TRUM WORL ORDE
taken the position that any attempt to influence our election via information operations is a threat to the integrity of our elections. This makes it far too easy
info ops and fake-news meddling is growing louder. One of the “remedies” demanded from the public – and the government – is for online information to be vetted for accuracy. Silicon Valley giants like Google say they feel an obligation to eliminate falsehoods from gaining traction on the web, while Facebook and Twitter are taking more active roles in policing content their users share. Inevitably, this will lead to partisan censorship if it hasn’t already. The major search and social media platforms are ideologically left of center. And if Google, Facebook, and Twitter want to censor content, there is nothing to stop them. They can do it under the rubric of combatting foreign “information warfare,” and if challenged, blame whatever algorithms they have in place at the time. More disturbing than this, however, is the role of government in combatting foreign propaganda operations. Can any individual’s communication now be subject to government snooping if there is a chance that some Russians are engaged in an online campaign of political catfishing? Will private citizens who come into contact with Russian – or perhaps, Chinese or other – information operations be the subject of criminal inquiries? None of this is clear. The U.S. government claims that it will fight back against Russian election meddling. But it remains hazy on the details of just how. Meanwhile, most of the news media has
for any foreign actor to have the appearance of undermining our institutions, no matter how ineffective the attempt. There are no easy answers. As long as the Internet is a global exchange of information, foreign governments will be in a position to place their thumbs on the scale. That doesn’t mean that we can allow our own government to play idea police or use the legal system to single out fake news. Information warfare has reached a new phase in the 21st century. Our best defense against it is transparency, truth, and the recognition While the national security smart set prefers predictability in decision makers, world events take even the most seasoned presidents by surprise. Trump will be faced with a great test of his commander-in-chief skills at some point over the next three years. And from what we have seen so far, nobody has any idea how Trump would react to such a challenge, including the president himself. He will go with his gut. Whether that is a blessing or a curse – the world will have to wait and see. that the marketplace of ideas is better understood as the battlefield of ideas. WHEREWE ARE TODAY
Our best defense against it is
transparency, truth, and the recognition that the marketplace of ideas is better understood as the battlefield of ideas.
American Consequences 25
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