Piers Robinson
{{Short description|British academic (born 1970)}}
{{Use British English|date=April 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox academic
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| name = Piers Robinson
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| birth_name = Piers Gregory Robinson
| birth_date = {{birth year and age|1970}}
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| nationality = British
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| occupation = {{hlist|Academic|Lecturer|Writer|Author}}
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| title = Co-Director
| boards = Organisation for Propaganda Studies
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| website = {{URL|https://piersrobinson.wordpress.com/}}
| education =
| alma_mater = University of Bristol
| thesis_title = The News Media and Intervention
| thesis_url = https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258134807_Research_Note_The_News_Media_and_Intervention_Triggering_the_Use_of_Air_Power_During_Humanitarian_Crises
| thesis_year = {{small|2000}}
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| influences = Edward S. Herman, Noam Chomsky
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| discipline = Propaganda studies, political science, political journalism
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| notable_ideas = CNN effect
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Piers Gregory Robinson (born 1970) is a British academic researcher in the field of media studies.{{Cite book|last=Rampa|first=Kuldip R.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6YWZDwAAQBAJ|title=Global Communication: A Multicultural Perspective|date=5 July 2019|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=978-1-5381-2166-5|editor-last=Kamalipour|editor-first=Yahya R.|pages=168–9|language=en|chapter=Global News and Information Flow in the Digital Age|quote=British academic Piers Robinson, who has long written about political journalism, says that 'a substantial body of research conducted over many decades highlights the proximity between western news media and their respective governments, especially in the realm of foreign affairs'.}}{{Cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=_kUlDwAAQBAJ&pg=PR9 |title=Routledge Handbook of Media, Conflict and Security |last1=Robinson |first1=Piers |last2=Seib |first2=Philip |last3=Frohlich |first3=Romy |year=2016 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-317-91430-3}} He is also a co-director of the Organisation for Propaganda Studies{{cite web|url= http://propagandastudies.ac.uk/board-directors-advisors/ |title=Organisation for Propaganda Studies |publisher= Organisation for Propaganda Studies |access-date=12 May 2020}} and a founder of the Working Group on Syria, Propaganda and Media (SPM).{{cite web|url= http://syriapropagandamedia.org/about/members |title=Members |date=25 January 2018 |publisher=Working Group on Syria, Propaganda and Media |access-date=12 May 2020}} He has authored a number of publications on the CNN effect. He has attracted criticism for disputing the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Civil War.
Education and career
Robinson received his PhD from the University of Bristol in 2000, with a thesis titled The News Media and Intervention.{{cite thesis|url=https://bris.on.worldcat.org/oclc/931561662|title=The News Media and Intervention|year=2000|last=Robinson|first=Piers|type=PhD thesis|publisher=University of Bristol}} He was a lecturer in political communication at the University of Liverpool from 1999 to 2005 and senior lecturer in international politics at The University of Manchester from 2005 to 2015. He was the chair in Politics, Society and Political Journalism at The University of Sheffield until he left his post in 2019 citing "professional goals and personal circumstances". According to the Huffington Post, in 2018 Robinson "wrote a glowing review of a book titled '9/11 Unmasked' by David Ray Griffin, a leading figure in the so-called 9/11 truther movement".{{Cite news|date=17 April 2019|title=Sheffield Uni Professor Leaves Post After Accusations of Promoting Conspiracy Theories|language=en|website=HuffPost UK|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/piers-robinson_uk_5cb5d5b5e4b082aab08c953f|access-date=24 September 2019}}
Political research
=Media and propaganda=
Robinson has argued that Western news media and their respective governments act in concert, especially in the area of foreign affairs. He puts this down to "overreliance on government officials as news sources, economic constraints, the imperatives of big business and good old-fashioned patriotism". He has said western governments frequently manipulate the media through "deception involving exaggeration, omission and misdirection". As evidence of government use of propaganda he cited Tony Blair's suggestion that the "war on terror" would require a "dedicated tightly knit propaganda unit". In "The Propaganda Model: Still Relevant Today" he examined the propaganda model put forward by Herman and Chomsky and concluded that it is still useful in describing how the corporate media works.{{cite book |last1=Robinson |first1=Piers | author-link1= Piers Robinson |editor1-last=Edgley |editor1-first=Alison |title=Noam Chomsky |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s3oYDAAAQBAJ|year=2016 |publisher=Springer |location=London |isbn=978-1-349-56778-2 |pages=77–96 |chapter=The Propaganda Model: Still Relevant Today?}}
In an opinion piece in The Guardian, Robinson described the UK government's use of the Research, Information and Communications Unit to covertly support grassroots Muslim organisations as an example of black propaganda.
