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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe State Department Is Actively Trolling Terrorists on Twitter
Here's one way the US government is trying to combat terrorism without the use of controversial explosions. A tiny portion of your tax dollarsjust a few million dollars annuallyis funding the State Department's trolling of jihadists on Twitter.
One of the State Department's official (and verified) Twitter accounts, called "Think AgainTurn Away" and going by the handle @ThinkAgain_DOS, is devoted to speaking "some truths about terrorism" online. If you follow the account, you'll notice that this truth often manifests itself in the form of the State Department directly tweeting at Islamists and their supporters in English, and countering their beliefs.
This kind of thing isn't unusual for the State Department. The Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications was established in 2010 to coordinate messaging to target violent extremism on the internet, especially that of Al Qaeda and affiliates. CSCC (an interagency center that is housed at State) initially focused on non-English online forums where the State Department saw jihadists attempting to recruit and raise money (message boards, comments on Al Jazeera Talk, etc.) Late last year, CSCC made a move into English-language websites, with the small team of analysts and microbloggers expanding their fight on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and elsewhere, under the banner of the US State Department. @ThinkAgain_DOS is just one of their tools in this digital-outreach turf war.
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/02/state-department-cscc-troll-terrorists-twitter-think-again-turn-away
Pretzel_Warrior
(8,361 posts)grahamhgreen
(15,741 posts)Cleita
(75,480 posts)they seem to be trolling this site at times.
Pretzel_Warrior
(8,361 posts)Cleita
(75,480 posts)woo me with science
(32,139 posts)all over the internet.
Revolting, disgusting, authoritarian, and utterly indefensible.
How Covert Agents Infiltrate the Internet to Manipulate, Deceive
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024560097
The government figured out sockpuppet managment but not "persona management."
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023358242
The Gentleman's Guide To Forum Spies (spooks, feds, etc.)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=4159454
Seventeen techniques for truth suppression.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=4249741
Just do some Googling on astroturfing - big organizations have some sophisticated tools.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=1208351
The influx will continue
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=4216987
The influx of corporate propaganda-spouting personas is steady and unnatural:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=3189367