Skip to main content

A guide to understanding the hoax of the Century

Thirteen ways of looking at disinformation
 
by Jacob Siegel
 
Part 2 - Russophobia Returns, Unexpectedly: The Origins of Contemporary “Disinformation”

The foundations of the current information war were laid in response to a sequence of events that took place in 2014. First Russia tried to suppress the U.S.-backed Euromaidan movement in Ukraine; a few months later Russia invaded Crimea; and several months after that the Islamic State captured the city of Mosul in northern Iraq and declared it the capital of a new caliphate. In three separate conflicts, an enemy or rival power of the United States was seen to have successfully used not just military might but also social media messaging campaigns designed to confuse and demoralize its enemies—a combination known as “hybrid warfare.” These conflicts convinced U.S. and NATO security officials that the power of social media to shape public perceptions had evolved to the point where it could decide the outcome of modern wars—outcomes that might be counter to those the United States wanted. They concluded that the state had to acquire the means to take control over digital communications so that they could present reality as they wanted it to be, and prevent reality from becoming anything else.

Technically, hybrid warfare refers to an approach that combines military and non-military means—overt and covert operations mixed with cyberwarfare and influence operations—to both confuse and weaken a target while avoiding direct, full-scale conventional war. In practice, it is notoriously vague. “The term now covers every type of discernible Russian activity, from propaganda to conventional warfare, and most that exists in between,” wrote Russia analyst Michael Kofman in March 2016.

Over the past decade, Russia has indeed repeatedly employed tactics associated with hybrid warfare, including a push to target Western audiences with messaging on channels like RT and Sputnik News and with cyber operations such as the use of “troll” accounts. But this was not new even in 2014, and it was something the United States, as well as every other major power, engaged in as well. As early as 2011, the United States was building its own “troll armies” online by developing software to “secretly manipulate social media sites by using fake online personas to influence internet conversations and spread pro-American propaganda.”

If you torture hybrid warfare long enough, it will tell you anything,” Kofman had admonished, which is precisely what began happening a few months later when Trump critics popularized the idea that a hidden Russian hand was the puppeteer of political developments inside the United States.

The leading voice promoting that claim was a former FBI officer and counterterrorism analyst named Clint Watts. In an article from August 2016, “How Russia Dominates Your Twitter Feed to Promote Lies (And, Trump, Too),” Watts and his co-author, Andrew Weisburd, described how Russia had revived its Cold War-era “Active Measures” campaign, using propaganda and disinformation to influence foreign audiences. As a result, according to the article, Trump voters and Russian propagandists were promoting the same stories on social media that were intended to make America look weak and incompetent. The authors made the extraordinary claim that the “melding of Russian-friendly accounts and Trumpkins has been going on for some time.” If that was true, it meant that anyone expressing support for Donald Trump might be an agent of the Russian government, whether or not the person intended to play that role. It meant that the people they called “Trumpkins,” who made up half the country, were attacking America from within. It meant that politics was now war, as it is in many parts of the world, and tens of millions of Americans were the enemy.

Watts made his name as a counterterrorism analyst by studying the social media strategies used by ISIS, but with articles like this, he became the media’s go-to expert on Russian trolls and Kremlin disinformation campaigns. It seems he also had powerful backers.

In his book The Assault on Intelligence, retired CIA chief Michael Hayden called Watts “the one man, who more than any other was trying to ring the alarm more than two years before the 2016 elections.

Hayden credited Watts in his book with teaching him the power of social media: “Watts pointed out to me that Twitter makes falsehoods seem more believable through sheer repetition and volume. He labeled it a kind of ‘computational propaganda.’ Twitter in turn drives mainstream media.

A false story algorithmically amplified by Twitter and disseminated by the media—it’s no coincidence that this perfectly describes the “bullshit” spread on Twitter about Russian influence operations: In 2017, it was Watts who came up with the idea for the Hamilton 68 dashboard and helped spearhead the initiative.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Trump helps BlackRock buy Panama Canal ports, to weaken China & strengthen Wall Street

Geopolitical Economy Report   BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, is buying the ports on both sides of the Panama Canal, after Donald Trump threatened the Latin American country and forced it to pressure a Hong Kong company to sell its stake. Ben Norton discusses how the US government is trying to weaken China -- and strengthen Wall Street oligarchs. 

Trump’s Trap: Macron & Ursula Push Europe Into WAR With Russia

Danny Haiphong   Brian Berletic reacts to Emmanuel Macron and Ursula von der Leyen's shocking declaration of war on Russia, explaining the huge consequences it will have for Europe. Why are they taking responsibility for Ukraine? The answer may surprise you and Brian reveals the truth behind the spin in this must-watch video. 

