Disinformation
How do you know what's real on social media or TV? That's the premise behind "Disinformation" - with award-winning Evergreen host Paul Brandus. Get ready for amazing stories - war, espionage, corruption, elections, and assorted trickery showing how false information is turning our world inside out - and what we can do about it. Remember: Don't believe everything you read! A co-production of Evergreen and Emergent Risk International.
Episodes
June 20, 2024 • 43 mins
"These things are as endemic to Russia as vodka, the ballet, and long winters."
In this episode, host Paul Brandus discusses the pervasive issue of disinformation, particularly focusing on Russian efforts and the impact on global security. He interviews Nina Jankowicz, founder of the American Sunlight Project, who emphasizes the importance of building societal resilience and promoting information literacy to combat false narratives...
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June 4, 2024 • 37 mins
"Journalism is the only profession that is protected by the First Amendment... but private equity and hedge funds have been involved with disastrous consequences."
In this episode, host Paul Brandus delves into the issue of the decline of local print journalism and news deserts, focusing on the impact of hedge funds and private equity firms acquiring newspapers. Guest Margot Susca, an assistant professor of journalism, sheds light...
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May 21, 2024 • 34 mins
"You have a direct pipeline, particularly with social media and with individuals. Essentially, all you're doing is figuring out who you want to target"
In this podcast episode, host Paul Brandus discusses the growing concerns surrounding the upcoming presidential election, focusing on the threats posed by disinformation, false narratives, and foreign interference. He interviews Marek Posard, a military sociologist, and Brady Rober...
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May 7, 2024 • 22 mins
"Open-source intelligence is a critical way of helping not just governments, but the private sector form judgments about critical issues."
This episode is the second in a series covering Open Source Intelligence (OSINT). Here, we focus on Bellingcat's investigative work into the 2014 shooting down of a passenger jet in Eastern Ukraine, the interest of the U.S. Department of Defense in OSINT, and the nuances of using investigations...
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April 23, 2024 • 39 mins
"The silence in these fields is that of a tomb, like sorrow and loss have isolated it from the war around it."
In this episode, host Paul Brandus delves into the world of open source intelligence (OSINT), He discusses its importance in verifying information, especially in the digital era. The episode explores various tools within OSINT, such as social media, geospatial intelligence, and blockchain analytics. Additionally, he discus...
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April 9, 2024 • 24 mins
"The United States government works at a great disadvantage because we tell the truth."
In this episode, we refocus our sights on Russia's information warfare efforts in Africa, particularly spreading false claims about U.S. biological testing surrounding COVID-19. The Africa Initiative, backed by Russian intelligence, is highlighted as the source of these conspiracy theories. Despite limited traction, the disinformation campaign p...
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March 26, 2024 • 27 mins
"It's a kind of information that we find particularly appealing that people looking to fool us will use, but it can lead to innocent spreading"
Host Paul Brandus explores the concept of truth bias and its implications in today's society with guests Daniel Simons and Christopher Chabris, authors of the book "Nobody's Fool, Why We Get Taken In and What We Can Do About It." They discuss how our innate trust in familiar sources can mak...
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March 12, 2024 • 26 mins
"This information is polluting the entire ecosystem under which we operate."
In this episode of "Disinformation," Paul Brandus delves into the pressing issue of information pollution in the 21st century. With the rise of social media and artificial intelligence, discerning between truth, misinformation, and deliberate falsehoods has become increasingly challenging. We also discuss how information pollution exacerbates existing syst...
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January 11, 2024 • 30 mins
"The problem in America isn't so much what people don't know, the problem is what people think they know that just ain't so"
In this episode of Disinformation, Paul Brandus discusses the prevalence of false campaign narratives and disinformation in elections around the world. He highlights the upcoming presidential election in the United States and the numerous elections taking place in other countries, including Taiwan. We delve i...
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December 28, 2023 • 23 mins
"The most common threat that the dark web poses for a disinformation point of view, however, is ...the fact that many marketplaces on the dark web host tools which can be used for disinformation. Manufacturing it, spreading it, monitoring it, so on and so forth."
