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As it turns out, the actual effect of a "globally connected internet" was to make it easier for the Russian state to exploit its own underemployed citizens to p

As it turns out, the actual effect of a "globally connected internet" was to make it easier for the Russian state to exploit its own underemployed citizens to pretend to be Texans and stoke racial tensions in Texas. Meaningful human connection requires some amount of basic honesty.

leereeves 9y ago
> I was one of the first U.S. journalists to report extensively on the St. Petersburg-based “troll farm,” > I agree with my colleague Masha Gessen that the whole issue has been blown out of proportion. ... if I could do it all over again, I would have highlighted just how inept and haphazard those attempts were. That the Agency is now widely seen as a savvy, efficient manipulator of American public opinion is, in no small part, the fault of experts. They may derive their authority from perceived neutrality, but in reality they—we—have interests, just like everyone else. And, when it comes to the Trump-Russia story, those interests are often best served by fuelling the fear of Kremlin meddling. https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/a-so-called-experts-uneasy-dive-into-the-trump-russia-frenzy https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/a-so-called-experts-...
ben509 9y ago
Of course, everyone but you is being manipulated.
vkou 9y ago
Is this only a problem when Russians behave dishonestly, or is it also a problem when domestic media behaves dishonestly, in an effort to stoke divisive tensions? That line seems to be incredibly arbitrary.
wybiral 9y ago
Yes it makes propaganda easier, but so did the printing press and I still believe that it had a positive net effect on the world. By coincidence I am a Texan and I've had some really interesting conversations on the internet and have been exposed to a wide variety of viewpoints and information sources that vastly outweigh that of Putin's little troll farms.

leereeves 9y ago

> I was one of the first U.S. journalists to report extensively on the St. Petersburg-based “troll farm,” > I agree with my colleague Masha Gessen that the whole issue has been blown out of proportion. ... if I could do it all over again, I would have highlighted just how inept and haphazard those attempts were. That the Agency is now widely seen as a savvy, efficient manipulator of American public opinion is, in no small part, the fault of experts. They may derive their authority from perceived neutrality, but in reality they—we—have interests, just like everyone else. And, when it comes to the Trump-Russia story, those interests are often best served by fuelling the fear of Kremlin meddling. https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/a-so-called-experts-uneasy-dive-into-the-trump-russia-frenzy https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/a-so-called-experts-...

ben509 9y ago

Of course, everyone but you is being manipulated.

vkou 9y ago

Is this only a problem when Russians behave dishonestly, or is it also a problem when domestic media behaves dishonestly, in an effort to stoke divisive tensions? That line seems to be incredibly arbitrary.

wybiral 9y ago

Yes it makes propaganda easier, but so did the printing press and I still believe that it had a positive net effect on the world. By coincidence I am a Texan and I've had some really interesting conversations on the internet and have been exposed to a wide variety of viewpoints and information sources that vastly outweigh that of Putin's little troll farms.