Podcast appearances and mentions of ben nimmo

Stanford's Evelyn Douek and Alex Stamos weigh in on the latest online trust and safety news and developments:Pornhub and other pornography websites owned by MindGeek are blocking access for users in Utah with a video message protesting an age verification law that went into effect this past week. - Brian Fung/ CNN, Jonathan Edwards/ The Washington Post, Samantha Cole/ Vice NewsIn completely unrelated news, VPN downloads spiked dramatically in Utah. - Cristiano Lima/ The Washington PostThe adult entertainment industry followed up by filing a lawsuit against the state challenging the law on First Amendment grounds. - Ben Winslow/ Fox 13 News, Free Speech CoalitionTwitter CornerGraphic videos from a mass shooting at a mall in Allen, Texas went viral on Twitter without a warning screen or similar labeling. The glaring issue suggests Musk's staffing cuts have left the platform ill-equipped to deal with difficult, real-time content moderation problems that arise in these kinds of crises. - Benjamin Mullin/ The New York Times, Aimee Picchi/ CBS NewsMeanwhile, Musk is focusing on the real issues, like whether NPR is going to start tweeting again. - Bobby Allyn/ NPRBut at least our benevolent leader will allow some verified public announcement and emergency services free API access. - Sareen Habeshian/ Axios, Jon Fingas/ Engadget, Ivan Mehta/ TechCrunch, @TwitterDevMeta released its quarterly adversarial threat report, highlighting the takedown of a pro-China influence campaign with a network of accounts posing as news organizations and a think tank. - Donie O'Sullivan, Sean Lyngaas/ CNN, Ben Nimmo, Nathaniel Gleicher/ MetaLegal CornerThe Ninth Circuit threw out a jawboning case brought by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and others against Elizabeth Warren for a letter she sent Amazon criticizing the online marketplace for recommending their vaccine denial book. - Bob Egelko/ San Francisco Chronicle, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (.pdf)There is a big show-down going on in Brazil over a “fake news” bill that the government is trying to ram through, suggesting a worrying level of appetite on both sides of the aisle in Brazil to crack down on internet freedom. - Anthony Boadle/ ReutersDecentralized Twitter alternative Bluesky is not allowing heads of state at the moment… that's one way to deal with a content moderation challenge! - Kylie Robison/ FortuneJoin the conversation and connect with Evelyn and Alex on Twitter at @evelyndouek and @alexstamos.Moderated Content is produced in partnership by Stanford Law School and the Cyber Policy Center. Special thanks to John Perrino for research and editorial assistance.Like what you heard? Don't forget to subscribe and share the podcast with friends!

Stanford's Evelyn Douek and Alex Stamos weigh in on the latest online trust and safety news and developments:Meta released its latest quarterly adversarial threat report, outlining influence operations it took down that were linked to Russia, Serbia, Cuba, and Bolivia. - Ben Nimmo, Nathaniel Gleicher/ Meta, Renée DiResta/ @noUpside, Alex Stamos/ @alexstamosMore: Alex and Evelyn are among those warning that the Q4 2022 report might mark the last time Meta and Twitter collaborated on addressing influence operations and resisting government data requests. Twitter failed to release its own quarterly report on government requests for data and observed influence operations. - Adam Rawnsley/ Rolling StoneTikTok announced a research API, opening an application to academics at nonprofit universities. The application and API details have received criticism for restrictions that would fail to meet academic research standards or return limited data with potentially misleading findings. - Aisha Malik/ TechCrunch, Mia Sato/ The Verge, Joe Bak-Coleman/ Tech Policy Press, Emma Lurie, Dan Bateyko, Frances Schroeder/ Stanford Internet ObservatoryTwitter CornerTwitter delayed changes to API access again (and again), with plans now pushed to some point in “the next few weeks.” But don't worry, the delays and lack of information about the new deadline or pricing are just due to “an immense amount of enthusiasm for the upcoming changes with Twitter API.” - Ivan Mehta/ TechCrunch,  Lauren Leffer/ Gizmodo, Heidi Ledford/ Nature, Chris Stokel-Walker/ WiredElon Musk ordered changes to prioritize his tweets in all user timelines following the Super Bowl when the Twitter CEO's (since deleted) tweet had lower engagement than President Joe Biden's. - Casey Newton/ Platformer, Faiz Siddiqui, Jeremy Merrill/ The Washington PostFirst it was the Taliban. Now it's the Russians buying blue check marks which boost content and give a veneer of authority on Twitter. We're shocked! - Joseph Menn/ The Washington Post  Twitter will soon only provide SMS-based login authentication, or 2FA, for paid subscribers. While 2FA is the weakest form of multifactor authentication, it is also the most commonly used and significantly more secure than only using a password. - @ZoeSchiffer, Sean Hollister/ The Verge, Lily Hay Newman/ WiredMeta is introducing verification with a blue check mark displayed and higher visibility for posts. Déjà vu? - Emma Roth/ The VergeFacebook and Instagram are the first platforms to participate in the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's “Take It Down” tool for people to submit non-consensual intimate photos or videos recorded of them when they were underage to be hashed and removed by participating platforms. - Antigone Davis/ Meta, Ginger Adams Otis/ The Wall Street Journal, Alexandra Levine/ ForbesThe European Commission and the EU's diplomatic service banned TikTok on staff devices and personal devices with work-related apps, citing security concerns. - Emily Rauhala, Beatriz Ríos/ The Washington Post, Monika Pronczuk/ The New York Times, Stuart Lau, Laurens Cerulus/ PoliticoCompanies including TikTok, Twitter, Meta, Pinterest, and Snapchat have confirmed they are VLOPs under the DSA and will need to comply with the strictest rules later this year. - Clothilde Goujard/ PoliticoSusan Wojcicki announced she's stepping down as YouTube CEO in a massive blow to Evelyn's “Wojcicki to the Hill” campaign. - Peter Kafka/ VoxA New York court blocked a state law requiring social media platforms to post policies on “hateful conduct.” - Eugene Volokh/ ReasonModerated Content Supreme Court correspondent (and director of Stanford's Program of Platform Regulation) Daphne Keller was in the courtroom for oral arguments in the Gonzalez and Taamneh cases. If you haven't already, tune in for those episodes:Tech Law SCOTUS Superbowl First Half: GonzalezTech Law SCOTUS Superbowl Second Half: TaamnehJoin the conversation and connect with Evelyn and Alex on Twitter at @evelyndouek and @alexstamos.Moderated Content is produced in partnership by Stanford Law School and the Cyber Policy Center. Special thanks to John Perrino for research and editorial assistance.Like what you heard? Don't forget to subscribe and share the podcast with friends!

This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily Newsbrief for Tuesday, February 14th, 2022… happy valentines day everyone! I hope you and your significant other enjoy today. Before we get into the news… Accountable2You Jesus is Lord. In public and in private, every area of life must be subject to his Lordship—and our use of technology is no exception. What captures our attention on the screen either glorifies or dishonors our Lord. That’s why Accountable2You is committed to promoting biblical accountability in our families and churches. Their monitoring and reporting software makes transparency easy on all of your devices, so you can say with the Psalmist, “I will not set anything worthless before my eyes.” Guard against temptation with Accountable2You, and live for God’s glory! Learn more and try it for free at Accountable2You.com/FLF https://thepostmillennial.com/breaking-china-claims-us-sent-more-than-10-spy-balloons-into-countrys-airspace?utm_campaign=64487 China claims US sent more than 10 spy balloons into country's airspace On Monday, a Chinese official stated that more than 10 high-altitude balloons from the US have flown into China’s airspace over the last year without the country’s permission. The US has denied these allegations. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said in a Monday briefing that "It is also common for US balloons to illegally enter the airspace of other countries. Since last year, US high-altitude balloons have illegally flown over China’s airspace more than 10 times without the approval of Chinese authorities." https://rumble.com/v29bau8-rep.-mike-waltz-i-hope-this-wakes-the-country-up-to-the-cold-war-that-were-.html - Play Video According to the Associated Press, Wang did not give additional details about the alleged US balloons, how China has dealt with these balloons, or whether the balloons had military or government links. Wang said the US should "first reflect on itself and change course, rather than smear and instigate a confrontation." The allegation came after the US shot down a Chinese spy balloon that traveled across North America, targeting it off the coast of South Carolina. Additional unidentified flying objects later identified as balloons have been shot down since then. China has claimed that the balloon shot down off the coast of South Carolina was an unnamed airship created for meteorological research, and that this balloon was blown off course. China has accused the US of overreacting by shooting down the balloon, and has threatened to take action in response. US National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said on Monday that claims the US has operated surveillance balloons over China is false. https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/microsoft-newsmax-conservative-media/2023/02/13/id/1108447/ Microsoft Removes 'Negative Flags' for Conservative Sites Microsoft removed its "negative flags" for conservative media outlets on a "secret blacklist," including Newsmax, that were blocked from getting key advertising dollars, the Washington Examiner reported. As part of its series on "disinformation" tracking groups, the Examiner reported internal data showed Microsoft was doing a review, and suspending its subscription to a tracking group devoted to defunding what it sees as "disfavored speech." Microsoft-owned advertising company Xandr previously abided by a "secret blacklist" of conservative news put together by the Global Disinformation Index, a British organization with two affiliated U.S. nonprofits, the Examiner reported. Microsoft now appears to be taking steps to distance itself from GDI, and has deleted flags such as "false/misleading" and "reprehensible/offensive" for right-leaning websites, the Examiner reported, citing the internal data it obtained. "I just checked in Xandr's platform again and can confirm that all rejection flags have been removed from domains," an unnamed executive in the ad industry told the Examiner. Xandr had labeled 39 conservative domains as "false/misleading." Townhall, whose publisher is Salem Media Group, was flagged as "reprehensible/offensive," the Examiner reported. The Examiner also noted it was among those flagged as "false/misleading," along with Newsmax, the Daily Wire, RealClearPolitics, Drudge Report, Breitbart, the Blaze, the Washington Times, Judicial Watch, and the Media Research Center affiliate MRC.TV. An internal Xandr dataset showed all those websites no longer have a designation, though it's unclear if they are getting ads from certain brands without an "approved" classification. "We try to take a principled approach to accuracy and fighting foreign propaganda," a Microsoft spokesperson told the Examiner. "We're working quickly to fix the issue, and Xandr has stopped using GDI's services while we are doing a larger review." According to the Examiner, Xandr informed publishers in September 2022 it would begin to adopt GDI's "dynamic exclusion list," which the organization feeds to ad companies. Through a list that may include at least 2,000 websites, GDI allegedly tried to pressure companies to shut down certain sites. The Examiner also reported the GDI has claimed the 10 "riskiest" outlets are Newsmax, the American Spectator, the Federalist, the American Conservative, One America News Network, the Blaze, the Daily Wire, RealClearPolitics, Reason, and the New York Post. GDI compiles the list with oversight from its own "advisory panel," which includes Ben Nimmo, global lead for threat intelligence at Facebook parent company Meta, and left-leaning journalist Anne Applebaum, the Examiner reported, who once dismissed Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings as uninteresting. GDI has claimed the 10 "least risky" websites are NPR, ProPublica, the Associated Press, Insider, the New York Times, USA Today, the Washington Post, Buzzfeed News, HuffPost, and the Wall Street Journal. https://variety.com/2023/biz/news/disney-reedy-creek-ron-desantis-no-lawsuit-1235520205/ Disney Will Not Fight DeSantis Takeover of Special District in Orlando Disney will not fight a bill that gives Gov. Ron DeSantis broad powers over its Orlando theme parks, after the bill passed both houses of the Florida Legislature this week. The bill establishes a new district to assume the powers held by the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which Disney has controlled since it was created in 1967. The new entity, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, will be run by a five-member board appointed by DeSantis and confirmed by the state Senate. In a statement, Disney said it is “ready to work within this new framework,” indicating that it will not try to challenge the law in court. The Legislature moved to dissolve the Reedy Creek district last April, after Disney came out against the Parental Rights in Education law, known to its critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Some observers had suggested that Disney could file a First Amendment lawsuit or seek to challenge the takeover on various other grounds. But Jeff Vahle, the president of Walt Disney World Resort, said in the statement released on Friday that the company will accommodate itself to the new reality. “For more than 50 years, the Reedy Creek Improvement District has operated at the highest standards, and we appreciate all that the District has done to help our destination grow and become one of the largest economic contributors and employers in the state,” Vahle said. “We are focused on the future and are ready to work within this new framework and we will continue to innovate, inspire and bring joy to the millions of guests who come to Florida to visit Walt Disney World each year.” The legislation was introduced on Monday. It passed the state House of Representatives on Thursday on a vote of 82-31, with 81 Republicans and one Democrat voting “yes.” All 31 “no” votes came from Democrats. The state Senate approved the bill on Friday on a party-line vote, with 26 Republicans in favor and nine Democrats opposed. It now goes to DeSantis for his signature. The Reedy Creek Improvement District has broad authority over zoning, infrastructure, fire response and public utilities over a nearly 40-square-mile area in Osceola and Orange counties. The entity levies taxes on Disney and issues tax-exempt bonds for infrastructure projects. As by far the largest landowner within the district, Disney has had the power to elect the five members of the Board of Supervisors. In establishing the new district, the Legislature left almost all of its powers intact. The legislation does remove the power to build a nuclear power plant and an airport, but those powers had never been used. The practical effect of the change could end up being negligible and park employees and visitors are unlikely to notice any difference. But DeSantis and future governors will have broad power to make life difficult for Disney if they choose to exercise it. https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/elections/seattle-public-schools-consider-closures-student-enrollment-plunges-post Seattle Public Schools consider closures as student enrollment plunges post-pandemic Seattle Public Schools may have to close some of its schools over the next few years as the district battles budget shortages and plummeting enrollment after the COVID-19 pandemic. The district does not plan on closing any of its 106 schools next year, and the earliest closures may occur in the 2024-2025 school year, The Seattle Times reported last week. Consolidating some schools for the 2024-2025 year could save $28 million as the district projects a $92 million budget shortfall that year. Student enrollment has dropped to roughly 50,000 students from nearly 54,000 in the 2019-2020 school year. In a best-case scenario, school administrators expect 49,000 students by 2032, and in a worst-case scenario, enrollment may be as low as 43,000. The declining enrollment comes after homeschooling rates nearly doubled in Washington at the height of the COVID pandemic and are still at elevated levels from the 2019-2020 school year. Jen Garrison Stuber of the Washington Homeschool Organization told Fox News that homeschool enrollment is down, however, in Seattle from pre-pandemic numbers. "I really think that what Seattle's seeing, where those students have gone are either to private schools or they've left the school district and have moved elsewhere," she said. Speaking of homeschooling… Classical Conversations supports homeschooling parents by cultivating the love of learning through a Christian worldview in fellowship with other families. They provide a classical Christ-centered curriculum, local like-minded communities across the United States and in several countries, and they train parents who are striving to be great classical educators in the home. For more information and to get connected, please visit their website at ClassicalConversations.com. Again that’s ClassicalConversations.com. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/california-politician-suggests-fix-states-brazen-prostitution-legalize-it California politician suggests fix to state's brazen prostitution: Legalize it A San Francisco County leader voiced support to legalize prostitution in the city as brazen soliciting spirals across the state after a new law took effect this year. "What’s happening right now on Capp Street is it’s become more brazen, and bigger than we’ve ever seen it before," county Supervisor Hillary Ronen told The Los Angeles Times last week. "Instead of repeating the same cycle that we’ve repeated for decades, it’s time to try something new." Ronen called the situation "out of control" in comments to the San Francisco Chronicle, and pushed for San Francisco to install barriers on Capp Street in the heart of San Francisco’s Mission District, after it became lined with prostitutes and pimps. This week, she is expected to announce a resolution that will urge state lawmakers to legalize prostitution. The surge in prostitution and apparent human trafficking in California comes after a change in law took effect last month that repealed a ban on loitering with the intent to engage in prostitution. The bill's sponsor, Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener, argued the change would protect transgender women whom he said are disproportionately targeted by police. Police and Republicans in the state have since sounded off that the new law sparked prostitution to explode in certain areas of the state, such as Los Angeles, San Francisco and Oakland. Police said with the emboldened prostitution rings come robberies, shootings, aggravated assaults and other crimes. Many of the pimps are gang-affiliated and take no issue with beating women or going after rival pimps who try to poach one of the workers, they said. Some even record the beatdowns because they "think it’s funny," police said. The Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking, which is one of the largest and oldest direct service providers for sex and labor trafficking survivors in the U.S., threw its support behind the bill and told Fox News Digital that it endorsed repealing the former policy "because we know that reducing the criminalization of survivors will help prevent human trafficking." And now finally… it’s time for my favorite topic… sports! In case you missed it, Sunday evening, the superbowl took place, with the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles… The game was an incredible one with highlight play after highlight play, with both teams putting up points: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWkt79xkd00 Play 2:30-2:37 Play 3:47-3:57 Play 4:44-4:55 Play 12:25-12:36 Play 14:24-15:01 Okay… so for those keeping score at home, it’s 35-35 at this point in the game, with just a few minutes left. Then, this happened. Play 15:45-16:52 What an anti-climactic ending… if you’re the official, how on earth do you throw that flag? James Bradbury, the cornerback for the Eagles who had the flag thrown on him, thought it was the correct call, so kudos to him for owning up, but even with that admission, the ball was clearly uncatchable for JuJu Smith-Schuster… Now the Chiefs still would have likely taken the lead with a field goal, but then Jalen Hurts and the Eagles offense would’ve had over a minute to get down the field, and potentially tie, or win the game. Such an anti-climactic ending. This is from a guy who didn’t have a dog in the fight by the way. what are your guys thoughts on my take? You Eagles fans can send your fan mail to garrison@fightlaughfeast.com…

