How the Right Launders Online Propaganda with Renee DiResta
Ren\xe9e DiResta is one the world\u2019s leading experts on online disinformation and propaganda and the author of the new book, Invisible Rulers, The People Who Turn Lies into Reality. About two months ago, DiResta found out her contract as the technical research manager at the Stanford Internet Observatory would not be renewed. What\u2019s more, the SIO, one of the foremost academic programs studying abuse online, would be essentially hollowed out.\xa0The university blames funding challenges, and says it has \u201cnot shut down or dismantled SIO as a result of outside pressure.\u201d However, many journalists and fellow researchers suspect that political pressure from the right, including congressional hearings led by Rep. Jim Jordan and lawsuits from people like Stephen Miller, caused Stanford to cave.\n\nKara and Ren\xe9e discuss the drama at the SIO; Invisible Rulers; the coordinated effort by the right to target academic researchers who study online propaganda and disinformation; the larger strategy to push back against content moderation by social media platforms; and the role the platforms themselves and their CEOS (looking at you, Elon) play in this fight.\n\nQuestions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find Kara on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher\n\n\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices