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The US Government Funds A War On Online Fake News (bangordailynews.com)
An anonymous reader quotes the Washington Post:
Congressional negotiators on Wednesday approved an initiative to track and combat foreign propaganda amid growing concerns that Russian efforts to spread "fake news" and disinformation threaten U.S. national security. The measure, part of the National Defense Authorization Act approved by a conference committee, calls on the State Department to lead government-wide efforts to identify propaganda and counter its effects. The authorization is for $160 million over two years...
The Senate Intelligence Committee, meanwhile, has approved language in the fiscal year 2017 intelligence authorization bill calling for new executive branch efforts to combat what it characterized as "active measures" by Russia to manipulate people and governments through front groups, covert broadcasting or "media manipulation." "There is definitely bipartisan concern about the Russian government engaging in covert influence activities of this nature," Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in a statement. "If you read section 501 of this year's intelligence authorization bill, it directs the President to set up an interagency committee to 'counter active measures by Russia to exert covert influence over peoples and governments.'"
Several senators on the intelligence committee also asked President Obama to declassify any information relating to the Russian government and the U.S. election.
The Senate Intelligence Committee, meanwhile, has approved language in the fiscal year 2017 intelligence authorization bill calling for new executive branch efforts to combat what it characterized as "active measures" by Russia to manipulate people and governments through front groups, covert broadcasting or "media manipulation." "There is definitely bipartisan concern about the Russian government engaging in covert influence activities of this nature," Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in a statement. "If you read section 501 of this year's intelligence authorization bill, it directs the President to set up an interagency committee to 'counter active measures by Russia to exert covert influence over peoples and governments.'"
Several senators on the intelligence committee also asked President Obama to declassify any information relating to the Russian government and the U.S. election.
Look. If you think your populace is too stupid to discern between a clickbait tabloid and real news (whatever the fuck that is these days), going after the messengers will only aggravate the issue. Either through malice or stupidity, a government truthiness division will just make people more likely to validate their biases towards those that are government approved. This is just a ploy for votes/money anyways. The CIA has long participated with the media in terms of combating propaganda and injecting the party line into the zeitgeist.
'We are trying to prove ourselves wrong as quickly as possible, because only in that way can we find progress.' RPF
A lot of /.ers will say if you're dumb enough to fall for fake news that's your problem. You're ignoring what happens to millions of people's brains as they age. Not everyone has their full mental facilities in their 50s, 60s and 70s. Unless you're going to start administering tests to decide who gets to vote (and please God, let /.ers be smart enough to know why that's a bad idea) then the problem of fake news needs to be faced head on.
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What part about freedom of the press and "congress shall make no law" don't they understand
Shit, they might as well name the new effort the Ministry of Truth so that it can be crystal clear what they are trying to accomplish.
What, the US mainstream media didn't work hard enough disparaging Donald Trump for the last year? Let's dredge up the Russia boogeyman again and say Russian propaganda is a threat to US propaganda. We need to install a new government branch called the Department of Propaganda to counter such danger to national security. Citizens and countrymen, it's time to double, nay triple our propaganda efforts this time, so that it doesn't fail again!
The current state of affairs is too complicated for an AC analysis in a single post but I will say a few things. The two main political parties are closer to each other than we realize. If you look at Europe and elsewhere, you find greater differences and more parties. Because they are so similar, they have spent decades attempting to distinguish themselves and their supports from the each other. They have played the people against each other through sensationalist rhetoric, attack campaigns (good ol' muckraking as it used to be called), lies and incessant fear that the other party is trying to destroy your life and family. We've dug a 3 mile deep trench in a 10 foot wide field and convinced everyone that the people on the other side are monsters. Incidentally, this sort of dehumanizing psychology is what allowed so many soldiers to view the enemy as animals and treat them accordingly. When we no longer see people, we are no longer bound by any empathy.
So how is this relevant to fake news? The connection is simple imo. If you believe that the other side is a manipulative, pathological liar, then everything they say and everything that agrees with their viewpoint must be wrong. It can't be considered or even analyzed. So what do you do? You seek out views that reflect your own side and you end up in an echo chamber.
While I believe that the internet has the greatest potential we have ever seen to bring us together and unite us as a species on a path to a better future, that potential is not being realized. We may be here together on this site right now, collectively considering the consequences of fake news, the recent election, the growing surveillance across the globe, and we may share the same shock and dismay and even fear, but this is yet another echo chamber. All forms of social media seem to reinforce this and the potential of the itnernet is lost in groupthink.
We have reached a point where the American government is going to start policing media for fake news in the interest of national security. This is the motivation of China with their great firewall. That was the motivation of the old Soviet governments. Censorship and control are not the answer. Meaningful dialogue and a critical eye are. We need to stop with the vehement rhetoric and the everpresent need to prove the other side wrong or scream about how the sky is falling. We need to calmly start asking for citations and weigh the evidence presented. We need to remember that most issues are finely nuanced and that sometimes both sides are partially right and partially wrong. We need to stop seeking out spurious information that confirms our own worldview and re-inforces our comfy bubble, but rather seek out contrary information and evaluate it.
