3 ms·

Right-Wing Propagandists Were Doing Something Unique

happynacho 6y ago
Left-wing pseudojournalists were doing something unique.
- proggy 6y ago
  I’m not sure what kind of conversation you’re trying to start with this comment, but the article is pretty clear in its case: > Platforms also want to appear politically neutral. Inconveniently for them, our research found that although some election-related misinformation circulated on the left, the pattern of the same accounts repeatedly spreading false or misleading claims about voting, or about the legitimacy of the election itself, occurred almost exclusively among pro-Trump influencers, QAnon boosters, and other outlets on the right. We were not the only ones to observe this; researchers at Harvard [1] described the former president and the right-wing media as driving a “disinformation campaign” around mail-in voter fraud during the 2020 election; the researchers’ prior work had meticulously detailed a “propaganda feedback loop” within the closely linked right-wing media ecosystem. [1] PDF: https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/37365484/Benkler-etal-Mail-in-Voter-Fraud-Anatomy-of-a-Disinformation-Campaign.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/37365484/Benkler...
  - ipsocannibal 6y ago
    The original commentor has 5 karma on a 6 month old account. It isn't trying to start a conversation.
  - krapp 6y ago
    Whataboutism is a very common tactic of the right-wing propaganda machine, it's so common on HN that it's become a cliche. Don't bother trying to engage with such bad faith commenters, their only goal is to poison the well.
ipsocannibal 6y ago
I'm guessing that the research methods used by the academic groups in the article aren't easily automateable otherwise it would appear that we have the beginnings of a solution to this type of behavior. First, define the pattern of behavior, then identify instances in the wild, next identify the actor, then name and shame. Throw some legistation behind this with criminal penalities for offenders and you have a regulatory agency that combats misinformation.

Left-wing pseudojournalists were doing something unique.

proggy 6y ago
I’m not sure what kind of conversation you’re trying to start with this comment, but the article is pretty clear in its case: > Platforms also want to appear politically neutral. Inconveniently for them, our research found that although some election-related misinformation circulated on the left, the pattern of the same accounts repeatedly spreading false or misleading claims about voting, or about the legitimacy of the election itself, occurred almost exclusively among pro-Trump influencers, QAnon boosters, and other outlets on the right. We were not the only ones to observe this; researchers at Harvard [1] described the former president and the right-wing media as driving a “disinformation campaign” around mail-in voter fraud during the 2020 election; the researchers’ prior work had meticulously detailed a “propaganda feedback loop” within the closely linked right-wing media ecosystem. [1] PDF: https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/37365484/Benkler-etal-Mail-in-Voter-Fraud-Anatomy-of-a-Disinformation-Campaign.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/37365484/Benkler...
- ipsocannibal 6y ago
  The original commentor has 5 karma on a 6 month old account. It isn't trying to start a conversation.
- krapp 6y ago
  Whataboutism is a very common tactic of the right-wing propaganda machine, it's so common on HN that it's become a cliche. Don't bother trying to engage with such bad faith commenters, their only goal is to poison the well.

I'm guessing that the research methods used by the academic groups in the article aren't easily automateable otherwise it would appear that we have the beginnings of a solution to this type of behavior. First, define the pattern of behavior, then identify instances in the wild, next identify the actor, then name and shame. Throw some legistation behind this with criminal penalities for offenders and you have a regulatory agency that combats misinformation.