This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily Newsbrief for Tuesday, February 14th, 2022… happy valentines day everyone! I hope you and your significant other enjoy today. Before we get into the news… Accountable2You Jesus is Lord. In public and in private, every area of life must be subject to his Lordship—and our use of technology is no exception. What captures our attention on the screen either glorifies or dishonors our Lord. That’s why Accountable2You is committed to promoting biblical accountability in our families and churches. Their monitoring and reporting software makes transparency easy on all of your devices, so you can say with the Psalmist, “I will not set anything worthless before my eyes.” Guard against temptation with Accountable2You, and live for God’s glory! Learn more and try it for free at Accountable2You.com/FLF https://thepostmillennial.com/breaking-china-claims-us-sent-more-than-10-spy-balloons-into-countrys-airspace?utm_campaign=64487 China claims US sent more than 10 spy balloons into country's airspace On Monday, a Chinese official stated that more than 10 high-altitude balloons from the US have flown into China’s airspace over the last year without the country’s permission. The US has denied these allegations. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said in a Monday briefing that "It is also common for US balloons to illegally enter the airspace of other countries. Since last year, US high-altitude balloons have illegally flown over China’s airspace more than 10 times without the approval of Chinese authorities." https://rumble.com/v29bau8-rep.-mike-waltz-i-hope-this-wakes-the-country-up-to-the-cold-war-that-were-.html - Play Video According to the Associated Press, Wang did not give additional details about the alleged US balloons, how China has dealt with these balloons, or whether the balloons had military or government links. Wang said the US should "first reflect on itself and change course, rather than smear and instigate a confrontation." The allegation came after the US shot down a Chinese spy balloon that traveled across North America, targeting it off the coast of South Carolina. Additional unidentified flying objects later identified as balloons have been shot down since then. China has claimed that the balloon shot down off the coast of South Carolina was an unnamed airship created for meteorological research, and that this balloon was blown off course. China has accused the US of overreacting by shooting down the balloon, and has threatened to take action in response. US National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said on Monday that claims the US has operated surveillance balloons over China is false. https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/microsoft-newsmax-conservative-media/2023/02/13/id/1108447/ Microsoft Removes 'Negative Flags' for Conservative Sites Microsoft removed its "negative flags" for conservative media outlets on a "secret blacklist," including Newsmax, that were blocked from getting key advertising dollars, the Washington Examiner reported. As part of its series on "disinformation" tracking groups, the Examiner reported internal data showed Microsoft was doing a review, and suspending its subscription to a tracking group devoted to defunding what it sees as "disfavored speech." Microsoft-owned advertising company Xandr previously abided by a "secret blacklist" of conservative news put together by the Global Disinformation Index, a British organization with two affiliated U.S. nonprofits, the Examiner reported. Microsoft now appears to be taking steps to distance itself from GDI, and has deleted flags such as "false/misleading" and "reprehensible/offensive" for right-leaning websites, the Examiner reported, citing the internal data it obtained. "I just checked in Xandr's platform again and can confirm that all rejection flags have been removed from domains," an unnamed executive in the ad industry told the Examiner. Xandr had labeled 39 conservative domains as "false/misleading." Townhall, whose publisher is Salem Media Group, was flagged as "reprehensible/offensive," the Examiner reported. The Examiner also noted it was among those flagged as "false/misleading," along with Newsmax, the Daily Wire, RealClearPolitics, Drudge Report, Breitbart, the Blaze, the Washington Times, Judicial Watch, and the Media Research Center affiliate MRC.TV. An internal Xandr dataset showed all those websites no longer have a designation, though it's unclear if they are getting ads from certain brands without an "approved" classification. "We try to take a principled approach to accuracy and fighting foreign propaganda," a Microsoft spokesperson told the Examiner. "We're working quickly to fix the issue, and Xandr has stopped using GDI's services while we are doing a larger review." According to the Examiner, Xandr informed publishers in September 2022 it would begin to adopt GDI's "dynamic exclusion list," which the organization feeds to ad companies. Through a list that may include at least 2,000 websites, GDI allegedly tried to pressure companies to shut down certain sites. The Examiner also reported the GDI has claimed the 10 "riskiest" outlets are Newsmax, the American Spectator, the Federalist, the American Conservative, One America News Network, the Blaze, the Daily Wire, RealClearPolitics, Reason, and the New York Post. GDI compiles the list with oversight from its own "advisory panel," which includes Ben Nimmo, global lead for threat intelligence at Facebook parent company Meta, and left-leaning journalist Anne Applebaum, the Examiner reported, who once dismissed Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings as uninteresting. GDI has claimed the 10 "least risky" websites are NPR, ProPublica, the Associated Press, Insider, the New York Times, USA Today, the Washington Post, Buzzfeed News, HuffPost, and the Wall Street Journal. https://variety.com/2023/biz/news/disney-reedy-creek-ron-desantis-no-lawsuit-1235520205/ Disney Will Not Fight DeSantis Takeover of Special District in Orlando Disney will not fight a bill that gives Gov. Ron DeSantis broad powers over its Orlando theme parks, after the bill passed both houses of the Florida Legislature this week. The bill establishes a new district to assume the powers held by the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which Disney has controlled since it was created in 1967. The new entity, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, will be run by a five-member board appointed by DeSantis and confirmed by the state Senate. In a statement, Disney said it is “ready to work within this new framework,” indicating that it will not try to challenge the law in court. The Legislature moved to dissolve the Reedy Creek district last April, after Disney came out against the Parental Rights in Education law, known to its critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Some observers had suggested that Disney could file a First Amendment lawsuit or seek to challenge the takeover on various other grounds. But Jeff Vahle, the president of Walt Disney World Resort, said in the statement released on Friday that the company will accommodate itself to the new reality. “For more than 50 years, the Reedy Creek Improvement District has operated at the highest standards, and we appreciate all that the District has done to help our destination grow and become one of the largest economic contributors and employers in the state,” Vahle said. “We are focused on the future and are ready to work within this new framework and we will continue to innovate, inspire and bring joy to the millions of guests who come to Florida to visit Walt Disney World each year.” The legislation was introduced on Monday. It passed the state House of Representatives on Thursday on a vote of 82-31, with 81 Republicans and one Democrat voting “yes.” All 31 “no” votes came from Democrats. The state Senate approved the bill on Friday on a party-line vote, with 26 Republicans in favor and nine Democrats opposed. It now goes to DeSantis for his signature. The Reedy Creek Improvement District has broad authority over zoning, infrastructure, fire response and public utilities over a nearly 40-square-mile area in Osceola and Orange counties. The entity levies taxes on Disney and issues tax-exempt bonds for infrastructure projects. As by far the largest landowner within the district, Disney has had the power to elect the five members of the Board of Supervisors. In establishing the new district, the Legislature left almost all of its powers intact. The legislation does remove the power to build a nuclear power plant and an airport, but those powers had never been used. The practical effect of the change could end up being negligible and park employees and visitors are unlikely to notice any difference. But DeSantis and future governors will have broad power to make life difficult for Disney if they choose to exercise it. https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/elections/seattle-public-schools-consider-closures-student-enrollment-plunges-post Seattle Public Schools consider closures as student enrollment plunges post-pandemic Seattle Public Schools may have to close some of its schools over the next few years as the district battles budget shortages and plummeting enrollment after the COVID-19 pandemic. The district does not plan on closing any of its 106 schools next year, and the earliest closures may occur in the 2024-2025 school year, The Seattle Times reported last week. Consolidating some schools for the 2024-2025 year could save $28 million as the district projects a $92 million budget shortfall that year. Student enrollment has dropped to roughly 50,000 students from nearly 54,000 in the 2019-2020 school year. In a best-case scenario, school administrators expect 49,000 students by 2032, and in a worst-case scenario, enrollment may be as low as 43,000. The declining enrollment comes after homeschooling rates nearly doubled in Washington at the height of the COVID pandemic and are still at elevated levels from the 2019-2020 school year. Jen Garrison Stuber of the Washington Homeschool Organization told Fox News that homeschool enrollment is down, however, in Seattle from pre-pandemic numbers. "I really think that what Seattle's seeing, where those students have gone are either to private schools or they've left the school district and have moved elsewhere," she said. Speaking of homeschooling… Classical Conversations supports homeschooling parents by cultivating the love of learning through a Christian worldview in fellowship with other families. They provide a classical Christ-centered curriculum, local like-minded communities across the United States and in several countries, and they train parents who are striving to be great classical educators in the home. For more information and to get connected, please visit their website at ClassicalConversations.com. Again that’s ClassicalConversations.com. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/california-politician-suggests-fix-states-brazen-prostitution-legalize-it California politician suggests fix to state's brazen prostitution: Legalize it A San Francisco County leader voiced support to legalize prostitution in the city as brazen soliciting spirals across the state after a new law took effect this year. "What’s happening right now on Capp Street is it’s become more brazen, and bigger than we’ve ever seen it before," county Supervisor Hillary Ronen told The Los Angeles Times last week. "Instead of repeating the same cycle that we’ve repeated for decades, it’s time to try something new." Ronen called the situation "out of control" in comments to the San Francisco Chronicle, and pushed for San Francisco to install barriers on Capp Street in the heart of San Francisco’s Mission District, after it became lined with prostitutes and pimps. This week, she is expected to announce a resolution that will urge state lawmakers to legalize prostitution. The surge in prostitution and apparent human trafficking in California comes after a change in law took effect last month that repealed a ban on loitering with the intent to engage in prostitution. The bill's sponsor, Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener, argued the change would protect transgender women whom he said are disproportionately targeted by police. Police and Republicans in the state have since sounded off that the new law sparked prostitution to explode in certain areas of the state, such as Los Angeles, San Francisco and Oakland. Police said with the emboldened prostitution rings come robberies, shootings, aggravated assaults and other crimes. Many of the pimps are gang-affiliated and take no issue with beating women or going after rival pimps who try to poach one of the workers, they said. Some even record the beatdowns because they "think it’s funny," police said. The Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking, which is one of the largest and oldest direct service providers for sex and labor trafficking survivors in the U.S., threw its support behind the bill and told Fox News Digital that it endorsed repealing the former policy "because we know that reducing the criminalization of survivors will help prevent human trafficking." And now finally… it’s time for my favorite topic… sports! In case you missed it, Sunday evening, the superbowl took place, with the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles… The game was an incredible one with highlight play after highlight play, with both teams putting up points: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWkt79xkd00 Play 2:30-2:37 Play 3:47-3:57 Play 4:44-4:55 Play 12:25-12:36 Play 14:24-15:01 Okay… so for those keeping score at home, it’s 35-35 at this point in the game, with just a few minutes left. Then, this happened. Play 15:45-16:52 What an anti-climactic ending… if you’re the official, how on earth do you throw that flag? James Bradbury, the cornerback for the Eagles who had the flag thrown on him, thought it was the correct call, so kudos to him for owning up, but even with that admission, the ball was clearly uncatchable for JuJu Smith-Schuster… Now the Chiefs still would have likely taken the lead with a field goal, but then Jalen Hurts and the Eagles offense would’ve had over a minute to get down the field, and potentially tie, or win the game. Such an anti-climactic ending. This is from a guy who didn’t have a dog in the fight by the way. what are your guys thoughts on my take? You Eagles fans can send your fan mail to garrison@fightlaughfeast.com…

