Top Highlights

• people’s minds. Disinformation doesn’t create divisions; it amplifies them.
• disinformationists exploit. In a fundamental way, they win when an accepted fact is thrown open for debate. Treating both sides of an
• of Independence states, “deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” If that consent is acquired through deception, the powers derived from it are not just. That is an attack on the very heart of our democracy. First, though, let’s be clear about what we’re talking about. I’m not talking about information or news that is simply wr...
• The audience is anyone with access to a computer or a smartphone—about four billion people. The players in this conflict are assisted by the big social media platforms, which benefit just as much from the sharing of content that is false as content that is true. Popularity is the measure they care about, not accuracy or truthfulness. Studies show t...
• debate. That’s how we make our choices. As Thomas Jefferson said, information is the foundation of democracy.2 He meant factual information. Disinformation is as old as humanity. When the serpent told Eve that nothing would happen if she ate the apple, that was disinformation. But today, spreading lies has never been easier. On social media, there ...