Can the US do anything about domestic propaganda/misinformation?

[ivwshane]

Is there a process currently in place or what would a fix look like to address disinformation by private parties, specifically, media companies?

The first amendment offers broad protections about free speech to individuals but I'm unsure of how broadly that applies to businesses. For example the FCC has the ability to mandate broadcasting standards. Could those standards be used to disallow the spreading of disinformation? Would that even be enforceable from a standards standpoint? Would this be applicable to companies such as Facebook or Twitter (when it comes to advertising or postings by businesses)?

What is the solution because it is my opinion that disinformation is becoming the biggest threat to our democracy. However a free society must be allowed to have free speech and the right to dissent, so how do we reconcile the two?

 

[sportage]

People can post anything they want on FB and on the likes of and other people will always eat it up.
My Trumpie sister recently posted on FB that Nancy Pelosi re-directed Social Security funds to pay for their house impeachment cost.
As if that is not enough, many of her Trumpie friends replied to her post with WOW, and HOW DARE HER, and VOTE PELOSI OUT. And that was some of the nice comments.

I had a little talk with old sis that first of all, Nancy Pelosi DOES NOT have the power to re-direct SS money.
Second, this is all fake news and total lies that Nancy Pelosi could/would never do that even if she could.

Did my little speech sink in? At all? Especially with a devoted Trumpie?
Well, NO....
Old sis would only reply with IT MAKES ME SO MAD THEY ARE WASTING MY MONEY ON THIS IMPEACHMENT CRAP.
And there you have it.

It's not so much the disinformation out there, it is the people that WANT SO MUCH to believe the nonsense.
You can not argue with these Trumpie loyalist, you can not change their mind, you can not argue the logic of such nonsense because they will believe what they want to believe. For them, Donald Trump can do no harm and everything Donald Trump does is PERFECT.
It is not the media or the fake news put out there, it is those people that will believe it and will never question any of it.
The world has gone totally INSANE.....
Thank you Donald Trump.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

People can post anything they want on FB and on the likes of and other people will always eat it up.
My Trumpie sister recently posted on FB that Nancy Pelosi re-directed Social Security funds to pay for their house impeachment cost.
As if that is not enough, many of her Trumpie friends replied to her post with WOW, and HOW DARE HER, and VOTE PELOSI OUT. And that was some of the nice comments.

I had a little talk with old sis that first of all, Nancy Pelosi DOES NOT have the power to re-direct SS money.
Second, this is all fake news and total lies that Nancy Pelosi could/would never do that even if she could.

Did my little speech sink in? At all? Especially with a devoted Trumpie?
Well, NO....
Old sis would only reply with IT MAKES ME SO MAD THEY ARE WASTING MY MONEY ON THIS IMPEACHMENT CRAP.
And there you have it.

It's not so much the disinformation out there, it is the people that WANT SO MUCH to believe the nonsense.
You can not argue with these Trumpie loyalist, you can not change their mind, you can not argue the logic of such nonsense because they will believe what they want to believe. For them, Donald Trump can do no harm and everything Donald Trump does is PERFECT.
It is not the media or the fake news put out there, it is those people that will believe it and will never question any of it.
The world has gone totally INSANE.....
Thank you Donald Trump.

Amen to that, brother!

 

[rommelrommel]

Education I guess, but the benefactors of the misinformation aren’t likely to let that happen.

Improving the living standards of the poor and lower middle class would sure help them have the time to be educated and politically involved, but see my first objection.

 

[BoomerD]

Free speech is free speech. You don't have to like it.

 

[Zorba]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FCC_fairness_doctrine - Killed by Reagan

Strict ownership limits and controls - Killed by Clinton

We used to have means of controlling propaganda, given to us by FDR, killed by the deregulation masturbatory fantasy.

 

[ivwshane]

Free speech is free speech. You don't have to like it.

When it’s detrimental to society and democracy it’s not about liking it.

 

[BoomerD]

When it’s detrimental to society and democracy it’s not about liking it.

Doesn't matter. Freedom of speech SHALL NOT be infringed.