Robinson is an editor of Propaganda in Focus, a website that describes itself as "a forum for expert opinion and analysis about propaganda and its consequences". He co-edits the website with Daniel Broudy, a professor of rhetoric and applied linguistics at Okinawa Christian University. Broudy also writes for the International Journal of Vaccine Theory, Practice, and Research,an anti-vaccine journal.{{Cite web |last=Whitaker |first=Brian |date=7 November 2022 |title=Friends in Strange Places |url=https://newlinesmag.com/argument/friends-in-strange-places/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240911024618/https://newlinesmag.com/argument/friends-in-strange-places/ |archive-date=11 September 2024 |access-date=11 September 2024 |website=New Lines Magazine}}{{cite web |last1=Rougerie |first1=Pablo |date=31 October 2023 |title=Preventing deaths isn't the sole benefit of COVID-19 vaccination, contrary to Epoch Times article |url=https://healthfeedback.org/claimreview/preventing-deaths-isnt-sole-benefit-covid19-vaccination-contrary-epoch-times-article/ |access-date=29 January 2024 |website=Health Feedback}}{{Cite web |last=Christiansen |first=Siri |date=September 10, 2024 |title=No, there aren't self-assembled nanostructures in COVID-19 vaccines |url=https://www.logicallyfacts.com/en/fact-check/no-there-arent-self-assembled-nanostructures-in-covid-19-vaccines |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240911024623/https://www.logicallyfacts.com/en/fact-check/no-there-arent-self-assembled-nanostructures-in-covid-19-vaccines |archive-date=September 11, 2024 |access-date=September 11, 2024 |website=Logically Facts}}{{relevance|date=April 2025}}
== CNN effect ==
{{see also|CNN effect}}Robinson has studied the CNN effect,{{Cite web|title=The 'CNN Effect' Dies in Syria|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2018/03/cnn-effect-syria/554387/|last=Friedman|first=Uri|date=1 March 2018|website=The Atlantic|language=en-US|access-date=25 May 2020}} a term that refers to the "influence that televised images and news coverage exercise on foreign policy decisions, especially during military interventions and humanitarian crises."{{Cite book|last=Joseph|first=Paul|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=idw0DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA323|title=The SAGE Encyclopedia of War: Social Science Perspectives|date=11 October 2016|publisher=SAGE Publications|isbn=978-1-4833-5988-5|language=en}} In his 2002 book, The CNN Effect: The Myth of News, Foreign Policy and Intervention, he argued that "sympathetic news coverage at key moments in foreign crises can influence the response of Western governments."{{Cite book|last=Robinson|first=Piers|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UHyBAgAAQBAJ|title=The CNN Effect: The Myth of News, Foreign Policy and Intervention|date=8 July 2005|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-134-51313-0|language=en}} In Robinson's framework, which focused on "the type of media coverage a crisis attracts and on level of policy certainty within the establishment in relation to the crisis", a strong CNN effect requires two conditions: 1) media coverage that is highly critical of national policy, while simultaneously emphatically reporting on civilians and refugees, and 2) policy makers in a state of indecision with no clear policy regarding use of force. In terms of this framework, Robinson characterised the 1994 NATO intervention in Bosnia that followed the siege of Goražde as exemplifying a strong CNN effect. If either condition is missing, influence on policy makers' attitudes is likely to be weak.
