The election-interference indictment brought by Robert Mueller, the US special counsel, underscores how thoroughly social-media companies like Facebook and Twitter were played by Russian propagandists. Thirteen Russians, including a businessman close to Vladimir Putin, were charged Friday in a plot to interfere in the 2016 US presidential election through social media propaganda. The alleged scheme was run by the Internet Research Agency, a troll farm based in St. Petersburg, Russia, which used bogus social media postings and advertisements fraudulently purchased in the name of Americans to try to influence the White House race. “It’s a really, really, really difficult problem.”ADVERTISEMENTThe indictment confirms earlier findings from congressional investigations that Russian agents manipulated social media to promote social division by mimicking grassroots political activity. “The idea wasn’t necessarily to help one political party over another, but to sow as much discord as possible,” said Melissa Ryan, a Democratic social media marketing expert who now keeps track of right-wing online activity.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer February 17, 2018 12:56 UTC