 

[HomerJS]

People can post anything they want on FB and on the likes of and other people will always eat it up.
My Trumpie sister recently posted on FB that Nancy Pelosi re-directed Social Security funds to pay for their house impeachment cost.
As if that is not enough, many of her Trumpie friends replied to her post with WOW, and HOW DARE HER, and VOTE PELOSI OUT. And that was some of the nice comments.

I had a little talk with old sis that first of all, Nancy Pelosi DOES NOT have the power to re-direct SS money.
Second, this is all fake news and total lies that Nancy Pelosi could/would never do that even if she could.

Did my little speech sink in? At all? Especially with a devoted Trumpie?
Well, NO....
Old sis would only reply with IT MAKES ME SO MAD THEY ARE WASTING MY MONEY ON THIS IMPEACHMENT CRAP.
And there you have it.

It's not so much the disinformation out there, it is the people that WANT SO MUCH to believe the nonsense.
You can not argue with these Trumpie loyalist, you can not change their mind, you can not argue the logic of such nonsense because they will believe what they want to believe. For them, Donald Trump can do no harm and everything Donald Trump does is PERFECT.
It is not the media or the fake news put out there, it is those people that will believe it and will never question any of it.
The world has gone totally INSANE.....
Thank you Donald Trump.

Ask sis this one.

What if during 2016 election Obama held up aid for Israel until the Mossad can get Democrat's a copy of Trump's pee tape, she cool wit dat or would it be an abuse of power??

 

[rommelrommel]

Doesn't matter. Freedom of speech SHALL NOT be infringed.

The courts have ruled that speech isn’t absolutely free either. This is more freedom of the press anyways, but there’s still room for regulation. It’s been done before.

 

[ivwshane]

Doesn't matter. Freedom of speech SHALL NOT be infringed.

Existing laws disagree with you.

 

[tweaker2]

In the face of a truckload of irrefutable evidence that Trump wanted dirt on Biden from Ukraine and held up military aid to get it, his loyalist cult followers and the Repubs in Congress are ignoring all of it, are making up excuses to dismiss it and are now prepping/positioning themselves via issuing bullshit talking points and disseminating rumors and innuendo that will miraculously appear as factual evidence in support of Trump in the Senate trial. Disinformation is now one of the very few weapons the Repubs have left to fight all of the facts and damning evidence that is piling up at Trump's feet.

What's missing from the Repub's rhetoric in all of the distracting noise they're making in support of their Chosen One?

Well there's the withheld testimony that Trump's associates, cabinet members and Dept. heads could come up with in support of their boss. So why aren't they eagerly attempting to do just that? <-----(rhetorical). There's those tons of documents and data that's being withheld by them that his supporters could use to debunk what are now considered facts and truths that point to Trump's culpability. Nothing coming from the Trump admin. in this regard either.

Gee, it sort'a makes me think that maybe, just maybe that whatever's being withheld that could show how Trump is innocent of all charges being levied against him is nonexistent and instead there are lots of things that would deepen the shit that Trump is now wallowing in.

But then using logic and common sense in determining Trump's innocence in this contentious issue was never ever a crucial factor was it?

It's now all about avoiding and escaping from the reality that Trump has been cornered and proven to be guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors. It's now all about trampling the Rule of Law and the Constitution into the dirt in order to keep Trump in office. It's now all about protecting Putin and his oligarchs that are holding IOU's from Trump.

It's now all a matter of the Repubs sowing as much disinformation as possible into the media/media sharing venues as their way of keeping the truth out of the minds of the voting public.

edit - content

 

[dawp]

Is there a process currently in place or what would a fix look like to address disinformation by private parties, specifically, media companies?

The first amendment offers broad protections about free speech to individuals but I'm unsure of how broadly that applies to businesses. For example the FCC has the ability to mandate broadcasting standards. Could those standards be used to disallow the spreading of disinformation? Would that even be enforceable from a standards standpoint? Would this be applicable to companies such as Facebook or Twitter (when it comes to advertising or postings by businesses)?

What is the solution because it is my opinion that disinformation is becoming the biggest threat to our democracy. However a free society must be allowed to have free speech and the right to dissent, so how do we reconcile the two?

other than shutting down social media probably not much as the current admin wants it this way.

