A NEWSLETTER FROM DAVID CORN |
A NEWSLETTER FROM DAVID CORN |
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Disinformation in 2024: How Bad Can It Get? |
By David Corn March 2, 2024 |
Mother Jones illustration; Seven Stories Press |
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Donald Trump says (still) that the 2020 election was stolen from him. House Republicans claim they are this close to proving President Joe Biden is a global criminal mastermind. And Tucker Carlson tells us that life in Russia is superior to our pitiful existences in the good ol’ US of A. Disinformation is everywhere, and it seems to be increasingly prevalent in our political-media cosmos. That’s particularly dangerous in a pivotal election year. (Remember the robocalls in New Hampshire last month that used AI to fake Biden’s voice and told recipients that if they voted in the primary they wouldn’t be eligible to participate in the general election in November?) So Barbara McQuade has picked an opportune moment to publish her first book: Attack from Within: How Disinformation Is Sabotaging America.
It’s a comprehensive and compelling examination of how bad actors are deploying propaganda to undermine the national discourse and poison American politics—essential reading for understanding our present predicament. McQuade, a University of Michigan Law School professor, served as a US attorney in the Wolverine State. She’s also a legal analyst on MSNBC—which means she’s quite busy these days—and co-hosts the #SistersInLaw podcast. I was able to grab some time with her a few days ago, as she prepped for her book tour.
A lot of people view disinformation as just bad information. After all, politicians have always lied, and journalists have often gotten things wrong. Is it different now?
It is for two reasons. One is technology, which enables disinformers to move information at lightning speed and reach millions of people. There was a time when propagandists had to use leaflets or word of mouth, or plant something in a newspaper and hope somebody else picked it up. Now with anonymous accounts and bots online that can like and share, their messages can get amplified exponentially. The other reason it's different is our polarized political climate, in which people care more about their tribe than they do about the truth. So they are willing to push false information to get an edge on political opponents or for profit motive or for whatever it might be.
You write, “Blind loyalty is an essential ingredient in the recipe for disinformation.” So is disinformation about persuading people or reinforcing existing beliefs, which may be false beliefs or misimpressions. Who's the target here? It's both of those things.
I'm thinking about Trump and the Big Lie. His disinformation on this doesn't seem designed to convince people who don’t already accept this false reality. This is more about getting the tribe to be stronger in this shared but false belief.
That’s right. In the past 20 or 30 years, we've gone from politics where we tried to appeal to the middle in general elections to appealing to the far edges of political bases. That is part of what drives this disinformation campaign. But the electorate has two components: the people who believe these claims, and the others who don't care but are simply going along with a con. Hitler wrote about two essential ingredients for propaganda campaigns. One was repetition, and the other was a big lie. He said no message is too simple. If people hear it coming from many different sources, they will believe it to be true. And lies must be big to be believed. All of us engage in small white lies from time to time. My husband might tell me, “No, that dress doesn't make you look fat.” But most people would not believe that anyone could have the audacity to lie about something so significant as what was going on in the Holocaust camps. It’s the same with a stolen election. Many people just can't believe someone would make that up. It must be true. They're hearing it from so many sources; everyone is so adamant about it. “And I haven't seen any proof that it's not true.” Some are duped, and many others are willing to push that lie just to appeal to the base and to virtue-signal their own membership in the tribe.
You say the brand of disinformation in the Trump era is dramatically different than the type of spin and lies we've seen from politicians in the past, whether it's “I did not have sexual relations with that woman” or lies about Iraqi WMDs. What’s changed?
It’s designed to undermine our institutions, talking about the media in disparaging ways, talking about courts as being lawless. This undermines public confidence in our court system, in our law enforcement system, and it is undermining public safety.
Much disinformation these days seems related to the question of who decides the truth. When you talk about the disinformation targeting the media, the court system, and law enforcement—which are all fair game for criticism—the point of this propaganda often seems to be to question who gets to tell us what is real. Think of Kellyanne Conway’s “alternative facts.”
Yes, and this is a strategy that Vladimir Putin utilizes in Russia. It's sometimes referred to as the fog of unknowability. When you lie about things and characterize legitimate criticism as fake news, people throw up their hands and say, “I don't know what to think. There's nothing I can believe.” So they become angry, cynical, and, finally, numb and disengage from politics altogether, because they say, “Who knows what to believe? I can't believe anything.” Part of the strategy for someone like Trump is to suggest there is no such thing as truth. Nobody knows what truth is. Truth is for suckers.
