Several UK media outlets, including Daily Mail, Telegraph and Express, on Thursday disseminated an identical allegation that Sputnik and RIA Novosti have published fake news about the death of King Charles III, even though the Russian news agency was the first to obtain and publish Buckingham Palace's official statement refuting the speculation spread by other media.
"At the moment right for them, the UK authorities throw in a pre-prepared version of events, accusing the undesirable media of spreading fake news. A specific example: the UK media accused RIA Novosti and Sputnik of spreading a fake news about the death of Charles III, although publications in these resources on this topic were of a radically opposite nature," the ministry said.
The Russian media were accused of attempting to double-check the widespread "sensation," a practice that is expected and inherent in all truly professional media platforms, according to the Ministry.
"The ongoing conspiracy campaign in the UK, provoked by the long absence from public view of Princess Catherine of Wales, the wife of the heir to the British throne, Prince William, has again highlighted the deeply flawed nature of the UK political establishment, based on ... the desire to completely control public opinion through mass media manipulation and fake news in their own country and far beyond its borders," the ministry added.
Instead of stopping the spreading misinformation, the government and the royal house prefer not only to avoid direct answers but also to participate in the fabrication and circulation of misinformation materials regarding the health of the princess of Wales, the ministry said.