 

[dawp]

People can post anything they want on FB and on the likes of and other people will always eat it up.
My Trumpie sister recently posted on FB that Nancy Pelosi re-directed Social Security funds to pay for their house impeachment cost.
As if that is not enough, many of her Trumpie friends replied to her post with WOW, and HOW DARE HER, and VOTE PELOSI OUT. And that was some of the nice comments.

I had a little talk with old sis that first of all, Nancy Pelosi DOES NOT have the power to re-direct SS money.
Second, this is all fake news and total lies that Nancy Pelosi could/would never do that even if she could.

Did my little speech sink in? At all? Especially with a devoted Trumpie?
Well, NO....
Old sis would only reply with IT MAKES ME SO MAD THEY ARE WASTING MY MONEY ON THIS IMPEACHMENT CRAP.
And there you have it.

It's not so much the disinformation out there, it is the people that WANT SO MUCH to believe the nonsense.
You can not argue with these Trumpie loyalist, you can not change their mind, you can not argue the logic of such nonsense because they will believe what they want to believe. For them, Donald Trump can do no harm and everything Donald Trump does is PERFECT.
It is not the media or the fake news put out there, it is those people that will believe it and will never question any of it.
The world has gone totally INSANE.....
Thank you Donald Trump.

should have mentioned all the tax money spent on trumps golf trips which far exceeds Obamas and the impeachment.

send her this link to really piss her off

Trump Golf Count

Trump Golf Count: Tracking President Trump's golf outings so you don't have to!

trumpgolfcount.com

 

[BonzaiDuck]

If Hegel contributed a useful idea in his concept of a "National Spirit", then I suppose we could appraise such a thing as a matter of generally accepted human values. There are various virtues, like humility and honesty. The notion of honesty coincides with placing a high value on The Truth.

If the Founders had any basic assumptions in their effort to build a Constitutional Republic, one of those assumptions would be a generally agreed reverence for the Truth. For what value is there in collective democratic decision-making, but as a mechanism for following the compass-needle of the Truth?

On that basis, loyalty to country is nothing without regard to the Truth. So the Truth takes precedence. America is not exceptional unless the Truth comes before all.

And in this search for the Truth, we have dialog, we have debate, we have argument. However, if some party to those debates and arguments has no regard for the Truth, then the actual cost of National progress toward a "more perfect Union" is greater than it should be -- greater than necessary. If a political tactic rests on spreading misinformation, falsehood and lies in order to achieve power, the burden of this additional cost falls on everyone. And the pillars of our national civilization and government begin to crack and crumble. Chaos and disorder begin to flourish. And when the Truth is routinely murdered and trampled, our behavior will increasingly entertain violence.

But when the rights to free expression are guaranteed, there is no legal restraint keeping corrosive falsehood at bay. You cannot have an orderly competition in either sports or politics unless the participants follow the rules, but there is no rule of reverence for the Truth but in our judicial proceedings. And ultimately, if the judiciary is corrupted or corroded by an ethic of falsehood, then we cannot easily keep our Republic.

And I don't know how you could possibly legislate and compel citizens to adopt the common virtue of putting Truth before all other things.

 

[cytg111]

People can post anything they want on FB and on the likes of and other people will always eat it up.
My Trumpie sister recently posted on FB that Nancy Pelosi re-directed Social Security funds to pay for their house impeachment cost.
As if that is not enough, many of her Trumpie friends replied to her post with WOW, and HOW DARE HER, and VOTE PELOSI OUT. And that was some of the nice comments.

I had a little talk with old sis that first of all, Nancy Pelosi DOES NOT have the power to re-direct SS money.
Second, this is all fake news and total lies that Nancy Pelosi could/would never do that even if she could.

Did my little speech sink in? At all? Especially with a devoted Trumpie?
Well, NO....
Old sis would only reply with IT MAKES ME SO MAD THEY ARE WASTING MY MONEY ON THIS IMPEACHMENT CRAP.
And there you have it.