= 9/11 =
Robinson's review of 9/11 Unmasked by David Ray Griffin (an adherent of the 9/11 truth movement) said it represents "a serious challenge for mainstream academics and journalists to start to ask substantial questions about 9/11".{{Cite web|title=9/11 Unmasked by David Ray Griffin and Elizabeth Woodworth: A Review|url=https://off-guardian.org/2018/09/10/9-11-unmasked-by-david-ray-griffin-and-elizabeth-woodworth-a-review|last=Robinson|first=Piers|date=10 September 2018|website=off-guardian.org}} When asked whether he agreed with the conclusions of the book, Robinson stated "My position, as has been the case for some time, is that [conclusions detailed in 9/11 Unmasked] demonstrate beyond reasonable doubt that significant parts of the official narrative are very likely to be incorrect" and "It is no longer tenable for academics and journalists to avoid asking probing questions about the possible involvement of state actors in the 9/11 attacks. 9/11 requires further analysis and investigation and this is a position I share with many other academics."{{cite news|title=Professor Piers Robinson Teaches Journalism At A Top UK University. He's Also A 9/11 Truther|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/professor-piers-robinson-sheffield-university_uk_5bd70ffae4b0d38b5885c5c5|date=12 April 2018|website=HuffPost|access-date=1 May 2020}}
=2003 invasion of Iraq=
Robinson has paid particular attention to the role of the US and UK governments in manipulating intelligence prior to the 2003 invasion of Iraq to increase the perceived threat posed by Iraq.{{cite news|last1=Robinson|first1=Piers|date=3 May 2016|title=The British government has already forgotten the great dangers of propaganda|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/may/03/british-government-propaganda-counter-terrorism-muslim-communities|access-date=4 October 2019}} Robinson conducted a study of UK media coverage which concluded that most UK mainstream media reinforced official views rather than challenged them.{{cite news|last1=Robinson|first1=Piers|date=2 August 2016|title=Russian news may be biased – but so is much western media|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/aug/02/russian-propaganda-western-media-manipulation|access-date=4 October 2019}}
=Syrian Civil War=
Robinson and other members of the SPM working group including Vanessa Beeley, Tim Hayward and David Miller have gained considerable attention for disputing the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Civil War,{{Cite web|url=http://www.cfom.org.uk/2017/02/14/propaganda-here-and-now/|title=Propaganda Here and Now | The Centre for Freedom of the Media}} most notably in the Douma incident, alleging a coverup by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons,{{Cite web|url=http://syriapropagandamedia.org/working-papers/briefing-note-on-the-final-report-of-the-opcw-fact-finding-mission-on-the-alleged-chemical-attack-in-douma-in-april-2018|title=Briefing note on the final report of the OPCW Fact-Finding Mission on the alleged chemical attack in Douma in April 2018|date=11 April 2019}} and extremist links of the White Helmets.{{Cite news|last=Blanchard|first=Georgie Keate, Sam|title=To say Douma attack was staged is to enter an Orwellian world|language=en|work=The Times|url=https://www.thetimes.com/world/middle-east/article/professors-shut-down-debate-over-assad-s-chemical-attacks-n899fjdkm|access-date=28 May 2020|issn=0140-0460}}{{Cite web|title=Mysterious death of White Helmets co-founder spotlights toxic propaganda|url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/mysterious-death-of-white-helmets-co-founder-spotlights-toxic-propaganda|date=24 December 2019|website=PBS NewsHour|language=en-us|access-date=29 May 2020}}{{Cite web|title=James Le Mesurier: a reconstruction of his business activities and covert role|url=http://syriapropagandamedia.org/james-le-mesurier-a-reconstruction-of-his-business-activities-and-covert-role|last1=McKeigue|first1=Paul|last2=Mason|first2=Jake|date=16 December 2019|website=Working Group on Syria, Propaganda and Media|language=en-US|access-date=29 May 2020|last3=Robinson|first3=Piers|last4=Miller|first4=David}} This has led to members of the group being described as "apologists for Assad" in articles in The Times, which compared them to Holocaust deniers.