If we can do that then all the BS in the world from foreign state agents won't make a difference. We are only susceptible to it now because of all the ridiculous infighting. Decades of that have left us uncritical, petulantly defensive, blind to facts, and obstinate to an impossible degree.
If your response to this is to just blow it off as "yeah, people are stupid, you can't do anything about it" or make more sarcastic comments then you are part of the problem. This can be changed. Shitty government can be changed. Shitty news agencencies can be run out of business. It just won't happen if we're all sitting around mouthing off about how bad everything is on the internet instead of discussing ways to fix it.
Of course, the pessimistic cynic in me says that this won't even show up on the page. Prove that voice wrong.
Seriously. They meddle in elections all over the globe.
Elect anyone who is slightly socialist?
USA to the rescue!!
Elect someone the USA doesn't like? Must be election fraud!!
Nationalize oil companies? Here, have an embargo.
Violate the human rights of women and immigrants, don't have democratic elections, no freedom of religion, no free press?
Please be our ally UAE!!
Honestly, fuck the US and their hypocrisy.
They can complain about russians influencing their election when they stop fucking around with countries all over the world.
The current state of the US public education system (e.g "leave no one behind") is a bit questionable. This did nothing but normalize all public education to the lowest common denominator. This will hopefully be addressed this presidential term as promised. However this is a huge undertaking and whether it happens or not is to be seen. But remember, in order to maintain control of the masses, you must keep them happy, but ignorant. So education revamp may not happen.
1. I am not pro-Russian
2. I would describe myself as a Ron Paul (l)ibertarian
3. The government needs a new boogie man since terrorism seems to be wearing thin as a justification for crapping on the constitution.
4. Those damn Ruskie commie bastards look like a good target to fool the idiots.
Is to fix the credibility of the so called real news, in this election they basically burned all their goodwill as fast as a gamegear plow thru batteries.
This much censorship makes it MORE likely there's something to the allegations, not less. Nobody cares when the National Enquirer makes up nonsense about Brangelina or the Weekly World News claims to have found aliens.
think the issue is more that several consecutive generations have been fed the idea that experts aren't right and shouldn't be respected.
Fuck experts. You're not right because of a certificate or credential. If you have a cogent argument, the argument is right. If you're good at your job (whatever you're an expert in) you can explain your argument persuasively. Let's take some examples.
One group says "immigrants took our jobs, and raped our women". The experts say "no they didn't, shut up you racist". Result: Trump is president.
One group says "I don't believe in this global warming stuff - it has the same pattern as everything else the left made up to seize power." The experts say "the science is settled, shut up you denier". Result: Trump is president.
Can you see why "experts" are worthless, and what is needed is persuasive arguments? How to fail to persuade: "you're just to stupid to understand, but smart people believe X". How to persuade "I understand why you think that way, plenty of smart people would, knowing what you know. Here are some things you don't know, and why they're important".
TLDR: saying "experts should be respected" is how you get Trump.
Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
That's an interesting take. I guess that means that when Obama won two elections and leaves office with a higher popularity than Ronald Reagan, during those eight years climate change was real?
Or are Trump voters kind of stupid people? I heard Ann Coulter today complaining that Donald Trump is betraying his supporters. She remarked, "It's not my fault".
Despite the fact that she wrote a book titled, "In Trump We Trust". Yes, it appears that Trump supporters make up most of the ass end of the Bell Curve. I assume you've joined their brilliant #DumpKellogs boycott in which they buy Kellogs products and then post selfies of them dumping out those products. That they just bought. Before that, they held a boycott of Starbucks in which they went to Starbucks, bought a $6 coffee and then forced the girl at the counter to write "Trump" on their cup. Not quite clear on the whole, "boycott" concept, but they sure are enthusiastic.
Here are some more enthusiastic Trump supporters:
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11...
So here what: Trump and his supporters will not be normalized. There will be no point over the next two years when Donald Trump is accepted as President in any normal sense. And when it comes right down to it, there are 3 million more people who voted for someone everybody hated instead of Trump. He's going to have a hard time claiming any mandate or legitimacy. He's the second Republican president in a row who got fewer people to vote for him than the losing candidate, and he has to make sure to stop any effort to actually count all the votes and audit the election process in order to hold on to power. He's already a lame duck and he hasn't been sworn in yet.
You are welcome on my lawn.
I'd like to see that report, 97% is way too high to be believable. I don't think you could get 97% of people to self-identify as human.
Or are Trump voters kind of stupid people?
This is how you get Trump. Keep it up, so he can get re-elected.
There will be no point over the next two years when Donald Trump is accepted as President in any normal sense.
Ah, still in "denial". I'm honestly surprised you haven't moved to "anger" yet, since that's sort of your thing. Wake me when you get to "bargaining".
Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
No that's just your paranoia and lack of understanding of basic English at work.
Fake means fake as in not real.
Fake does not mean "I personally don't like it", or "make my party look bad", or "challenges beliefs I hold" or any of those things.
SJW n. One who posts facts.