Leftist think tank responsible for fake Russia stories
A left-wing think tank falsely claiming to be following Russian activities online has been responsible for thousands of fake stories claiming the nation’s influence on US politics. according to the latest batch of Twitter files.
The Hamilton 68 “dashboard” was the brainchild of former FBI special agent and MSNBC contributor Clint Watts, and was run by the Alliance for Securing Democracy, a think tank founded in 2017 – shortly after former President Trump took office.
The ASD advisory board included figures such as top Clinton ally John Podesta, acting Obama-era CIA director Michael Morell, former US ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul, and former conservative activist Bill Kristol.
The latest disclosure of Twitter files, the 15th so far, revealed how Hamilton 68’s Russian bot dashboard repeatedly insisted there was widespread and deep Russian social media penetration, revealing that Twitter executives were Frequently questioned claims internally.
“I think we just have to take this to the cops — that’s it,” wrote Yoel Roth, Twitter’s then head of trust and safety, in an October 2017 email Accounts of being Russian bots,” he added in January 2018.
Emails in the disclosure show that Twitter’s internal audits have repeatedly shown accounts flagged by Hamilton 68 were not Russian bots.
Morell was also a member of the ASD Advisory Board.
John Podesta was a member of the ASD Advisory Board.
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Yoel Roth Roth wanted to publicly defend himself against Hamilton 68.
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“It was a scam. …Hamilton 68 simply collected a handful of mostly genuine, mostly American accounts and labeled their organic conversations as Russian intrigues,” wrote Matt Taibbi, who released the latest installment of files on Friday.
Hamilton 68’s remarks have been used to claim a hidden Russian hand in US politics from hundreds and possibly thousands of messages during the Trump years.
While Roth wanted to publicly take a stand against Hamilton 68, he was warned not to take on the politically-affiliated group by Emily Horne, Twitter’s then head of global political communications.
An email from Yael Roth was revealed in the new Twitter files.
Another email from Roth that showed up in the latest info dump.
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“We have to be careful how much we publicly push back on ASD,” she wrote.
The Russia-lures in the private sector followed a similar approach by the US government, which has repeatedly urged the company to find Russian influence, which its internal audits have consistently found nonexistent, other Twitter Files installments have shown.
Ahead of The Post’s coverage of Hunter Biden, Twitter executives worked closely with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other intelligence agencies, where the company was warned to be wary of foreign hacking operations – particularly those related to President Biden’s son.
https://nypost.com/2023/01/28/left-wing-think-tank-responsible-for-fake-russia-stories/ Leftist think tank responsible for fake Russia stories