Disinformation and AI is on people's minds these days. Won't AI make everything worse? Can AI help combat disinformation?
AI is a risk, especially when it comes to elections. The fake Biden robocall in New Hampshire shows how AI can be used as a weapon. AI can also be used as a tool to help us see if something is disinformation. For example, there is a researcher at the University of Michigan, Dearborn, who is working on an AI program that can identify AI-created images. If there’s a video that has been doctored to make it look like a prominent person has said something they did not say, he can use this AI detection tool to determine whether it's genuine. But with AI, it's likely we will always be one step behind. But we have to try to keep up with the AI threat with AI solutions.
When it comes to countering disinformation, there’s often a concern about repeating it and unintentionally amplifying the message. According to years of social science research, when you hear something repeated, even if it's not true—even if you're told it's not true—it still registers an impression. In a sense, disinformation creates a track in a virgin snow field, and you can’t undo that. You can’t put the snow back. Politicians are often faced with the question of how to address a false or misleading charge without reinforcing its initial impression.
It’s a tricky question. In the book, Sarah Longwell, a GOP political strategist, discusses focus groups she has held. When she asked a Trump supporter why she believed the 2020 election was stolen, the woman said, “Well, there's just so many people denying it, it must be true. The more they protest, the more I believe it.” But if disinformation is left unrebutted, my fear is it will become more believed. So I'm a fan of the rebuttal. I suppose you don't have the capacity to rebut every false claim. And some false claims that have not yet received much notice might get more attention if you attempt to rebut them. But for big false claims—a stolen election or Biden received bribes from Ukraine—you have to rebut them. Otherwise, people will hear those things and assume them to be true.
Is part of the answer to find a way to discredit the sources of disinformation in a larger context? For instance, make it clear that House Republicans are constantly pushing false information for political advantage. Ditto for Trump. I know that will come across as hyper-partisan. But we need to foster pattern recognition so people say, “Here they go again.” Yet many journalists at conventional media outlets do not want to act as referees in this fashion. I don't think you have to call out a whole party. But I do think you call out the individuals who are advancing disinformation, such as Rep. James Comer, who has pushed this story about Joe Biden that has now been discredited by the Smirnov indictment, and Rep. Jim Jordan, too.
Most people reading this will be concerned about the impact of disinformation on the 2024 campaign. What do you expect to see?
We will continue to see things undermining Joe Biden—about his age, his mental acuity, his alleged criminal past. Who knows what else lies around the corner, perhaps some efforts to disrupt voting? In 2016 , there was a disinformation campaign where Black communities were hit with text messages or fake online accounts that told Black voters to stay home and not vote for Hillary Clinton because she doesn't care about the Black vote. I imagine we will see those kinds of schemes. But to be forewarned is to be forearmed. I hope that as we see them we can debunk them and make sure that people get out and vote based on facts and not lies.
Got anything to say about this item—or anything else? Email me at ourland@motherjones.com. |
Richard Lewis, the comedian who died at the age of 76 this week, was a dear friend. A decade ago, we met through Twitter—which doesn’t happen much these days—and became pen pals and then in-person BFFs. When I was in Los Angeles, I always tried to see him at his home (a living museum of comedy and rock ’n’ roll memorabilia) or rendezvous at one of his favorite restaurants. Inevitably, hours of hilarity would ensue. As two old Jews (he was older!), we’d kvetch, but always joyfully. He was a comedy pioneer who didn’t tell conventional jokes. He frenetically shared funny stories, mainly about himself and his overflowing treasure chest of neuroses and peccadillos, with, in later years, references to his recovery from alcoholism, depression, and drug use. I was once backstage with him before a performance. “Do you need time to prepare?” I asked. Yeah, he said. He took two minutes to look at a list of topics he wanted to talk (or rant) about during his show. “Done,” he said. That’s it? Yeah, he said: “It’s mostly about me, and that’s a subject I know too well.”
Offstage he was much the same—open, engaged, madcap, and garrulous about…well, everything. But it was not ego-driven. He was kind, generous, and highly attuned to those around him. Unlike some comics I have known, he didn’t need to have the last laugh or be the center of attention. He didn’t just generate the laughter; he shared in it. He gave a damn about who he was with. What impressed me the most about Richard was how easy it was to become a close pal of his. After we connected, I felt we had been friends for decades. And since his death, I’ve heard from others to whom he had reached out—to pass along a compliment or just say hello—and who were delighted to be recipients of his warmth and bonhomie.