{{Cite news|last=Haynes|first=Georgie Keate, Dominic Kennedy, Krystina Shveda, Deborah|title=Apologists for Assad working in British universities|language=en|work=The Times|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/apologists-for-assad-working-in-british-universities-2f72hw29m|access-date=27 May 2020|issn=0140-0460}}{{Cite news|title=Assad's Useful Idiots|language=en|work=The Times|url=https://www.thetimes.com/comment/article/assad-s-useful-idiots-hddlzn0vz|access-date=28 May 2020|issn=0140-0460}}{{Cite news|last=Webster|first=Ben|title=Academics accused of speaking for Assad condemn Syria raids|language=en|work=The Times|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/academics-speaking-for-assad-question-justification-for-raids-sm6qthxkx|access-date=28 May 2020|issn=0140-0460}}
In a consultation with HuffPost UK, Lebanese American Emerson College academic Yasser Munif criticised Robinson's stances on Syria, arguing that it "completely denies the agency of the Arab population, perceives anything happening in the region as a form of conspiracy... [Robinson] thinks Arabs have to be manipulated and funded and told exactly what to do – it’s completely insulting."{{Cite web |date=4 December 2018 |title=This Professor Teaches Journalism At A Top UK University. He's Also A 9/11 Truther. |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/professor-piers-robinson-sheffield-university_n_5c0666a3e4b07aec5752630a |access-date=3 April 2022 |website=HuffPost |language=en}}
= Russia =
Robinson has argued that there is no persuasive evidence to implicate the Russian government in the poisoning of Sergei Skripal and says Russia has been blamed to distract from the West's "aggressive regime change strategy" in the Middle East. He said that there is no persuasive evidence showing Russia conducted any significant propaganda campaign to influence the 2016 US presidential election.
= British politics =
Robinson said that accusations of anti-semitism inside the UK Labour Party during Jeremy Corbyn's leadership of the party had been exaggerated for political purposes.{{Cite news|title=Sheffield University 'conspiracy theory' professor quits|url=http://forgetoday.com/2019/04/17/sheffield-university-professor-piers-robinson-syria-war-assad-conspiracy-chris-williamson-anti-semitism/|last=Somerville|first=Ewan|website=Forge|language=en-GB|access-date=24 September 2019}}
Selected publications
- {{cite book|last1=Robinson|first1=Piers|author-link1= Piers Robinson |title=The CNN Effect: The Myth of News, Foreign Policy and Intervention|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ROqCAgAAQBAJ |year=2002|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-13-451314-7}}Reviews of The CNN Effect: Paul Williams, African Affairs, {{JSTOR|3518531}}, {{doi|10.1093/afraf/adg078}}; Jody Waters, Canadian Journal of Communication, [https://cjc-online.ca/index.php/journal/article/view/1493/1619]; Douglas Blanks Hindman, Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, [https://www.proquest.com/docview/216932060]; James Boylan, Columbia Journalism Review, [https://go.gale.com/ps/anonymous?id=GALE%7CA99018515]
- {{cite book|last1=Robinson|first1=Piers|author-link1= Piers Robinson |last2= Goddard|first2= Peter|last3= Parry|first3= Katy |last4=Murray|first4=Craig|author-link4=Craig Murray|title=Pockets of resistance: British news media, war and theory in the 2003 invasion of Iraq|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wPrHCgAAQBAJ|year=2010|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-1-84-779472-7}}Reviews of Pockets of Resistance: Greg McLaughlin, Journalism Studies, {{doi|10.1080/1461670X.2012.691349}}; Phillip Knightley, Journalism Practice, {{doi|10.1080/17512786.2012.712766}};
Philip Hammond, Media, War & Conflict, {{doi|10.1177/1750635212448027}}
- {{cite book|editor1=Robinson, Piers|editor-link1= Piers Robinson |editor2= Philip Seib |editor3=Romy Frohlich|title=Routledge Handbook of Media, Conflict and Security|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nBF6DQAAQBAJ|year=2017|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-41-571291-0}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|https://piersrobinson.wordpress.com |Robinson's webpage and blog}}
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Category:British political scientists
Category:Academics of the University of Sheffield
Category:Academics of the University of Liverpool