The Intentions of the Adversary: Disinformation and Election Security

"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 Roberts, the COO of Emergent Risk International, to delve into the potential perfect storm of risks facing the election infrastructure. The challenges of combating disinformation, the impact of AI on spreading false narratives, and the need for critical thinking and media literacy education is needed to empower individuals to discern fact from fiction. Brandus underscores the importance of proactive measures, scenario-based planning, and a whole-government approach to safeguard against the influence of disinformation in the upcoming election. [00:02:36] A potential perfect storm. [00:05:06] Election system vulnerabilities. [00:08:56] Adversaries exploiting division in elections. [00:14:09] Impact of artificial intelligence. [00:17:17] Deepfakes and election influence. [00:19:35] Election falsehoods in narrow-margin states. [00:25:54] Education on critical thinking. [00:31:02] Teaching media literacy to youth. Got questions, comments or ideas or an example of disinformation you'd like us to check out? Send them to [e-mail]. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Special thanks to our guests Marek Posard and Brady Roberts, our sound designer and editor Noah Foutz, audio engineer Nathan Corson, and executive producers Michael DeAloia and Gerardo Orlando. Thanks so much for listening.