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Ultimatum Disasturbator from the Amiga Forest (Old as dirt) Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
Disasturbator
#264551: Dec 18th 2018 at 3:43:36 AM

> almost insulting the use lies so bad and so stupid.

It's deliberately ridiculous,we call it trolling,they know no one should believe their lies but as long as we pay attention to them it's mission accomplished

have a listen and have a link to my discord server
megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#264552: Dec 18th 2018 at 5:03:05 AM

[up] speaking of that:

While everyone is talking about Russians trying to target the African-American community, here are my favorite times they tried very hard but failed because American culture, tone and humor is not easy to replicate:

Russian trolls tried to start a black "War on Christmas," with frankly adorable holiday sweaters (that they actually sold!) reading "Say No to Ho-Ho-Ho."

Another sweater said "Dear Cops, Don't Shoot—SUCK," plus two candy canes.

Russian trolls on Twitter pretending to be African-Americans confused melatonin with melanin, and created a conspiracy theory that black men are being trafficked for $30 million for their melatonin.

This was so stupid it went viral before they were caught

The troll farm hired two black men in Russia to pose as African-American YouTube vloggers from Atlanta and bash Hillary Clinton.

They would make hilarious errors, like confusing Los Angeles and Louisiana, because they didn't get postal abbreviations.

My favorite dumb Russian troll Tumblr account that posed as an African-American was "Hustle in a Trap," but there were some other good contenders, such as “Ghetta Blasta,” and “Swag In The Rain.”

Not everything landed, I think.

Edited by megaeliz on Dec 18th 2018 at 8:03:28 AM

Steven (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: YOU'RE TEARING ME APART LISA
#264553: Dec 18th 2018 at 5:57:11 AM

It's not just paying attention to the Russian trolls that they are "winning", but I'm sure they know there are people stupid enough to believe them 100%.

Remember, these idiots drive, fuck, and vote. Not always in that order.
DeMarquis (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#264554: Dec 18th 2018 at 6:19:07 AM

Just to reiterate what Septimus posted:

"A reminder that news outlets have something of a vested interest in hyping Russian influence on voters, as it lets them off the hook for their terrible editorial decisions to treat email server management practices as an existential threat to the Republic."

But her emails! (Just in case the reference wasnt clear to everyone)

I'm done trying to sound smart. "Clear" is the new smart.
wisewillow She/her Since: May, 2011
She/her
#264555: Dec 18th 2018 at 6:30:32 AM

The media is so goddamn culpable. Trump is a bona fide corrupt slum lord and likely money launderer with a horrific track record of racism and sexism and screwing people over financially.

And what’d we get? EMAILS.

Rationalinsanity from Halifax, Canada Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: It's complicated
#264556: Dec 18th 2018 at 6:36:32 AM

Gotta have that competitive, nail bitter election for the ratings.

Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
Ingonyama Since: Jan, 2001
#264557: Dec 18th 2018 at 6:39:02 AM

On the other hand, the articles and reports are making it very clear how complex, intense, pervasive, and extensive the Russian disinformation campaign was and still is. While we can't know for sure how much this affected voting in 2016, as usual there is nothing to say that both this and the way the media covered the Cheeto vs. Hillary didn't have an effect.

Edited by Ingonyama on Dec 18th 2018 at 6:39:37 AM

Swanpride Since: Jun, 2013
#264558: Dec 18th 2018 at 6:41:55 AM

There is enough blame going around for everyone.

DeMarquis (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#264559: Dec 18th 2018 at 6:44:45 AM

As usual, its an interaction effect. Fortunately, people are becoming wiser users of social media platforms, I think.

I'm done trying to sound smart. "Clear" is the new smart.
TechPriest90 Servant of the Omnissiah from Collegia Titanica, Mars, Sol System Since: Sep, 2015 Relationship Status: Above such petty unnecessities
Servant of the Omnissiah
#264560: Dec 18th 2018 at 7:16:33 AM

I also think it's about time people stop calling Facebook and Twitter by the term of Tech Companies.