On this episode, host Paul Brandus explores the hidden parts of the Internet known as the deep web and the dark web. The deep web refers to the unindexed parts of the Inte...
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December 12, 2023 • 18 mins
"This is an ongoing struggle, and perhaps the struggle of our time."
In this episode of Disinformation, Paul Brandus discusses the recent election in the Netherlands and the rise of the islamophobic and anti-immigration Geert Wilders and his Freedom Party. The Russians, known for their active measures, have been supporting Wilders, further highlighting their efforts to influence opinion in the West. Thea Gioe, a former CIA officer,...
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November 28, 2023 • 30 mins
As we celebrate our holiday break here on Disinformation, we wanted to re-share our episode from season 1 titled "A House Divided - Political Division & Disinformation's Role" - on this episode, we discuss the growing political divide in the U.S. and how disinformation fuels the partisan fire.
Americans see each other in increasingly tribalistic terms — one side or the other seems, at times, a tinderbox for violence. Adversaries li...
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November 14, 2023 • 19 mins
"I can filter out four or five star quality hotels and restaurants today. We can't do that with our personal information."
In this episode of the award-winning podcast series "Disinformation," host Paul Brandus discusses the need for safety standards in the information we consume. While there are regulations in place for the safety of our food, water, and air, there are none for the content we see just as often. Meredith Wilson, CE...
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November 2, 2023 • 23 mins
"The federal government is stepping up its efforts to counter foreign disinformation."
In this episode, we explore the lesser-known agencies within the United States Intelligence Community. With the rise of false information and disinformation as a major threat, the federal government is increasing its efforts to counter foreign disinformation. The Director of National Intelligence discusses the establishment of a farm line influen...
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October 17, 2023 • 19 mins
"... truth is the first casualty of war."
In all times, but especially in wartime, we are challenged to separate fact from fiction. On this special episode of Disinformation, we break from our miniseries on combating disinformation to discuss the recent surprise attack on Israel by Hamas, the evolving nature of information dissemination, and the importance of verifying sources in a fast-moving conflict. We also interview Rafi Mende...
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October 3, 2023 • 18 mins
"Living in a post-fact world is a scary place to be, as we learned during the pandemic, right? People don't believe anything."
In part 1 of this 3 part series on combating disinformation, we delve into the world of media literacy, critical thinking, and the battle against disinformation in Europe. Join host Paul Brandus as he explores the challenges faced by countries like Slovakia and Bulgaria, where a lack of media literacy leave...
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September 19, 2023 • 21 mins
"... this is a Doom Loop: authorities screw up, people die, trust is eroded."
In this podcast episode, host Paul Brandus discusses the dangerous spread of false narratives during natural disasters and crises. He highlights the devastating impact of Hurricane Adelia on Cedar Key, Florida, and the disinformation that followed, causing confusion and undermining trust in authorities. He also discusses the phenomenon of disinformation d...
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September 5, 2023 • 20 mins
"What kind of company, a publicly traded company, doesn't share its most basic financial information with investors?
In this episode of Disinformation, host Paul Brandus delves into the infamous case of Enron, a Houston-based energy company that was once a Wall Street darling. Enron manipulated its financial information, misrepresenting its earnings and altering its balance sheet to deceive investors. The host also discusses other...
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August 22, 2023 • 18 mins
"It creates this sort of feedback loop of Disinformation that's happening all the time there."
On this episode of Disinformation, hosts Paul Brandus and Meredith Wilson delve into the concerning rise of disinformation in India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The episode highlights the protests outside the White House during Modi's visit, where opponents accused him of undermining democracy and suppressing fre...
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August 8, 2023 • 18 mins
"What is the line where your ability to say what you want stops and your ability to make up things that harm people starts?"
In Elon Musk's recent interview with the BBC, he discussed free speech and his vision for the platform to serve as a "digital town square." However, the challenge arises when determining what constitutes misinformation in a divided society where basic facts are contested. The episode explores the concept of ...
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