/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24390468/STK149_AI_Chatbot_K_Radtke.jpg?w=1536&resize=1536,0&ssl=1 "The CIA allegedly made faux social media accounts to troll the Chinese language authorities")
World Courant
The CIA allegedly launched a secret operation to troll Chinese language officers and switch public opinion towards them by leaked intelligence and unfavourable information on social media.
Reuters reviews the operation started in 2019 and was additionally aimed toward inflicting paranoia inside Xi Jinping’s authorities. CIA brokers reportedly made faux social media accounts to unfold rumors, equivalent to allegations that Communist Occasion members cover ill-gotten wealth exterior the nation, and criticize Chinese language authorities initiatives, like saying a program financing infrastructure initiatives in different international locations was corrupt.
The CIA declined to remark to Reuters, which couldn’t affirm whether or not this system continues to be in place. Reuters stated the operation, approved by then-President Donald Trump, operated past China and used social media to affect public opinion in Southeast Asia, Africa, and the South Pacific. China’s Belt and Highway Initiative, which gave grants and loans for infrastructure initiatives, operates in growing international locations in these areas. This initiative was one of many CIA program’s targets.
Social media-fueled propaganda from state actors is nothing new, however information has extra typically been about different international locations concentrating on the US. Russia has been accused many occasions of making faux accounts and troll farms to affect public opinion within the US, with a former ally of Russian president Vladimir Putin admitting final yr to founding a troll farm to meddle in US elections. The identical yr, Rolling Stone wrote {that a} community based mostly in China created a faux far-right publication that pushed faux tales to European social media customers. In the meantime, American politicians, of their quest to ban TikTok, declare the Chinese language authorities may use the social media platform to spy on or affect customers.
