From the Liveblog of
Thursday, April 13, 2017
FBI director: Public should be aware of agenda-driven fake news
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleWASHINGTON — FBI Director James Comey says Americans should be aware of foreign efforts to undermine confidence in US elections and mindful of the possibility that what they’re reading might be part of an organized disinformation campaign.
Comey says the Russian government has for years tried to weaken public faith in democratic processes around the globe, and recently has resorted to more sophisticated tactics.
He is asked at a Newseum event Wednesday night what Americans could do to protect against the meddling of a foreign government in politics. His response: “The most important thing to be done is people need to be aware of the possibility that what they’re reading has been shaped by troll farms, looking to push a message on Twitter to undermine our confidence” about the electoral process.
US intelligence agencies said in a January report that Russian efforts to interfere in last year’s American presidential election in favor of Republican Donald Trump included paid social media users, or “trolls.” Part of the goal was to spread information to “denigrate” Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, who lost the November election, according to the report.
The FBI is investigating, including whether the Kremlin coordinated with Trump campaign associates.
— AP
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