As you can imagine, Richard told great stories. Remind me to tell you the one about the time he had dinner with Larry David at a fancy Chinese restaurant and Steve Martin called. He also repeatedly pointed out that Larry, his best friend and constant foil on Curb Your Enthusiasm (on which Richard played a mostly true version of himself), had been tremendously supportive of him these past years, as Richard, with the help of his wonderful wife, Joyce Lapinsky, confronted numerous health challenges, including Parkinson’s. (Richard and Larry were born three days apart at the Brookyln Jewish Hospital.) Larry wrote scenes and set shooting schedules to accommodate Richard, who (to me) hailed Larry as a “true mensch.”
The same could be said of Richard. One of my great disappointments will always be that I did not see him more than I did. We did talk a few times about doing a joint project, with me trying to cajole him into a series of quick video interviews about…whatever. I regret that never came to be. But I was fortunate to know him, and, like so many others, I will miss him greatly. |
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Dumbass Comment of the Week |
Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) is long gone from the Republican presidential race, but he’s not out of sight for the DCotW judges. After Nikki Haley was crushed by Donald Trump in the Michigan GOP primary, Scott, who’s become a tool for Trump (as he auditions so very hard for the veep slot), proclaimed, “This is a race between Joe Biden and our friend Donald Trump. This is a race between America’s future and America’s past.” |
Trump is literally a president from the country’s past.
Gov. Kristi Noem (R-S.D.), another No. 2 wannabe, also made an idiotic comment about Trump. Appearing at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), she exclaimed of Dear Leader, “He’s real…But he cares about you. And what I love about him the most is that he doesn’t think he’s better than you.” |
Actually, Trump does think he’s better than anyone else. That’s been his shtick for decades. In fact, he has repeatedly asserted that he has better genes that place him in a class above the rest of us.
Speaking of CPAC, after NBC News reported that Nazis had been spotted attending the conference, CPAC put out an angry statement: “NBC wrote a hit piece on CPAC yesterday in yet another blatant attempt by the propagandists in the media to discredit conservatives.” |
Well, oops. NBC had video showing the fascists hanging out at CPAC: |
A QAnonish, pro-Trump, onetime hip-hop performer who was in the mob at the Capitol on January 6 and who is now running for Congress in a GOP primary in Ohio scored a DCotW nomination this week. Appearing on a conservative podcast, JR Majewski referred to Special Olympics athletes as “fucking retard[s].” You want the context? Majewski compared Democrats arguing with him on the internet to “like being in the Special Olympics. No matter how good you perform, you’re still a fucking retard.”
His Republican rivals called on Majewski to withdraw from the race. He apologized for the comment but issued a defiant statement in which he railed against the “Washington Establishment Machine” and declared, “the swamp and their unquestioning allies in the media will stop at nothing to keep their grip on the status quo and silence free and independent America First voices…I will not cower to corruption.”
Making a bigoted remark has nothing to do with corruption. By the way, when Majewski ran for this seat in 2022, he dropped out of the race after the news emerged that he had misled voters about his military record. During that campaign, he boasted that he had been an Air Force combat pilot in Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks. In reality, he was loading airplanes at an air base in Qatar.
A longtime Our Land reader wrote to the judges to ask why Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) has not been a recent victor. Was he a victim of the mercy rule? The truth is that the judges were worn out keeping up with Tuberville. But spurred on by this inquisitive premium subscriber, they cast a glance in Tuberville’s direction, and it took only a nanosecond to spot this week’s winner.
Reacting to President Biden’s visit to New York City, he tweeted, “Hope @Joe Biden enjoyed going out for ice cream in NYC while the rest of the city is afraid of crime and migrants.” |
I was just in the Big Apple, and I can report that the city seems to be functioning fine, with folks eagerly going out for ice cream, food, drinks, music, movies, exhibitions, shows, and everything else. Best of all, Twitterites descended on Tuberville, noting that the homicide rate in New York is 4.8 per 100,000 but 15.9 per 100,000 in his state. The Alabama rate is the third highest in the nation. It’s his constituents who might want to think twice before leaving home for a cone or barbecue. For his big-fail gotcha, Tuberville gets a double-scoop prize this week.