They're media platforms. Like Radio and TV. And they should be held to the same standards.

Or put simply, if CNN, Fox and MSNBC can't get away unscathed with posting blatantly false nonsense on their platforms, neither should Facebook and Twitter.

I hold the secrets of the machine.
sgamer82 Since: Jan, 2001
#264561: Dec 18th 2018 at 8:18:16 AM

Something interesting:

Roger Stone admitted to spreading lies via Info Wars and will be required to make a public apology in order to avoid paying the fines in the now-settled defamation lawsuit against him. Stone will be forced to run apology ads in national newspapers and post on social media apologizing for defaming a Chinese businessman who is a vocal critic of Beijing. The settlement also requires Stone to publish a retraction of all the lies he posted on social media. If Stone refuses to apologize, he will be forced to pay $100 million in damages to Guo Wengui. In a text message, Stone said his behavior was "irresponsible" and said that "I am solely responsible for fulfilling the terms of the settlement." (Wall Street Journal)

https://www.wsj.com/articles/roger-stone-admits-spreading-lies-on-infowars-11545093097

Friendperson Since: May, 2018
#264562: Dec 18th 2018 at 8:21:20 AM

[up][up] But they're not the ones posting the content. I don't see how they're liable for the thoughts and views of their users, which is, well, everyone. You don't have to pay to use social media.

Edited by Friendperson on Dec 18th 2018 at 8:25:32 AM

sgamer82 Since: Jan, 2001
#264563: Dec 18th 2018 at 8:31:17 AM

More pragmatically, how would you enforce such rules on a social media site where such misinformation can come from anywhere, anytime, without the platform itself not necessarily realizing it right away.

Kaiseror Since: Jul, 2016
#264564: Dec 18th 2018 at 8:31:32 AM

White House says it will try to avoid shutdown while still trying to fund border wall.

...How bout just not funding the damn wall and telling the cheese faced manbaby to fuck off!?

RedSavant Since: Jan, 2001
#264565: Dec 18th 2018 at 8:32:11 AM

If you provide a service and a platform, you're responsible for what people use it to say - especially when that platform is Facebook, which has proven itself quite capable of reading, categorizing, and blocking content in the past, just not for bots, disinformation, or hate speech for some reason. And if it doesn't have that technology, then the company should be mandated to develop it instead of coming up with a new set of emoji or whatever. Being a global entity and leader in the field of human communication should come with responsibilities.

It's been fun.
Friendperson Since: May, 2018
#264566: Dec 18th 2018 at 8:38:26 AM

[up] In my opinion, if you provide a platform for anyone to use, It isn't your responsibility to tell people what they can and can't say on it. Kind of defeats the purpose of having a public platform. Let people have autonomy and choose what they want to see and report it if they think it doesn't belong. I mean, look at what happened to tumblr with NSFW content and their flagging system. But fair enough.

Edited by Friendperson on Dec 18th 2018 at 8:39:45 AM

DingoWalley1 Asgore Adopts Noelle Since: Feb, 2014 Relationship Status: Can't buy me love
Asgore Adopts Noelle
#264567: Dec 18th 2018 at 8:42:04 AM

BREAKING: The Trump Foundation, Trump's 'Charity', has agreed to shutdown under Court Supervision as a part of a legal settlement with the Attorney General of New York. The Attorney General also gets the final say on where their remaining financials go, to make sure everyone is fully reimbursed. The Agreement also doesn't stop the lawsuit currently against the 'Charity'.

It's good that this fraudulent charity has been stopped, and this is definitely not a good thing for Trump either.

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#264569: Dec 18th 2018 at 8:46:54 AM

[up][up][up]Except Facebook can and has curated its content and banned users in the past. It just has been stunningly lax about doing so to bots, troll farms, and hate speech for some reason.

