The Seven Commandments of Fake News | NYT Opinion

Summary

The script reveals Russia's disinformation tactics, tracing their roots to Cold War KGB strategies. It outlines Putin's use of these techniques to weaken Western unity, including the creation of divisive social media campaigns and news outlets like Russia Today. The script details the 'playbook' of disinformation, involving exploiting societal divisions, spreading outrageous lies with a grain of truth, and utilizing unwitting supporters. It also discusses specific instances like Pizzagate, illustrating how these strategies were applied to influence the 2016 US election.

Takeaways

• 🌐 The script discusses a 2016 anti-Islam protest in Houston, orchestrated by a Russian source via Facebook, highlighting the use of disinformation to create division.
• 📚 It reveals that Vladimir Putin's KGB background and his rise to power in Russia have played a significant role in the resurgence of disinformation campaigns.
• 🎭 The script outlines Russia's strategy to weaken the Western world by sowing chaos and exploiting existing social divisions.
• 📈 Putin's disinformation tactics are likened to a 'playbook' with seven commandments designed to influence foreign audiences and governments.
• 🔍 The playbook includes finding societal cracks to exploit, creating bold lies, wrapping lies around a kernel of truth, and concealing the origin of the story.
• 🗣️ It emphasizes the role of 'useful idiots' in spreading disinformation without realizing they are being manipulated.
• 🚫 The script explains the tactic of denial, even in the face of obvious truth, to maintain the facade of disinformation.
• 🕰️ The importance of playing the 'long game' in disinformation campaigns is underscored, with operations designed to have an impact over many years.
• 🌐 The internet's role in amplifying the reach and effectiveness of disinformation is highlighted, with examples of fake news stories that went viral.
• 🔒 The script recounts specific instances of disinformation, such as Pizzagate, and ties them back to the Russian playbook and the involvement of entities like WikiLeaks and the Internet Research Agency.

Q & A

What was the main event described in the transcript?

The transcript describes an anti-Islam protest outside a mosque in Houston, Texas, and a counter-rally happening across the street, both orchestrated by the same source in Russia through Facebook events.

What is the term used to describe Russia's influence tactics mentioned in the script?

The term used to describe Russia's influence tactics is 'active measures', which refers to Cold War-style disinformation campaigns.

How did Vladimir Putin's past in the KGB influence his approach to disinformation?

Vladimir Putin's past in the KGB, where he was evaluated on his active measures and disinformation production, influenced his approach as he continued these tactics once he became president.

What was the purpose behind Russia Today's establishment according to the script?

The purpose behind Russia Today's establishment was to launch a global English-language news channel that would serve as a platform for disinformation campaigns.

What is the single goal that Putin has been pursuing with disinformation, as stated in the transcript?

The single goal that Putin has been pursuing with disinformation is to pit the West against itself, break up alliances, and make Russia more powerful by reshaping the world order in his favor.

What are the 'seven commandments' of Russian disinformation mentioned in the script?

The 'seven commandments' of Russian disinformation are: 1) Look for cracks in the target society to exploit, 2) Create a big, bold lie, 3) Wrap the lie around a kernel of truth, 4) Conceal your hands, 5) Find a useful idiot, 6) Deny, deny, deny, and 7) Play the long game.

How does the script describe the effectiveness of disinformation when it contains a kernel of truth?

The script describes the effectiveness of disinformation as being most impactful when it contains a little bit of truth, making it more likely to be accepted as a whole.

What is the role of 'useful idiots' in the disinformation playbook according to the transcript?

In the disinformation playbook, 'useful idiots' are people who unwittingly spread the Kremlin's message to the target audience, amplifying the disinformation without realizing its origin.

What is the significance of the internet in amplifying disinformation according to the script?

The internet provides anonymity, ubiquity, and immediacy, allowing disinformation to reach a much larger audience than traditional methods, thus significantly amplifying its impact.

How did the disinformation campaign around the 2016 U.S. election leverage the playbook's rules?

The disinformation campaign during the 2016 U.S. election leveraged the playbook's rules by exploiting social divisions, creating a big lie (Pizzagate), using a kernel of truth from John Podesta's emails, concealing the origin through WikiLeaks, and playing the long game by sowing chaos across the political spectrum.

What was the outcome of the Pizzagate disinformation campaign as described in the transcript?

The outcome of the Pizzagate disinformation campaign was that it created significant social and political chaos, leading to a shooting incident at the Comet Pizza restaurant, which was claimed to be running a child sex ring.