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There was much positive feedback from Our Landers for the new “It Can Happen Here” project I launched recently. Charlotte Dunham wrote:
I am glad that you and Mother Jones are doing this project about fascism because I believe that the most important thing to do is change the narrative. Especially in red states like mine, many people accept these policies—suppressing the vote, suppressing women’s rights—due to the narrative fed them by right-wing media and their churches. The right-wing narratives are all tied up in a neat little package, and it is difficult to get past them. You could help us by providing tools for countering this narrative—helping to break the spell, so to speak.
One glimmer of hope for me: My Republican neighbor confided she was fed up with Trump and his disrespect. There have to be a lot more like her out there. She is a kind, reasonable woman who just took it for granted the Republican was always better. Her change in attitude is like a crack in the wall. That could be an opportunity for change.
We at Mother Jones do hope that our work can be useful for those who want information they can deploy to challenge false right-wing narratives. The “It Can Happen Here” videos are meant to be small bite-size reminders of the drift—or march?—toward authoritarianism that can be easily shared. Michelle White emailed:
Just wanted to say thank you for this article and links to your videos. I don’t believe you are being Chicken Little. We are sinking towards authoritarianism. It’s evident every day. What concerns me is how many Americans don’t pay any real attention to what is going on in our country. Apathy will be our demise if we don’t stay engaged.
There are tens of millions of Americans who either want autocracy (under Trump) or don’t pay enough attention to realize that’s a distinct possibility. We all know the quote attributed to Edmund Burke: “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” There is no evidence Burke said that. But it remains an important sentiment. Brian O’Neill vented:
I just read your column in which you introduced the “It Can Happen Here” videos. Your column and the new videos are frightening. I don’t use the word lightly. Is there an antidote to all this garbage spewed by Bannon, Vance, Crenshaw, Stefanik, et al.? It all pisses me off. As a result, I have largely stopped watching TV/cable news (MSNBC mainly, PBS, too). My sleep can go south from all of this. What a travesty this fealty to Trump is. We could use about 10 of you and 10 Wayne Barretts. I know you won't, but please don't take your foot off the pedal.
It's kind of Brian to say that. I sure can use the encouragement these days, when the news cycles can be crushing and so much seems to be heading in the wrong direction. (See SCOTUS’s decision to take months to address Trump’s bogus claim of immunity in the federal election interference case—which will likely lead to an unnecessary delay in the trial.) I am inspired by his reference to Wayne Barrett, a wonderful investigative reporter who was at the Village Voice for nearly four decades and who led the way in covering a deceptive and corrupt developer named Donald Trump. Wayne died in 2017, and we still miss him and his work.
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“Moxie, that doesn’t look comfortable at all.” “Don’t you worry about me. And wearing shoes all day doesn’t look that comfortable to me.” |
Read Recent Issues of Our Land |
February 27, 2024: The new “It Can Happen Here” project; the darkness of True Detective: Night Country; and more. February 24, 2024: The racism is the point; the Smirnov affair; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Robert F. Kennedy Jr.); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.
February 21, 2024: The great forgotten betrayal of the Trump years; the fifth season of Fargo gets political; the Black Keys get funky; and more.
February 17, 2024: A refresher on Trump’s porn-star/hush-money case; a farewell message from Alexei Navalny; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Jared Kushner); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.
February 13, 2024: Joe Biden’s age and how the media covers it; The Greatest Night in Pop lives up to its title; Slow Horses and For All Mankind and the challenge of producing high-quality television; and more.
February 10, 2024: Biden or Trump and the memory hole; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Marjorie Taylor Greene); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.
February 6, 2024: Joy Reid and a civil rights love story; a new biography of Lou Reed; and more.
February 3, 2024: A too-late Biden shift on Israel?; writing about Taylor Swift; a classic Trump video on lying; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar); MoxieCam™; and more.
January 30, 2024: New book tells the inside story of the Georgia RICO case against Donald Trump; Trump pals around with accused billionaire sex criminal; Anatomy of a Fall soars; and more.
January 27, 2024: The dilemma of the anti-Trump conservatives; Dumbass Comment of the Week; the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more. |
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Got suggestions, comments, complaints, tips related to any of the above, or anything else? Email me at ourland@motherjones.com. |
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