After a decades-long hiatus, propaganda is back in the news.
America is awash in Russian propaganda aimed at tipping the scales in our political process. Just this weekend, #SchumerShutdown, the Republican label blaming Democratic Senate Leader Charles E. Schumer for shuttering the federal government, was the top trending hashtag promoted by Russian propaganda bots on Twitter. But Russian propaganda isn’t limited to Twitter and hashtags; in some cases, it’s cloaked as legitimate media, like RT America.
The U.S. Department of Justice recently announced that RT America must comply with the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) — this after U.S. intelligence concluded that the Russian television network participated in the attempt by Russia’s state-run propaganda apparatus to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election. In the face of inaction by President Trump, The Washington Post editorial board joined those calling for additional measures to safeguard domestic politics from the “armies of bots” and other forces spreading disinformation online.