Stanford's Evelyn Douek and Alex Stamos weigh in on the latest online trust and safety news and developments:A bill that would ban TikTok in the U.S. and could be extended to other social media companies with ties to “foreign adversaries” was introduced in the House and Senate, but lacks Democratic co-sponsors in the upper chamber. - Lauren Feiner/ CNBC, Rebecca Shabad/ NBC NewsMeta released its annual report on “Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior Enforcements,” noting the milestone of 200 takedowns. - Ben Nimmo, David Agranovich/ Meta, Alexander Martin/ The Record by Recorded Future, @DavidAgranovich, @benimmoTech trade association NetChoice sued the state of California in an attempt to block the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act over First Amendment protections for content moderation. The law would go into effect next year with broad online privacy and safety components for children. - Natasha Singer/ The New York Times, Cat Zakrzewski/ The Washington Post, Rebecca Klar/ The Hill, Lauren Feiner/ CNBC, Rebecca Kern/ Politico ProThe Supreme Court schedule is set for hearings on Gonzalez v. Google and Twitter v. Taamneh on February 21 and February 22. The cases are focused on content moderation and recommendation algorithms. - Adi Robertson/ The Verge, @GregStohr"Former President Trump said Thursday that he'd ban the U.S. government from labeling any domestic speech as ‘misinformation' or ‘disinformation' if he returns to the White House.” - Julia Mueller/ The HillMatt Taibbi named the Election Integrity Partnership in a Friday afternoon version of the Twitter Files. - @mtaibbiTwitter suspended over 25 accounts that track private planes and nine journalists — including CNN's Donie O'Sullivan, Ryan Mac of the New York Times, and Drew Harwell of The Washington Post — who shared links about the @elonjet account which posts public information about the location of Musk's private jet. Most reporter accounts have since been reinstated after Musk conducted a Twitter poll on whether to enforce his new policy against sharing flight trackers and similar information. - Jason Abbruzzese, Kevin Collier, Phil Helsel/ NBC News, Ashley Capoot/ CNBC, Ryan Mac/ The New York Times, Paul Farhi/ The Washington Post, Jordan Pearson/ ViceMusk banned linking out to other platforms… and then conducted a Twitter poll, subsequently reversing the decision, with 87% of voters opposed, and taking down the tweet announcement and blog page on the policy. Some users are still unable to post links to Mastodon and other social media sites in tweets. - Mack DeGeurin/ Gizmodo, @JuddLegumMusk conducted a scientific Twitter poll asking if he should step down as CEO. Nearly 58% of the more than 17 million respondents voted for him to step down. - Alexa Corse/ The Wall Street JournalIt was coincidentally just after he was at the World Cup with Jared Kushner and... a bunch of Emiratis. Eurasia Group President Ian Bremmer quipped that twitter's content moderation panel looks different these days. - @ianbremmerSports balls were kicked and a team scored more points than the other team after time was added, and then stopped, and then added, and then people lined up to kick more balls into the net than the other team. Congratulations to Argentina! - Ben Church/ CNNJoin the conversation and connect with Evelyn and Alex on Twitter at @evelyndouek and @alexstamos.Moderated Content is produced in partnership by Stanford Law School and the Cyber Policy Center. Special thanks to John Perrino for research and editorial assistance.Like what you heard? Don't forget to subscribe and share the podcast with friends!

