| Although most media seems trustworthy at first, there are ongoing reports of Russian disinformation being circulated from American media sources. The study "Propaganda or Not" analyzed four websites, and found that they worked closely with Russian state media. Another study by scholar Douglas Wilbur backs these claims, finding a number of U. S. media outlets repeating Russian state media Sputnik's arguements. Wilbur explains that these sites assume Russia to be "an honest broker" which causes them to report Russian influenced information. Wilbur also shows the influence that smaller Russian influenced media sites can have in a news story, stating that smaller sites can "influence the agenda of traditional mainstream news outlets." |
| Futhermore, Russian social media accounts and bots propagate false information through the internet, disguising it as accurate news. These bots look and act like real everday Americans, meant to decieve you and make you believe their disinformation. The Internet Research Agency, based in St. Petersburg and funded by the Russian state, has been connected to multiple campaigns internationally to spread disinformation. The IRA has accomplished this through bots and fake accounts which distribute disinformation posts and ads on social media. These campaigns look to increase polarization within the population by exploiting our differences. Their goal is not to convince anyone of anything specifically, but instead divide the population and sow distrust. |
| In order to protect yourself against Russian disinformation, there a few simple steps you can take. Firstly, you can check if the story is verifiable by multiple different sources. You can also check if the article provokes an emotional response. If the goal of the news story is to get you to feel emotional, it isn't likely reporting the facts, rather giving you their spin on the story. Additionally, you can check the agenda of the source you are getting your information from. If the media outlet has an underlying agenda, it could be as a result of Russian funding or reporting. By checking your sources and ensuring you have accurate facts, you can protect yourself from the Russian disinformation. |