Το καθεστώς του χάους

globinfo freexchange   Αμέσως μετά τις εθνικές εκλογές του 2019 είχαμε γράψει ότι ¨ ... απ'ότι φαίνεται τελικά, ο "σοφός λαός" δεν είναι και τόσο σοφός. Είτε με την ψήφο του, είτε με την αποχή του, έδωσε το ελεύθερο στη χειρότερη δεξιά της μεταπολίτευσης να σαρώσει σαν 'οδοστρωτήρας' τα πάντα στο πέρασμά της. Μετά από τέσσερα χρόνια νεοφιλελεύθερης λαίλαπας, το τοπίο καταστροφής θα έχει κάνει τη χώρα κυριολεκτικά αγνώριστη. ¨   Στο μόνο που πέσαμε έξω ήταν η χρονική διάρκεια της Μητσοτακικής λαίλαπας, που κράτησε παραπάνω και συνεχίζει ακάθεκτη να ισοπεδώνει τη χώρα, μάλλον λόγω της απρόβλεπτης πανδημίας, που ήρθε ως μάννα εξ'ουρανού για το καθεστώς Μητσοτάκη.  Αυτό όμως που δεν μπορούσαμε με τίποτα να φανταστούμε, είναι ότι μετά από την παταγώδη αποτυχία της διακυβέρνησης Μητσοτάκη σε όλους τους τομείς, μετά από αυτή την πρωτοφανή στα χρονικά του τόπου και αδιανόητη απόπειρα συγκάλυψης του εγκλήματος των Τεμπών και την γενικότερη, πρωτοφανή υποβάθμιση τ...

Winner of Romanian Presidential Election ARRESTED!

The Jimmy Dore Show  

Netanyahu commits 'a bloodbath in Gaza' to save himself

Middle East Eye   At least 400 people have been killed after a surprise Israeli attack on Gaza in the early hours of Tuesday. Israel’s government vows to continue escalating these military attacks, saying it’s in response to Hamas’ refusal to extend the ceasefire, which has been in place since January. But is this the real reason for this morning’s attack? Or is there a much more cynical explanation - one tied to the political fate of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu?   The Big Picture Podcast speaks to Daniel Levy, the president of the US/Middle East Project and a former Israeli peace negotiator. 

Trump’s ISRAEL FIRST Flip-Flop On Attacking Yemen!

The Jimmy Dore Show   President Trump has taken decisive military action in Yemen, ordering airstrikes against Iran-backed Houthi rebels on March 15, 2025. This action represents a significant flip-flop from when, as a presidential candidate, Trump railed against the Biden administration for bombing the Houthis instead of talking to them. Jimmy Dore discusses the strikes, the largest U.S. military operation in the Middle East since Trump took office and which came after a period of relative quiet in the region. 

Trump’s Ukraine 'Peace' Trap EXPOSED: Putin & China CRUSH His Plan

Danny Haiphong   Geopolitical analyst and journalist Ben Norton exposes the hidden truth behind Trump's peace talks with Russia. In this video, Norton explains why this is all about China and weakening the BRICS-led multipolar world in fast emergence. Will the plan work? Watch until the end to find out.

Trump Bombs Yemen, Pushes US Closer to War with Iran

Glenn Greenwald  

Israel Has Always ‘Depended on Genocide’ to Colonize Palestine

BreakThrough News   Rania Khalek and Eugene Puryear discuss Israel’s resumption of its genocidal war on Palestinians in Gaza, launched just a day before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was set to face his corruption trial. Israel, backed by a green light from Trump, intensified the bombing of Gaza, began a ground invasion, and killed over 500 Palestinians within 48 hours while enforcing a total blockade of Gaza. Eugene states that Israel never wanted to go through with the ceasefire because “the Israeli project can’t succeed unless it totally ethnically cleanses the territories it claims– and kills anyone in the way.” Recognizing that they may “not get the chance again,” they are putting their foot on the accelerator.” 

USAID Falls, Exposing a Giant Network of US-Funded “Independent” Media

by Alan Macleod  Part 5 - A Shady Organization Some might ask what the problem with receiving money from USAID is in the first place. Supporters of the organization say it does a great deal of good around the world, helping to vaccinate children or providing clean drinking water. Looking at the organization’s (now defunct) website, one would assume it is a charitable group promoting progressive values. Indeed, many on the conservative right appear to have taken this woke veneer at face value. Explaining his decision to close the organization down, Musk described it as a “viper’s nest of radical-left Marxists who hate America.” This, however, could barely be further from the truth. In reality, USAID, from its inception, has consistently targeted leftist and non-aligned governments, particularly in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. In 2021, USAID was a key player behind a failed Color Revolution (a pro-U.S. insurrection) in Cuba. The institution spent millions of dollars funding and t...