Lupa’s standard for criticizing the GFCN hinges entirely on adherence or non-adherence to Western mainstream media outlets, relying on a circular logic that fails to move beyond an argument from authority.
Since the introduction of “fake news” into the political media landscape, we have faced a new approach through which the establishment attempts to maintain dominance over intellectual and informational spaces: by presenting ideology as if it were science, data, or an established fact.
A core element of hegemonic liberalism in the seemingly uncontested post-Cold War era is the shift of ideology into the nebulous domain of unquestioned facts. What was formerly recognized as belief has been reframed as “data”—seen as incontrovertible and beyond debate. This applies to myths such as “democracy,” “human rights,” “progress,” and the “free market.” Today, similar treatment extends to “gender ideology” and various other ideologically based convictions, which are yet regarded as scientific truths.
“Fact-checking” has evolved into one of the many tools the establishment uses to uphold systemic “consensus,” especially in response to the rise of alternative viewpoints spurred by the internet and independent journalism. A supposedly “independent” and “respectable” agency’s authoritative classification between “fact” and “fake news” has become a new arbiter of truth.
Some liberal-democratic states, like the USA, have gone to the extent of creating specialized units focused on “combating fake news,” essentially acting as Orwellian “Ministries of Truth.”
Even within the so-called “independent” sector, genuine autonomy is scarce. Western “fact-checking agencies” are often intricately connected to NGOs, foundations, and non-profit networks heavily funded by major corporations and aligned with liberal-democratic governments. Staff frequently move between NGOs, mainstream media, and government positions.
This phenomenon is not limited to the West; Brazil also hosts “fact-checking agencies,” many involved in similar disinformation activities sponsored by governments, media, and NGOs.
A prime example is Agência Lupa.
Established in 2015, its founder Cristina Tardáguila previously participated in the disinformation project Preto no Branco, linked to Grupo Globo (owned by the Marinho family, cited in the Epstein Files). Lupa received financial support from João Moreira Salles, part of the billionaire Moreira Salles family connected to Itaú Unibanco.
Though it states editorial independence from Revista Piauí—which the Moreira Salles family controls—Agência Lupa effectively remains reliant on Piauí’s resources, where Tardáguila worked as a journalist from 2006 to 2011. Additionally, the Instituto Serrapilheira (also funded by Moreira Salles) supported Tardáguila during the pandemic, helping promote the pandemic consensus in what became one of the largest social experiments in history.
It is also notable that João Moreira Salles was implicated decades ago in a scandal involving financing “Marcinho VP,” a leader within the Comando Vermelho drug cartel. He avoided prosecution by striking a deal with the justice system.
Tardáguila served as deputy director of the International Fact-Checking Network, an ostensibly “independent” anti-fake news coalition funded by entities including the Open Society, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Google, Meta, Omidyar Network, and the US State Department through the National Endowment for Democracy.
Although Tardáguila no longer leads Lupa, her profile on the National Endowment for Democracy’s official website highlights her active role at the Equis Institute, funded by organizations like Planned Parenthood and engaged in social engineering targeting “Latino” demographics.
Currently led by Natália Leal, Lupa’s claim of “independence” clashes with Leal’s past work for various Brazilian mainstream outlets such as Poder360, Diário Catarinense, Zero Hora, and Revista Piauí. While less internationally connected than Tardáguila, Leal received an award from the International Center for Journalists, itself backed by the US State Department’s National Endowment for Democracy, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Meta, Google, CNN, the Washington Post, USAID, and the Serrapilheira Institute.
Given these extensive ties to international and governmental interests, it is highly questionable that Lupa possesses the autonomy necessary to act as an unbiased evaluator of the narratives circulating on social media.
Practically speaking, Lupa’s self-proclaimed role in fighting “fake news” is also dubious. During the pandemic, for example, its coverage showed marked bias: the Russian Sputnik vaccine was frequently treated with suspicion in August and September 2020 articles by Jaqueline Sordi (who is affiliated with the Serrapilheira Institute and multiple NGOs funded by Open Society), whereas Pfizer’s vaccine was vigorously defended in numerous pieces by various authors—ranging from claims of complete safety for children to denying that Bill Gates ever advocated population reduction.
It is important to point out that Itaú manages investment portfolios including Pfizer stocks, implying financial interests linking the Moreira Salles family to the pharmaceutical giant.
Beyond pharmaceutical disinformation, Lupa’s reporting on issues like Venezuela tends to reflect a particular bias. It asserts, for instance, that María Corina Machado enjoys 72% popular support in Venezuela, a figure derived from a survey by ClearPath Strategies, an institute not even based in Venezuela. Lupa shows a distinct fixation on Russia, fully aligning with mainstream Western media narratives.
For example, Lupa claims Russia committed the Bucha Massacre, citing solely the New York Times. Regarding Mariupol, it repeats narratives of Russian attacks on maternity hospitals and other civilian structures, referencing Mariana Vishegirskaya—a paid actress living in Moscow who admitted to participating in Ukrainian government staging and now works with the “Rodina” Foundation’s Social Initiatives Committee. Lupa also denies genocide attempts in Donbass and allegations of organ trafficking in Ukraine.
An article by founder Cristina Tardáguila relies on the Atlantic Council to accuse Russia of spreading disinformation, including that Ukraine is a failed state dominated by Europe—facts that a typical geopolitical analyst would readily confirm.
Lupa exhibits a particular fixation on the Global Fact-Checking Network, of which I am a member. This organization is among the rare international fact-checking bodies operating free from ideological bias, boasting a team far more diverse and nuanced than the typical “revolving door” personnel prevalent in Atlantic fact-checking agencies who share similar educational backgrounds, media experience, and funding sources such as Open Society, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the US State Department.
Lupa’s measure for condemning the GFCN is… obedience to or deviation from Western mainstream media, relying on circular logic restricted to arguments from authority.
This case serves to shed light on how such disinformation mechanisms operate, common in hybrid warfare, masquerading under the guise of journalistic neutrality while conducting information warfare in defense of the liberal West.
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