[up]Wonder when Trump will start whining about the Clinton Foundation again.

Edited by M84 on Dec 19th 2018 at 12:48:52 AM

Disgusted, but not surprised
Swanpride Since: Jun, 2013
#264570: Dec 18th 2018 at 9:00:10 AM

Internet Platforms DO have a responsibility. But one has to consider what is realistically doable for them and what isn't. Meaning you need regulations specifically for them.

Protagonist506 from Oregon Since: Dec, 2013 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
#264571: Dec 18th 2018 at 9:49:00 AM

The difference between Facebook and say, CNN, is that things are said by CNN and merely said on Facebook. Facebook is an online hang-out, the modern equivalent of that malt shop the cool kids hung out at in the 50's.

I would say it has some responsibility to, at the very least, try to ban illegal speech. And it is worth noting that toxicity is bad for business and they do have a right to do do even more than that.

As for the practicality of doing so, however: it depends on how much curtailing we're talking about here. It's outright impossible to help the problem beyond a certain point, perhaps even with hypothetical future technology.

On the other hand, we don't need a perfect solution either. Just enough to reduce the problem. Having said that, with bots there is an issue of a technological arms race. As AI becomes more advanced, we'd get better "bot-hunters" but also better bots.

Leviticus 19:34
Imca (Veteran)
#264572: Dec 18th 2018 at 10:33:53 AM

In addition....

Or put simply, if CNN, Fox and MSNBC can't get away unscathed with posting blatantly false nonsense on their platforms, neither should Facebook and Twitter.

They can, sadly the first ammendment means that if you want to make up lies on air and calling it news you total can, it's one of the most anyone parts about it.

megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#264573: Dec 18th 2018 at 10:51:04 AM

This is satisfying:

The Donald J. Trump Foundation will close and give away all its remaining funds amid a lawsuit accusing the charity and the Trump family of using it illegally for self-dealing and political gain, the New York attorney general’s office announced Tuesday.

The attorney general, Barbara Underwood, accused the foundation of “a shocking pattern of illegality” that was “willful and repeated” and included unlawfully coordinating with Mr. Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.

“This amounted to the Trump Foundation functioning as little more than a checkbook to serve Mr. Trump’s business and political interests,” Ms. Underwood said.

The closure of the foundation is a milestone in the investigation. But the broader lawsuit, which also seeks millions in restitution and penalties and a bar on President Trump and his three oldest children from serving on the boards of other New York charities, is proceeding.

Ms. Underwood and a lawyer for the foundation signed the stipulation agreeing to the dissolution. The foundation’s remaining assets are to be redistributed under judicial supervision.

“This is an important victory for the rule of law, making clear that there is one set of rules for everyone,” Ms. Underwood said. “We’ll continue to move our suit forward to ensure that the Trump Foundation and its directors are held to account for their clear and repeated violations of state and federal law.”

I mean, it’s not a huge victory or anything, but it definitely makes a statement.

Edited by megaeliz on Dec 18th 2018 at 1:53:48 PM

MrAHR Ahr river from ಠ_ಠ Since: Oct, 2010 Relationship Status: A cockroach, nothing can kill it.
Ahr river
#264574: Dec 18th 2018 at 10:51:14 AM

That isn't actually true. There are still standards in journalism and media that have regulations on lying. It's just that it really only works when the system wants to find people culpable.

Also, I am in total agreement that social media sites need to hold companies culpable for bad things that go down on their sites. I also think that they should be able to be sued for loss of revenue for incorrectly flagging businesses.

I'd also want them to be subjected to labor conditions. Not just who works for their company, but who makes a living off of their product, and what work conditions they have created through their algorithm.

Read my stories!
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#264575: Dec 18th 2018 at 11:04:37 AM

Martha McSally appointed to fill out McCain's seat in Arizona starting from next year. Before anyone thinks this is a stitch-up to steal Sinema's seat, it's the other seat.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman

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