Link para o curso: https://bit.ly/acima-da-midia Link para o livro: https://merdadeseventiras.com.br    Cafezinho 549 – Dispensar, distorcer, distrair... Ben Nimmo, membro do Laboratório de Pesquisa Forense Digital (DFRLab) do Atlantic Council no Reino Unido. Ele estuda desinformação online e operações de influência, com foco particular em operações multiplataforma. Ele é Ex-jornalista e assessor de imprensa da OTAN. Começou sua carreira analítica desenvolvendo o modelo 4D para prever a desinformação. Bem explica que quatro táticas se destacam nas guerras após o advento das redes sociais, batizando-as de "Abordagem 4D": descartar, distorcer, distrair e desanimar. Segundo o pesquisador, dispensar significa minar o oponente, maculando sua honra. Distorcer implica interpretar erroneamente os fatos e colocá-los fora de contexto, ou, ainda, produzir uma versão parcial ou totalmente falsa da realidade, sendo sua forma extrema a "reescrita da história". Distrair é desviar a atenção do público das atividades do adversário e concentrá-la nas atividades do oponente. Desanimar diz respeito a assustar o público-alvo com advertências verbais ou imagens e vídeos perturbadores. Ben Nimmo descreve seu modelo 4D de previsão de desinformação: Dispensar:  se você não gosta do que seus críticos dizem, insulte-os. A pessoa diz: não ouça o fulano porque... E coloca ali uma ofensa. É um aproveitador, é um maluco, é um desonesto, é um... E aqui cabem as hashtags construídas pacientemente: #bolsonarista, #genocida, etc. É a primeira e mais fácil técnica usada, a mais fácil: insule. Distorcer:  se você não gosta dos fatos, distorça-os, crie seus próprios fatos. Distraia:  se você for acusado de algo, acuse outra pessoa da mesma coisa. Se a conversa estiver desconfortável, focando em algo que seja desconfortável, mude de assunto. Acuse a pessoa da mesma coisa, de modo que ela passe a defender e fuja do assunto principal. Desânimo:  diz respeito a assustar o público-alvo com advertências verbais ou imagens e vídeos tão perturbadores que elas nem pensem em agir contra seus interesses. Dispensar, Distorcer, Distrair e Desanimar. Isso é familiar a você? Continuo a reflexão neste vídeo. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLN7s69mU8M

