Every American that cares about democracy MUST read the 3/17/24 New York Times article, “Trump Allies Are Winning War Over Disinformation.” “Their Claims of Censorship Stymie Efforts to Tamp Down Election Lies Online.”
Before some of you get angry over what is presented, think about the general concept: do we expect material about American government and elections to be the truth, to tell exactly what happened – or is it OK to allow some to twist truth to satisfy their desired political outcome?????
What the article’s authors, Jim Rutenberg and Steven lee Myers are relating is that not only in the 2020 election, but also ever since – Mr. Trump and others allied are building an election strategy that revolves around LIES, twisting information, making things up, filing legal motions to disable mechanisms designed to stop LIES and misinformation.
Think about that. Now, consider this from Albert Einstein: “Whoever is careless with the truth in small matters cannot be trusted with important matters. And, then this:
Former Republican president, Gerald Ford: “Truth is the glue that holds government together.” Gerald Ford belonged to a Republican Party that no longer exists.
Some excerpts from “Trump Allies Are Winning War Over Disinformation”:
“In the wake of the riot on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6, 2021, a groundswell built in Washington to rein in the onslaught of lies that..fueled the assault on..peaceful transfer of power.”
“Social media companies suspended Donald j. Trump, then..president, and many of his allies from..platforms they..used to spread misinformation about his defeat and whip up the attempt to overturn it. The Biden administration, Democrats in Congress and even some Republicans sought to do more to hold the companies accountable.”……
“Mr. Trump and his allies embarked instead on a counteroffensive, a coordinated effort to block what they viewed as a dangerous effort to censor conservatives. They have unquestionably prevailed.”
“Waged in..courts..Congress..seething precincts of the internet, that effort has eviscerated attempts to shield elections from disinformation in the social media era. It tapped into – and..critics say, twisted – the fierce debate over free speech and the government’s role in policing content.”
“Projects that were once bipartisan, including one started by the Trump administration, have been recast as deep-.state conspiracies to rig elections. Facing legal and political blowback, the Biden administration has largely abandoned moves that might be construed as stifling political speech.”
“While little noticed by most Americans, the effort has helped cut a path for Mr. Trump’s attempt to recapture the presidency. Disinformation about elections is once again coursing through news feeds, aiding Mr. Trump as he fuels his comeback with falsehoods about the 2020 election.”……
“Those involved draw financial support from conservative donors who..backed groups that promoted lies about voting in 2020..worked alongside an eclectic cast of characters, including Elon Musk..and Mike Benz, a former Trump administration official who previously produced content for a social media account that trafficked in posts about “white ethnic displacement.” [More recently, Mr. Benz originated the false assertion..Taylor Swift was a “psychological operation” asset for the Pentagon.]”
“Three years after Mr. Trump’s posts about rigged voting machines and stuffed ballot boxes went viral, he and his allies have achieved a stunning reversal of online fortune. Social media platforms now provide fewer checks against the intentional spread of lies about elections.”
“”The people that benefit from the spread of disinformation have effectively silenced many of the people that would try to call them out,” said Kate Starbird, a professor at the University of Washington whose research on disinformation made her a target of the effort.”….
“The arguments strike at the heart of an unsettled question in modern American political life: In a world of unlimited online communications, in which anyone can reach huge numbers of people with unverified and false information, where is the line between protecting democracy and trampling on the right to free speech?”
“Even before the court rules, Mr. Trump’s allies have succeeded in paralyzing the Biden administration and the network of researchers who monitor disinformation.”……….
“…the government has suspended virtually all cooperation with..social media platforms to address posts that originate in the United States.”
“”There’s just a chilling effect on all of this,” said Nina Jankowicz, a researcher who in 2022 briefly served as the executive director of a short-lived D.H.S. advisory board on disinformation. “Nobody wants to be caught up in it.””
Now, THINK. about what has been said here. WHAT is being attacked??? It is the mechanism to prevent disinformation from being circulated. Would YOU. say a “democracy” might want to do this???
Just WHY. did former Republican president Gerald Ford say: “Truth is the glue that holds government together.”??????????
Does it concern. YOU. that. ANY. American political operation is. “…Winning War Over Disinformation”???????
Regardless of YOUR views, should. YOU. be concerned about a person, and – THE PEOPLE AROUND HIM – are creating a DISINFORMATION operation????? Would YOU want people in YOUR personal life who deliberately, often lied to you??? Would you want them running the company YOU worked for???
WHY would YOU vote for anybody as a political leader who not only has a decades long history of lying, but is also, quite obviously, planning on doing it again???
With Justice For All 