The coronavirus pandemic is creating an opportunity for foreign actors who seek to undermine Western democracies to advance their goals. From weekly reports that track messaging from Russian and Chinese state-backed media and diplomatic actors, to pieces that analyze the geopolitical impact of crisis, ASD’s work on coronavirus can be found here.
Hamilton 2.0 Findings Featured in CBS News
In recent months, China has significantly expanded its official presence on western social media platforms and moved toward a "Russian style" of spreading disinformation. CBS News' Olivia Gazis looked at some of ASD's preliminary findings from the e [...]
Hamilton Weekly Report: March 21-27, 2020
For the tenth consecutive week, the coronavirus was by far the top story in the Russian media ecosystem. As usual, much of this coverage focused on basic news updates related to the pandemic. Amid this coverage, messaging about Russia’s medical aid [...]
The Alliance for Securing Democracy Expands Hamilton 2.0 Dashboard to Include China
THE ALLIANCE FOR SECURING DEMOCRACY EXPANDS HAMILTON 2.0 DASHBOARD TO INCLUDE CHINA Interactive tool tracks official Chinese messaging and information manipulation on topics like COVID-19 Contact: Rachael Dean-Wilson or Kayla Goodson, press@securing [...]
Lindsay Gorman on the Spread of Coronavirus Disinformation in Voice of America
Malign foreign actors have been using social media to spread coronavirus disinformation, but their efforts go beyond Facebook and Twitter to less visible platforms, like text messages and Facebook groups, Emerging Technologies Fellow Lindsay Gorman [...]
Jessica Brandt Discusses Coronavirus Disinformation on ‘The WarCast’
Disinformation is a regular part of our information ecosystem, but major political events, such as the coronavirus pandemic, are flashpoints for disinformation agents of all types, Head of Research and Policy Jessica Brandt said on War on the Rocks' [...]
Combating the Coronavirus Infodemic: Is Social Media Doing Enough?
The global coronavirus pandemic has also spawned an epidemic of online disinformation, ranging from false home remedies to state-sponsored influence campaigns. In the confusing environment, false medical theories have even found accidental legitimiz [...]
Matt Schrader Discusses How the Chinese Communist Party is Manipulating the Coronavirus Pandemic with European Values
The Chinese Communist Party understands the geopolitical importance of having control of supply chains in this moment, China Analyst Matt Schrader explained on a European Values webinar panel. He also noted that the CCP's disinformation apparatus ha [...]
Laura Rosenberger on China’s Adoption of Russian Disinformation Tactics in Axios
Director Laura Rosenberger explained that the Chinese party-state's information manipulation tactics in the past few weeks have diverged from what we've seen in the past in Axios. She pointed out three main tactics that Beijing has applied in its co [...]
Kristine Berzina and Etienne Soula on Chinese Influence in Europe in EUObserver
While the EU is struggling to form a common strategy to combat the coronavirus, China has launched several initiatives across Europe to paint itself as a generous and reliable leader. “Good will and global cooperation in battling the virus are essen [...]
Securing Democracy Dispatch
Our Take Beijing appears to be capitalizing on weaknesses in the U.S. response to the coronavirus, using it to emphasize fissures in the transatlantic relationship, Head of Policy and Research Jessica Brandt said to The Hill. Brandt told The Sydney [...]
Hamilton Weekly Report: March 14-20, 2020
Last week, for the ninth week in a row, the coronavirus was predominant in the Russian media ecosystem. The majority of this coverage featured basic news updates, but some articles pushed back on claims that Russia is spreading virus-related disinfo [...]
Laura Rosenberger’s Take on China’s Coronavirus Disinformation Featured in CyberScoop
On a CyberPeace Institute panel, Director Laura Rosenberger explained that China's propaganda apparatus is evolving and taking lessons from Russia. While China used to be much more focused on internal narrative creation and control, now it is sowing [...]