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Recent events brought back to mind this discussion we had with @GordPennycook @StefanFSchubert
@stricklandbrent and others a couple months ago. A short thread on the role of disinformation in the recent events. https://twitter.com/hugoreasoning/status/1326528420621258752
@stricklandbrent and others a couple months ago. A short thread on the role of disinformation in the recent events. https://twitter.com/hugoreasoning/status/1326528420621258752
What happened is awful, disinformation is bad, we all agree on that, but it's important to get a sense of the role the latter played in the former.
On whether most Republicans actually support the coup attempt (or whatever else you want to call it), most don't, but clearly too many do https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/news-polls/unrest-capitol-election-certification-010621
What is the role of disinformation in all this? Claims that the election was stolen aren't new to this election, they were already widespread in the last elections (e.g. https://twitter.com/StefanFSchubert/status/1326526842187231233 https://twitter.com/Dannystrong/status/1329241359358828544)
The main difference appears to be the strong endorsement of these claims by figures of authority. This would have made them somewhat more credible. More importantly, arguably, this sent a signal that actions based on accusions of election theft...
might be condoned instead of being punished (many rioters seemed surprised they were not practically welcomed with open arms). Still, given the ease with which the Capitol was stormed, that signal wasn't completely misleading, unfortunately.
In turn, authority figures might have felt they could score electoral points with this rhetoric because, well, the use of force seems to be depressingly popular (long before the accusations of electoral fraud) https://twitter.com/johnmsides/status/1347211016602529796
What we've witnessed appears to be a textbook example, in which rumors of horrible things (from election theft to pedophilia) committed by the other side are used to coordinate aggressive actions, but do not motivate them directly https://www.amazon.com/Deadly-Ethnic-Riot-Donald-Horowitz/dp/0520236424/
Stopping these rumors to spread organically would be difficult, but any hindrance might make coordination a bit more difficult
Stopping authority figures from endorsing them (through norms, as used to be the case, or account blocking), should make a larger difference, as it stops the signals that the aggression can take place with impunity
But none of that would address the root causes of the problem, as @emilythorson put it https://twitter.com/emilythorson/status/1347240106315362306?s=03
