Noticing what looks like more Russian garbage on Facebook before the November Midterm elections, Facebook announced it was deleting some 3e posts designed to sow confusion and division. Several Congressional Committees and Special Counsel Robert Mueller have been looking into Russian meddling in the 2016 election, without saying exactly what, if any, the Russian propaganda and disinformation campaign had on U.S. voters. Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton once blamed Russian President Vladimr Putin for electing 72-year-old President Donald Trump, though Hillary offers no proof. She’s been known, since losing to Trump Nov. 8, 2016, to blame former FBI Director James Comey and practically everyone else, including the Russians. Hillary famously said Trump was a “Putin puppet” Oct. 19, 2016 at the last debate in Las Vegas.
Alleged Russian postings of “fake news” on Facebook and Google prompted Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to warn the public about more Russian meddling. Schumer never offers any proof or even evidence for his contention that Russia influences U.S. voters. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), ranking member on the House Intelligence Committee, insists that Russia is up to no good again, this time in the November’s Midterm elections. “We have found evidence of connections between these accounts and previously identified IRA accounts, but we don’t believe the evidence is strong enough at this time to make public attribution to the IRA, the Saint-Petersburg-based Internet Research Agency [IRA],” said Facebook chief security officers Alex Stamos. More Russian hysteria will no doubt make the rounds on Capitol Hill, where Russian paranoia runs deep.
Sweeping Saint Petersburg-based IRA from Facebook does little to corroborate whether its garbage ever impacted even one voter. Posting garbage on Facebook isn’t uncommon, especially now that news stories have questionable origin and content. “We can say for sure if this is the IRA with improved capabilities or a different organization,” said Facebook. Facebook insists that the 32 pages or accounts deleted “engaged in coordinated inauthentic behavior,” much like many of its other posts, advertising one product or service after another. Whether those products or services are questionable in value or part of a company’s fake news campaign is anyone’s guess. Fanning more Russian hysteria does no one any good, especially members of Congress looking to blame Trump for everything but the kitchen sink. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), one of Trump biggest critics, vented on Russia.
Warner sees the recent Facebook findings as proof that the 2016 election was skewed toward Trump. Yet Warner offers no proof that whatever garbage is posted on Facebook, it has any measurable effect on anything. “Today’s disclosure is further evidence that the Kremlin continues to exploit platforms like Facebook to sow division and spread disinformation, and I am glad Facebook is taking some steps to pinpoint and address this activity,” said Warner. Warner isn’t concerned about the endless other equally dubious Facebook posts, only the ones linked to Russia. If any citizen or alien wants to spread gossip, innuendo or flat-out lies about the United States, what’s the government supposed to do? Warner talks of “sowing division and disinformation” but how does that differ from someone promoting some bogus product or service to make a fast buck or turn a quick profit?
Contrary to Warner’s statements, today’s “disclosures” say nothing about the impact of these renegade posts on Facebook or other forms of social media. Talking about Russian “interference” or “meddling” is utterly meaningless with knowing its exact effect, there might have been hundreds, in not thousands, of fake news stories posted on Facebook, Google or other social networking platforms. But the real question is what, if any, effect, did they have. Warner thinks that anything Russia posts on Facebook somehow brainwashes social network users. “I also expect Facebool, along with other platform companies, will continue to indentify Russian t roll activity and world with Congress in updating our lives to better protest democracy in the futhre,” said 38-year-old Russian security expert Alex Stamos. Stamos adds to the Russian hysteria currently sweeping Capitol Hill.
After raked over the coals by Congress, Facebook says all the right things, especially after watching its stock hammered recently. “We face determined, well funded adversaries who will never give up and are constantly changing tactics. It’s an arms race and we need to constantly improve too,” said Facebook in a public statement. Whether Congress likes it or not, there’s little anyone can do to combat pernicious propaganda or the more hip term “fake news.” Whether it comes from Saint Petersburg or Washington, propaganda is propaganda. Warner and other partisan Democrats have no problem railing against Russian propaganda but they’re indifferent to propaganda and “fake news” as long as it attacks Trump. Facebook can make all the politically correct statements it wants about “fake news,” but the truth is that there’s plenty of it on Facebook having nothing to do with Russia.