Link para o curso: https://bit.ly/acima-da-midia Link para o livro: https://merdadeseventiras.com.br    Cafezinho 549 – Dispensar, distorcer, distrair... Ben Nimmo, membro do Laboratório de Pesquisa Forense Digital (DFRLab) do Atlantic Council no Reino Unido. Ele estuda desinformação online e operações de influência, com foco particular em operações multiplataforma. Ele é Ex-jornalista e assessor de imprensa da OTAN. Começou sua carreira analítica desenvolvendo o modelo 4D para prever a desinformação. Bem explica que quatro táticas se destacam nas guerras após o advento das redes sociais, batizando-as de "Abordagem 4D": descartar, distorcer, distrair e desanimar. Segundo o pesquisador, dispensar significa minar o oponente, maculando sua honra. Distorcer implica interpretar erroneamente os fatos e colocá-los fora de contexto, ou, ainda, produzir uma versão parcial ou totalmente falsa da realidade, sendo sua forma extrema a "reescrita da história". Distrair é desviar a atenção do público das atividades do adversário e concentrá-la nas atividades do oponente. Desanimar diz respeito a assustar o público-alvo com advertências verbais ou imagens e vídeos perturbadores. Ben Nimmo descreve seu modelo 4D de previsão de desinformação: Dispensar:  se você não gosta do que seus críticos dizem, insulte-os. A pessoa diz: não ouça o fulano porque... E coloca ali uma ofensa. É um aproveitador, é um maluco, é um desonesto, é um... E aqui cabem as hashtags construídas pacientemente: #bolsonarista, #genocida, etc. É a primeira e mais fácil técnica usada, a mais fácil: insule. Distorcer:  se você não gosta dos fatos, distorça-os, crie seus próprios fatos. Distraia:  se você for acusado de algo, acuse outra pessoa da mesma coisa. Se a conversa estiver desconfortável, focando em algo que seja desconfortável, mude de assunto. Acuse a pessoa da mesma coisa, de modo que ela passe a defender e fuja do assunto principal. Desânimo:  diz respeito a assustar o público-alvo com advertências verbais ou imagens e vídeos tão perturbadores que elas nem pensem em agir contra seus interesses. Dispensar, Distorcer, Distrair e Desanimar. Isso é familiar a você? Continuo a reflexão neste vídeo. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLN7s69mU8M

This week on Lawfare's Arbiters of Truth series on disinformation, Alina Polyakova and Quinta Jurecic spoke with Ben Nimmo, the director of investigations at Graphika. Ben has come on the podcast before to discuss how he researches and identifies information operations, but this time, he talked about one specific information operation: a campaign linked to the Internet Research Agency “troll farm.” Yes, that's the same Russian organization that Special Counsel Robert Mueller pinpointed as responsible for Russian efforts to interfere in the 2016 election on social media. They're still at it, and Graphika has just put out a report on an IRA-linked campaign that amplified content from a fake website designed to look like a left-wing news source. Ben, Alina and Quinta discussed what Graphika found, how the IRA's tactics have changed since 2016 and whether the discovery of the network might represent the rarest of things on the disinformation beat—a good news story. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Remember Russiagate claims of "Kremlin meddling"? Well, the US government is blatantly interfering in Nicaragua's elections. Ben Norton and Max Blumenthal discuss how, mere days before Nicaragua's November 7 elections, Meta/Facebook/Instagram, Twitter, and Google/YouTube purged thousands of pro-Sandinista journalists, activists, and media outlets. Meanwhile, the US Congress voted for more crushing sanctions. We address the gaping holes in Facebook's bogus report falsely claiming the Sandinistas it purged were "government-run troll accounts," which was written by former Pentagon-funded NATO press officer Ben Nimmo, a symbol of how social media corporations have effectively merged with the US government. Read Ben's report "Meet the Nicaraguans Facebook falsely branded bots and censored days before elections" here: thegrayzone.com/2021/11/02/facebook-twitter-purge-sandinista-nicaragua

Facebook Inc says it shut down a troll farm run by the Nicaraguan government that had been spreading anti-opposition messages across multiple accounts, a move that comes just days before presidential elections are set to be held in the Central American nation.The social media giant says that the troll farm was intended to amplify pro-government and anti-opposition content.Threat intelligence lead for Facebook's parent company Meta, Ben Nimmo says this was really a cross-government operation; the troll farm consisted of several clusters which were run from multiple government entities at once.He says the company closed 937 accounts, 140 pages and 24 groups on Facebook, as well as 363 Instagram accounts, last month.

Facebook Inc says it shut down a troll farm run by the Nicaraguan government that had been spreading anti-opposition messages across multiple accounts, a move that comes just days before presidential elections are set to be held in the Central American nation.The social media giant says that the troll farm was intended to amplify pro-government and anti-opposition content.Threat intelligence lead for Facebook's parent company Meta, Ben Nimmo says this was really a cross-government operation; the troll farm consisted of several clusters which were run from multiple government entities at once.He says the company closed 937 accounts, 140 pages and 24 groups on Facebook, as well as 363 Instagram accounts, last month.

Facebook Inc says it shut down a troll farm run by the Nicaraguan government that had been spreading anti-opposition messages across multiple accounts, a move that comes just days before presidential elections are set to be held in the Central American nation.The social media giant says that the troll farm was intended to amplify pro-government and anti-opposition content.Threat intelligence lead for Facebook's parent company Meta, Ben Nimmo says this was really a cross-government operation; the troll farm consisted of several clusters which were run from multiple government entities at once.He says the company closed 937 accounts, 140 pages and 24 groups on Facebook, as well as 363 Instagram accounts, last month.

