time of Reagan’s visit, Putin’s photo album through the years is also offered as proof, as it allows one to compare his photos with the face of the man who, apparently and blamelessly, found himself at the centre of the story from 1988.
Given the range of evidence provided, the obvious differences between the two men, as well as the question in the post at issue, it gets the rating of conspiracy theory.
The “Conspiracy theory” rating is given to a media report which features an untrue or unverifiable description of a phenomenon, event or person, presenting them as part or the result of a hidden agenda (“conspiracy”). Such contents feature a series of claims, presented as facts, between which cause and effect relationships are established, without offering any credible evidence.
