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Report: Facebook, Twitter Took Down Pro-US Influence Campaign

时间:2022-10-05 22:59:14

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Report: Facebook, Twitter Took Down Pro-US Influence Campaign

Independent investigators1 have found that Facebook and Twitter removed a series of false accounts that pushed pro-Western policy positions to foreign users.

Facebook's parent company, Meta, and Twitter said the accounts were removed because they violated their terms of service. The investigators who examined the activity say the campaigns used "deceptive2" methods to push "pro-Western narratives4 in the Middle East and Central Asia."

A series of secret campaigns were likely carried out over a five-year period, a report from California's Stanford University and the social media data company Graphika found.

Twitter and Facebook shared their data about the accounts with the researchers. But they have not publicly identified what groups or organizations were behind the campaigns.

Twitter said the evidence it gathered pointed5 to the United States and Britain as the likely origin of the activity. Meta identified the U.S. as being the country of origin for material appearing on Facebook and Instagram, the report said.

Who is behind the campaigns?

In recent years, technology companies have shut down online influence operations connected to government-linked operations in China, Russia and Iran. The discovery of a U.S.-based online influence effort raises questions about who is behind the campaigns and whether the operations are effective.

VOA asked the U.S. Department of Defense6 whether the military had created the false accounts. In answer, the Pentagon's press secretary, Air Force Brigadier General Pat Ryder, said officials would need to look at the data provided by Facebook and Twitter. He added that the U.S. military does carry out "military information support operations around the world."

Ryder said he could not speak about ongoing7 operations or specific department methods. But he did say that any military activities "operate within prescribed policies."

The researchers noted8 that the social media accounts often shared links to false media websites as well as "sources linked to the U.S. military." For example, some websites in Central Asia suggested a connection to the U.S. military's Central Command.

The report said the false accounts sometimes linked to articles from Voice of America and its sister organization, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. False media sites that were created also copied stories from BBC Russia, VOA and other sources.

Several suspended social media accounts were linked to false media accounts operating in Persian, such as Dariche News. That news site claimed to be an independent media company and also provided some original content. But, the report added, "many of their articles were explicit9 reposts from U.S.-funded Persian-language media, including Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's Radio Farda and VOA Farsi."

The parent government organization for VOA and RFE/RL is the United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM). A spokesperson for the agency, Lesley Jackson, told VOA in an emailed statement that it did not have knowledge of the false accounts.

She said that USAGM only operates its own official social media accounts and websites. In doing so, the agency uses "the highest standards to ensure that official accounts are fact-based, accessible and verifiable," Jackson said.

Jackson confirmed that USAGM does not work with other U.S. government agencies or other groups to push news content through false social media accounts.

Similar to other influence campaigns

The methods used in the influence campaigns were similar to those used in campaigns involving other countries. These included using false photos to create accounts and using hashtags and calls to action to build support.

One set of accounts in Central Asia mainly centered on Russia's military activities in the Middle East and Africa. But in February, it moved to the war in Ukraine, "presenting the conflict as a threat to people in Central Asia," the report said.

The researchers noted the campaign methods used did not really work to increase user involvement. Most of the posts and tweets received only a handful of likes or retweets. And a majority of the accounts had fewer than 1,000 followers10.

Words in This Story

deceptive – adj. intended to make someone believe something that is not true

narrative3 – n. a story or description of events

origin – n. where something comes from in the beginning

prescribe – v. to say officially what people must do

explicit – adj. clear and exact

standard – n. a level of quality, especially one that is acceptable

accessible – adj. easy to find or reach

verifiable – adj. able to be proven


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 investigators e970f9140785518a87fc81641b7c89f7     
n.调查者,审查者( investigator的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
  • The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》
2 deceptive CnMzO     
adj.骗人的,造成假象的,靠不住的
参考例句:
  • His appearance was deceptive.他的外表带有欺骗性。
  • The storyline is deceptively simple.故事情节看似简单,其实不然。
3 narrative CFmxS     
n.叙述,故事;adj.叙事的,故事体的
参考例句:
  • He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
  • Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。
4 narratives 91f2774e518576e3f5253e0a9c364ac7     
记叙文( narrative的名词复数 ); 故事; 叙述; 叙述部分
参考例句:
  • Marriage, which has been the bourne of so many narratives, is still a great beginning. 结婚一向是许多小说的终点,然而也是一个伟大的开始。
  • This is one of the narratives that children are fond of. 这是孩子们喜欢的故事之一。
5 pointed Il8zB4     
adj.尖的,直截了当的
参考例句:
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
6 defense AxbxB     
n.防御,保卫;[pl.]防务工事;辩护,答辩
参考例句:
  • The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
  • The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。
7 ongoing 6RvzT     
adj.进行中的,前进的
参考例句:
  • The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
  • The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。
8 noted 5n4zXc     
adj.著名的,知名的
参考例句:
  • The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
  • Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。
9 explicit IhFzc     
adj.详述的,明确的;坦率的;显然的
参考例句:
  • She was quite explicit about why she left.她对自己离去的原因直言不讳。
  • He avoids the explicit answer to us.他避免给我们明确的回答。
10 followers 5c342ee9ce1bf07932a1f66af2be7652     
追随者( follower的名词复数 ); 用户; 契据的附面; 从动件
参考例句:
  • the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
  • The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

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