NET NANNIES, SUSPENSIONS, TWITTER, FACEBOOK, VIDEO GAMES, MILITARY INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX, BEN NIMMO, ATLANTIC COUNCIL, NATO, DISINFORMATION, RAYTHEON, LOCKHEED MARTIN, BOEING, MAINSTREAM MEDIA, WIKILEAKS

Caleb Maupin, a journalist and political analyst, joins us to talk about this week's important stories. A hawkish Pentagon task force has been created to address US policy towards China. Also, a group of administrators from the George W. Bush administration are working to create a new party that divorces their brand of hawkish neoliberal conservatism from the Trump wing of the Republican Party. Dr. Jehan "Gigi" El-Bayoumi, a professor of medicine and the founding director of the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences' Rodman Institute, and Dr. Yolandra Hancock, a board-certified pediatrician and obesity medicine specialist, join us to discuss the latest coronavirus news. Several dangerous COVID-19 variants have been detected in the Washington, DC area, and vaccination sites are opening nationwide as more pandemic hurdles arise. Also, the Russian Sputnik V vaccine is enjoying worldwide success, with Germany considering employing it in their fight against the pandemic. Dr. Linwood Tauheed, an associate professor of economics at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, joins us to discuss economic news for the week. Job openings jumped by 74,000 in December, as state and local governments joined the arts and entertainment industry as one of the hardest-hit sectors. Also, the Biden team is rescinding a Trump administration policy allowing states to impose punitive work requirements on Medicaid recipients - this comes roughly a month before the US Supreme Court is scheduled to hear a case specifically addressing this matter. Dan Lazare, an investigative journalist and author of "The Velvet Coup: The Constitution, the Supreme Court and the Decline of American Democracy," and Dan Kovalik, a labor and human rights lawyer, professor and author, come together to discuss foreign policy. US President Joe Biden is continuing former President Donald Trump's foreign policies in the Middle East and China, opting to institute more hawkish tendencies in some regions of the world. Also, online censorship increases as Facebook hires former NATO press officer Ben Nimmo as their intelligence chief. Lastly, the Biden administration has announced they will be continuing to pursue the extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and expand domestic terrorism laws. Dr. Clarence Lusane, an author, activist and political science professor at Howard University, and Gary Flowers, a radio talk show host and public policy analyst, join us to talk about domestic politics. House Democrats have concluded impeachment procedures knowing there is virtually no chance of a conviction. Also, the Republican Party is facing major fissures in its political coalition as establishment GOP members consider starting a new party as polls show 70% of the rank-and-file politicians would join a new party started by former President Donald Trump.

Ted Rall, a political cartoonist and syndicated columnist, joins us to discuss a new investigation in Georgia. On January 2, then US President Donald Trump spoke with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger regarding the outcome of the election. State prosecutors have opened an investigation in which they intend to determine whether Trump violated any state laws, including conspiracy to commit election fraud, criminal solicitation to commit election fraud and intentional interference with the performance of election duties. Richard Lachmann, a professor at the University at Albany, SUNY, and author of "Capitalists in Spite of Themselves," joins us to discuss the second Trump impeachment trial. The Senate affirmed the constitutionality of the impeachment trial on Tuesday; however, former President Donald Trump's legal team seemed disorganized and nearly unfocused as the lead attorney's presentation focused on irrelevant issues. Though the outcome of the trial is not in doubt, several Republican leaders have voiced concern over the unprofessional presentation. Kevin Gosztola, the managing editor of Shadowproof.com, joins us to discuss proposed domestic terrorism laws. Both political parties are coming together to support domestic terror convictions that put them on the same level as laws targeting international groups, like Daesh and al-Qaeda. President Joe Biden recently bragged the Patriot Act was based on a domestic terrorism law he authored after the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. Activist Ramon Mendez joins us to discuss Ecuador. The Ecuador election seems poised to continue the ongoing pink tide in the global south. The Grayzone, an independent news outlet, covered the election from Ecuador and displayed the results of numerous interviews with locals in a recent article. Also, the crew discusses an article about candidate Yaku Pérez that argues he has been working in favor of right-wing elements inside and outside of the country. Dan Lazare, an investigative journalist and author of "The Velvet Coup: The Constitution, the Supreme Court and the Decline of American Democracy," joins us to discuss WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. The Biden administration has chosen to continue the Trump policy of seeking the extradition of Assange as numerous human rights and civil liberties organizations have undertaken a letter-writing campaign to dissuade the Biden team from moving forward. However, Justice Department spokesperson Marc Raimondi on Tuesday said the Biden DOJ will not heed their requests. Caleb Maupin, a journalist and political analyst, joins us to talk about censorship. Facebook has hired NATO press officer Ben Nimmo as its intelligence chief. Also, Twitter has been removing accounts at the request of the Saudi government, and Telegram has become the most downloaded app in the world with over 63 million installs. James Carey, editor and co-owner of Geopolitics Alert, joins us to talk about Iran. Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif is saying the United States needs to demonstrate to his nation that the mistakes of the Trump administration will not be repeated in order to regain their confidence. Additionally, journalist Stephen Lendman has argued the US will continue to use hybrid warfare attacks on Iran, including sanctions, simply because the Islamic nation is not under US control. Dr. Linwood Tauheed, associate professor of economics at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, joins us to discuss the hurdles for the US economy in 2021. A number of questions remain about the future of the US economy, including whether a successful vaccine program will allow a return to some semblance of normalcy or see travel and leisure-related activities return in time to save related businesses. Questions have also been raised on whether financial markets will continue to hold up or ultimately join the bricks and mortar economy in the economic basement.

This week on Lawfare's Arbiters of Truth series on disinformation, Alina Polyakova and Quinta Jurecic spoke with Ben Nimmo, the director of investigations at Graphika. Ben has come on the podcast before to discuss how he researches and identifies information operations, but this time he talked about one specific information operation: a campaign linked to the Internet Research Agency “troll farm.” Yes, that’s the same Russian organization that Special Counsel Robert Mueller pinpointed as responsible for Russian efforts to interfere in the 2016 election on social media. They’re still at it, and Graphika has just put out a report on an IRA-linked campaign that amplified content from a fake website designed to look like a left-wing news source. They discussed what Graphika found, how the IRA’s tactics have changed since 2016 and whether the discovery of the network might represent the rarest of things on the disinformation beat—a good news story.

