Russian propaganda is dividing America

[Edwcraig]

I recently read an article that was the clearest analysis I have seen of the extent, strategy and effectiveness of Russian propaganda on American interests. i recommend it to you.

[link:https://epjdatascience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1140/epjds/s13688-023-00414-5|

Its conclusions are:

"First, our results are alarming as social media platforms present substantial vulnerabilities that propaganda campaigns can exploit strategically. Without significant effort by social media platforms to curb the spread of disinformation, toxic content can spread widely and virally [71–76]. Here, more research is needed to understand the mechanism behind the pro-Russian propaganda campaign [77], as well as machine learning for detection [78]. Second, our results suggest that an effective countermeasure to curb the spread of propaganda is to reduce the influence of bots. Here, it may be likely that counter-measures from fake news mitigation can be adapted [79–81]; yet this requires further research to establish the effectiveness of such interventions. Third, propaganda on social media may influence public opinion and increase political division. It is thus important that policy-makers are aware of the potential threats that social media propaganda poses to modern societies. As such, it will be critical to continuously monitor and actively counter the proliferation of online propaganda in the future."

While this attack by Russia is known and assumed, my question is who is going to do the counter measures recommended above. Russia and allied countries and groups, including many oligarchs, are spending billions funding this effort. Where is the billions on the side of truth. One side wars are won by the one side.

[Walleye]

1. I blame it on the breakdown in education in this country.

During the Cold War we were taught in school how to recognize Soviet propaganda.

[GiqueCee]

12. I remember Dick Armey...

... saying that, "Bill Clinton never met an education program he didn't like!" And in Armey's fevered brain, that was a pejorative. But it was also indicative of the GOP's attitude toward education in general: They fuckin' HATED it. Still do. A poorly educated populace is much easier to con and manipulate. Just ask the Gangrenous Boil on the Ass of Humanity and Traitor Emeritus, Donald J. Trump.

I've been saying it for decades, and I'll keep saying it: Conservatism is a mental disorder on the sociopathy spectrum, and should be dealt with accordingly. And those that test positive for it should be ineligible for elective office; they've caused enough damage.

[czarjak]

21. All that fancy learnin'.

Only the white ones though.

[Turbineguy]

27. Dick Armey was an early

Russian asset.

[yardwork]

2. It's good to see scholarly study on this.

I first became aware of Russian propaganda on social media when Russia attacked Crimea, and suddenly social media was full of people assuring us that this was a marvelous thing. Then came the propaganda pushing Brexit (protested by long-time DUers who actually live in Britain). It's against DU rules to be openly pro-Trump, so the propaganda took a different approach in 2016, depressing turnout for the Democratic nominee so Trump would win.

The anti-Israeli propaganda ramped up all over the world right after HAMAS attacked Israeli, in a coordinated attack using the same antisemitic talking points and images.

This article is about Ukraine, and it's interesting to remember that: "Countries that abstained from voting on the United Nations Resolution ES-11/1 such as India, South Africa, and Pakistan showed pronounced activity of bots."

[Igel]

4. It's of long standing.

All the nonsense with Zionism being like Nazism is pure Soviet agitprop from the Dept. of Scientitic Anti-Zionism. The USSR was pro-Israel when it looked like socialist Zionist parties would get the upper hand--kibbutzim and all that--but did a sharp turn with a reductionist and simplistic "if we don't approve of it, it is fascist" thinking. Some tenets? Jews aren't native to the area, Zionism is colonialism, Jews are outside oppressors, Israel is an imperialist state. (Oh, when I say "department" I mean academic division on par with the dept. of mathematics, the dept. of chemistry and physics, the department of Germanic languages and literatures, with a dept. chair, faculty, students, and conferences and tenure review. Not like Dombrovsky's "Dept. of Unnecessary Things"--even if it would fit there.)

Mahmoud Abbas wrote his dissertation in that field, basically, at a Soviet-sponsored "liberation" university. The thinking became widespread among some Western anti-imperialist and anti-colonialist scholars who had no problem with Soviet colonialism and imperialism, and scant concern with the PRC's imperialism and colonialism--the power of agitprop and if you stand for nothing you'll fall for anything (with Igel's corollary, "and having fallen once for some something, you'll stick with that something and make it your everything".) And it lives on today in Trafalgar Square and other venues.

Yes, Americans and Westerners in general have been falling for Russian propaganda for a long, long time. At least we Westerners have company.

[hardluck]

7. So true

https://www.thejc.com/news/the-soviet-spin-doctors-who-sowed-the-seeds-of-left-wing-israelophobia-f2ua2n8q

[yardwork]

25. Good post.

We're seeing all over social media the false correlation of Israel with U.S. history. The U.S. was founded on slavery and genocide. The history of Israel and Gaza is far more complex but those truths are washed away in simplistic comparisons. This propaganda and deception creates an emotional response.

Russia and their allies are trying to get Trump back in the White House.

[gab13by13]

5. Elon Musk is a bigger threat than Fox News.

[PortTack]

14. Agree!

[SouthernDem4ever]

18. They are targeting two different demographics

Fux noooze targets the lazy, racist old people while Xitter takes care of the later generations.