It's not so much the disinformation out there, it is the people that WANT SO MUCH to believe the nonsense.
You can not argue with these Trumpie loyalist, you can not change their mind, you can not argue the logic of such nonsense because they will believe what they want to believe. For them, Donald Trump can do no harm and everything Donald Trump does is PERFECT.
It is not the media or the fake news put out there, it is those people that will believe it and will never question any of it.
The world has gone totally INSANE.....
Thank you Donald Trump.

Christmas present : Bible in russian, signed : American Traitor

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

When it’s detrimental to society and democracy it’s not about liking it.

Eliminating FAUX Nooze and other disinformation plagues like Breitbart would be a start.

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

The notion of honesty coincides with placing a high value on The Truth.
<snip>
On that basis, loyalty to country is nothing without regard to the Truth. So the Truth takes precedence. America is not exceptional unless the Truth comes before all.
<snip>
And I don't know how you could possibly legislate and compel citizens to adopt the common virtue of putting Truth before all other things.

Who's truth?

 

[cytg111]

Who's truth?

History is written by the victor.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

Education I guess, but the benefactors of the misinformation aren’t likely to let that happen.

Improving the living standards of the poor and lower middle class would sure help them have the time to be educated and politically involved, but see my first objection.

This is basically /thread. An educated populace is inoculated to falsehoods, and a happy, healthy (read: not indentured servants) populace is inoculated to extremism and pandering.

 

[fskimospy]

Doesn't matter. Freedom of speech SHALL NOT be infringed.

‘Infringe’ means to restrict unreasonably, it does not mean that it cannot be restricted at all. It’s strange when people take this absolutist position about free speech while apparently not noticing that our country has lots and lots of laws restricting free speech.

As (oddly enough) Sasha Baron Cohen recently wrote it’s probably time to regulate Google, Facebook, Twitter, etc. in similar ways to how we regulate other publishing and broadcast media. That would go a long way in reducing the mass publication of clearly purposeful lies.

 

[ivwshane]

Education I guess, but the benefactors of the misinformation aren’t likely to let that happen.

Improving the living standards of the poor and lower middle class would sure help them have the time to be educated and politically involved, but see my first objection.

Have you noticed how hard it is to improve education standards? That’s how we got here in first place, the liberals were indoctrinating kids and it’s been down hill since.

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

Have you noticed how hard it is to improve education standards? That’s how we got here in first place, the liberals were indoctrinating kids and it’s been down hill since.

You spelled right wingnut extremists wrong.

 

[Sunburn74]

Ask sis this one.

What if during 2016 election Obama held up aid for Israel until the Mossad can get Democrat's a copy of Trump's pee tape, she cool wit dat or would it be an abuse of power??

Or hold up aid to get his kids business deals, or buy more trump towers. Holding up tax payer aid for personal gain is textbook abuse of power. People who don't see this.... are probably lost for good honestly.

 

[zinfamous]

Is there a process currently in place or what would a fix look like to address disinformation by private parties, specifically, media companies?

The first amendment offers broad protections about free speech to individuals but I'm unsure of how broadly that applies to businesses. For example the FCC has the ability to mandate broadcasting standards. Could those standards be used to disallow the spreading of disinformation? Would that even be enforceable from a standards standpoint? Would this be applicable to companies such as Facebook or Twitter (when it comes to advertising or postings by businesses)?

What is the solution because it is my opinion that disinformation is becoming the biggest threat to our democracy. However a free society must be allowed to have free speech and the right to dissent, so how do we reconcile the two?

This is why Fox News Network long ago registered with the FCC as an "entertainment" entity--not a news network. They can lie and lie and lie and do whatthefuckevertheywant, because they specifically licensed themselves to do exactly that, which is the only thing they have been doing since their inception--which, to remind every one, exists only because Roger Ailes was determined to create a propaganda outlet that would exist only to create a public viewership that would never allow something like the "unfair railroading of Richard [Scumbag] Nixon, again!" I mean...when that is your mandate to create what you call "news," you know these people are fucking scum to the core.

But they are protected through licensing....my solution is that because of this license, however, they should no longer be allowed to call themselves "News," and every image that they flash on the screen should be stamped by the FCC with a watermark that informs viewers that what they are watching is pure lies and entertainment for dumb people (or something to that effect)...it would be the first piece of actual information coming from that channel, to its viewers.