The U.S. intelligence community has made it clear that when it comes to foreign interference in American elections, 2016 was only the beginning. As November approaches, efforts to persuade voters and sow disinformation and mistrust are growing. Nick Schifrin reports and talks to Ben Nimmo of cybersecurity firm Graphika about a Russian operation leveraging American writers and fake personas. PBS NewsHour is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders

The U.S. intelligence community has made it clear that when it comes to foreign interference in American elections, 2016 was only the beginning. As November approaches, efforts to persuade voters and sow disinformation and mistrust are growing. Nick Schifrin reports and talks to Ben Nimmo of cybersecurity firm Graphika about a Russian operation leveraging American writers and fake personas. PBS NewsHour is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders

Save Meduza!https://support.meduza.io/enOn today's show, host Kevin Rothrock speaks to online-disinformation investigation pioneer Ben Nimmo about his latest research into a sweeping Russian disinformation campaign called “Secondary Infektion.” Mr. Nimmo is the founder of the Atlantic Council's Digital Forensic Research Lab and last year he became the head of investigations for the social-media monitoring company “Graphika.” This week, Graphika released a new report about a long-running Russian information operation that is allegedly responsible for forgeries, election interference, and attacks on Kremlin critics across six years and 300 different websites and online platforms. “The Naked Pravda” comes out on Fridays (or sometimes Saturdays). Catch every new episode by subscribing at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or other platforms. If you have a question or comment about the show, please write to Kevin Rothrock at kevin@meduza.io with the subject line: “The Naked Pravda.”

Ben Nimmo studies online disinformation and is the Director of Investigations at social media analytics firm, Graphika ~ When it comes to our online space, the word disinformation features in popular vernacular a lot these days, and for very good reason: the spread of disinformation has the potential to meddle in our financial, psychological, educational and political spheres to name but a few. As one person scrolling through an internet of endless information, it can feel impossible to discern between what's true, what's farce and what's deliberate deception - so it's wonderful to know that there are people out there who focus on ceasing the spread of disinformation by identifying red flags, investigating motivations and, ideally, locating and removing the sources. Today's guest is Ben Nimmo, who studies disinformation for a living. He specialises in studying large-scale information operations across multiple platforms, and has helped to expose operations from Russia, China, Iran and the international far right, and election interference in the US, France, Germany and UK, among others. He is director of investigations at Graphika, a New York-based social media analytics firm. Ben is also a former scuba diving instructor, travel writer, journalist and NATO press officer, and as we'll learn, these are all applicable skills to his current role. Today, Ben talks us through the scale and sophistication of online disinformation and specific cases he’s worked on. He shares his thoughts on regulation, the impact of disinformation on our culture and even explains how you and I, as everyday scrollers, could be disinformation identifiers ourselves. He also describes a scenario where his own very existence was the target of a disinformation campaign - a weird experience to say the least..! Topics include: the difference between disinformation and misinformation, regulation, how to counter the spread, ways to stay astute online and more. Shownotes: Keep up to date with Ben's fascinating, intriguing and sometimes ridiculous disinformation pursuits by following him on Twitter Tweet your thoughts on this episode to @selfiereflect Visit www.selfiereflective.com to share feedback and get involved with literally everything

Is it less Workington Man and more undecided woman? Kantar's Michelle Harrison tells Bloomberg Westminster's Caroline Hepker and Sebastian Salek about the key voter group that could shift this election. Plus Graphyka's director of investigations Ben Nimmo explains why the leak of trade documents cited by Labour looks like a Russian campaign. And Plaid Cymru's campaign director Rhun Ap Lorwerth talks about what his party would do in a hung parliament.

In a new episode of Lawfare's Arbiters of Truth series on disinformation in the run-up to the 2020 election, Quinta Jurecic, Evelyn Douek, and Alina Polyakova, spoke with Ben Nimmo, the director of investigations at Graphika. They talked about how disinformation works; how a researcher knows where to look to find disinformation; how to tell when a strange pattern of tweets or Facebook posts is actually a disinformation campaign; and whether it's possible to counter these campaigns effectively, or if this work is just a never-ending game of whack-a-mole.

An investigation by the Digital Forensic Research Laboratory at Washington-based think tank, the Atlantic Council, found that Ireland was one of several Western countries targeted by a Russian-based information operation which used fake accounts and dozens of online platforms to spread fake news. Ben Nimmo, a senior fellow for information defence at the DFRLab, joins Hugh and Irish Times public affairs editor Simon Carswell to discuss what the investigation uncovered, how the disinformation war operates and whether it can be policed. But first - Tuesday saw the publication of the summer economic statement, with Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe saying a budget-day package of €2.8 billion - with €700 million for new spending - will be available to him on October 8th, deal or no-deal Brexit. Fiach Kelly and Jennifer Bray report on the ins and outs of it.

Our first episode of 2019 is an interview with controversial analyst & writer Ben Nimmo from the Atlantic Council's Digital Forensic Research Lab.  Ben has recently been the subject of doxxing and conjecture surrounding his previous work with the Integrity Initiative & the Institute for Statecraft. We talk about Russian disinformation, techniques for spotting nefarious online amplification & the Kremlin strategies against Ukraine, the Baltic States, the US & UK. We also chat about how Ben has, of late, become the focus of attention himself. Follow Ben on twitter @benimmo You can find us on Twitter & Facebook @pgmcast & on our website www.notanotherfakenewscast.com

Most website visitors aren’t human. They’re bots. And these automated accounts are having serious, real-world impact; from the 2016 election to the FCC’s recent, controversial net neutrality vote. Veronica Belmont investigates the rise of social media bots with Lauren Kunze and Jenn Schiffer. Lisa-Maria Neudert measures how bots influence politics. Butter.ai’s Jack Hirsch talks about what happens when your profile is stolen by a political bot. Ben Nimmo teaches us how to spot and take down bot armies. And Tim Hwang explores how bots can connect us in surprising, and meaningful, new ways. IRL is an original podcast from Mozilla. For more on the series go to irlpodcast.org Bots, they’re just like you and me. Except easier to find, especially on Twitter. :) Here’s a handy guide to spotting bots in social media, plus the answers to the bot-or-not quiz you heard on the episode. Leave a rating or review in Apple Podcasts so we know what you think.

It seems everyone’s getting in on the “fake news” game today, from far-right parties in Germany to critics of Catalan separatism — but none more concertedly than the Russian state itself. In this episode we...

Ben Nimmo ist Missionar in Kapstadt und hat eine Predigt mit aktuellem Bezug zum Leben in Kapstadt insbesondere in den Townships gehalten von Ben Nimmo

'Beyond Propaganda Series' panel discussion to launch a collection of papers that look at how 21st century warfare is changing and what can be done to react to information warfare. Speakers included Ben Nimmo, former NATO Public Affairs Officer on Russia and Eastern Europe; Laura Jackson, Director of Research for US Defence Department Study on China’s new warfare; and Mark Laity, Chief of Strategic Communications, NATO European Headquarters. Moderated by Peter Pomerantsev, Senior Fellow to the Transitions Forum at the Legatum Institute.