[yardwork]

24. I agree. There are different target audiences.

In 2016 we saw the actions and impact of Russian propaganda aimed at left-wing voters. Combined with the propaganda aimed at the right, an appalling person was elected president.

God help us if it happens again.

[womanofthehills]

26. Actually - because of TicToc, YouTube Y and X

The info from independent journalists, Gaza journalists and thousands of images of dead and dying babies on social media, Russia doesn’t have to do much - the videos tell horrific stories. Today’s videos - hundreds or more trying to get flat break. How long can young live on little bits of bread. Adults can fast - but not toddlers.
The IDF keeps taking very insensitive photos of themselves- riding little kids bikes after bombing and injuring/killing them. What army does that??

[bucolic_frolic]

6. We defeated communism with freedom and elections

Now it's rebounding

[ancianita]

8. There are layers of funding buffers that hide bot users who divide threads in order to influence algorithms coded for

"engagement" which apparently brings the highest profits. Bots are just for money, not information.

Bots are okay to use toward increasing commerce, but they're just as likely to be used to do what Bannon says -- "spread the shit" -- misuse commerce for the political confounding of the public.

Notice below that no use of bots falls under the criminal code. Bots fall under the commerce codes of 15 U.S.C.

Title 15 of the United States Code outlines the role of commerce and trade in the United States Code.

We shouldn't blame education institutions for people's lack of awareness of legalized commercial bullshit. This is another form of corporate insurgency into American discourse for power and profit. It only takes a willing reader, not a degree, to figure out that the public's lack of awareness is BY DESIGN AND NOT THE PUBLIC'S FAULT.

[tritsofme]

9. Putin/Hamas sure seem to have lots of fans.

[dlk]

10. Unfortunately, too many elected officials have taken money from Russia

They have been co-opted and would never take any action to address this very serious issue, or jeopardize their money pipeline.

[Lonestarblue]

11. Perhaps the problem is teaching people not to rely on social media for factual news.

At best, they are mostly opinions, often not supported with any expertise on the subject matter. One problem may be that social media is essentially free while reputable news sources require subscriptions to read more than an article or two per month. The free press was never free, but the cost today of legitimate news sites means that a lot of people never see them and thus rely on disinformation.

[ancianita]

13. Maybe, but you can't teach people (nor can people learn) who want validation for their beliefs.

Given the last 7-8 years, the odds of people replacing their opinions, or searching for information, are low. If they haven't by now, odds are they don't want to.

In the country with the greatest access to information in the world, we keep fooling ourselves to think otherwise.

[Zeitghost]

15. Yes it is

And we have people freely posting it here on DU.

[GuppyGal]

16. It's honestly so easy to do it's low hanging fruit for them. "Social" media is so grossly IRRESPONSBILE.

[sop]

17. Russian Blackmail?

(Salon) "There’s tapes out on you": Republican claims "good conservatives" being blackmailed with sex tapes

Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., leveled unsubstantiated allegations on Thursday, claiming that his Republican colleagues in Congress are being blackmailed into voting for "crazy stuff" with threats of illicitly recorded sex tapes of them being released...He began to break down his claim, saying that the schemes are executed by "powerful people" who "write the big checks."

“You’re visiting — you’re out of the country or out of town or you’re in a motel or at a bar in D.C. — and whatever you’re into — women or men or whatever — comes up and they’re very attractive, and they’re laughing at your jokes. And you’re buying them a drink. Next thing you know, you’re in the motel room with them naked."

https://www.salon.com/2023/12/22/theres-tapes-out-on-you-claims-good-conservatives-being-blackmailed-with-tapes/

Burchett doesn't claim Putin is behind this, but others (The Steele Dossier) have.

[jmbar2]

19. Thanks for posting!

The more we know about how it works, the more we can call it out, or block it out.

[Chainfire]

20. Did you mean to say Russian or Republican?

[czarjak]

22. Any more...

It's synonymous. Goldwater is spinning in his grave.

[yardwork]

23. The article is an analysis of Russian disinformation campaigns.

It's very interesting.

[Botany]

28. I read that a lot of the anti vaccine and C-19 disinformation is from Russia or their cut outs.

Btw it does not help to have gop members of congress, people like DeSantis, and the talking heads on
the right wing hate media sites repeating the Russian propaganda.

[Skittles]

29. what's strange is, it is dividing fuckwads from decent people

yup

[FlyingPiggy]

30. I blame it on the deep rooted corruption that exists within our political system

Career politicians got greedier and greedier. They became more concerned with keeping their seats than governing. This corruption is a virus that got manipulated by the Russians to defeat us. It’s sad and tragic. We took our hard earned democracy for granted and now, we are sick from within.

[Arazi]

31. Big K&R

[JanMichael]

32. The Yahoo comments are chock full of them.

Sure there are legitimate nutjobs regularly posting maga nonsense like "must be the jab" when anyone under 80 dies. But the volume of s very bot like.