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Troll Farms Spreading Disinformation
“The biggest problem is that Facebook and Google are these giant feedback loops that give people what they want to hear. And when you use them in a world where your biases are being constantly confirmed, you become susceptible to fake news, propaganda, demagoguery.”
~Franklin Foer
Disinformation on social media has been a problem for several years now. Russian funded sources were caught in 2016 spreading disinformation during the election. The former president and many of his supporters pretended it was a hoax or “fake news” at the time. The troll farms were at it again in the 2020, according to research conducted by Facebook. A shocking number of messages and Facebook pages originate from troll farms in Kosovo, Macedonia, and other foreign countries.
What is a troll farm? Basically, it’s an organization of paid trolls who engage in activity designed to influence political opinions and spread propaganda. In America and many other countries, these places use a combination of paid commentators and bots to disseminate propaganda, erode trust in politicians and the media, and influence public opinion.
Election Interference in 2016 & 2020
Despite the former president’s insistence that Russia did not interfere in our election, there is abundant evidence that…
