The State Department’s Campaign of Misinformation is a False Attempt at Censorship
The State Department is using taxpayer money to discredit individuals who exposed its funding of pro-censorship groups targeting right-wing news organizations, such as The Post, under the pretense of combating “disinformation.”
A recent Committee on Small Business report supported the investigative work of journalist Matt Taibbi and the Washington Examiner. It affirmed that “The Federal government has fostered a censorship ecosystem that hinders both individuals’ First Amendment rights and the ability of certain small businesses to compete online.”
One organization, the Global Disinformation Index, compiled a “blacklist” of conservative publications to warn advertisers to avoid, with accusations against The Post and other major news outlets as potentially spreading false information.
The Global Disinformation Index received $100,000 from the State Department’s Global Engagement Center between October 2021 and March 2022.
Another group mentioned in the report, the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, had a private email list called “FakeNewsSci,” which included GEC staff members and was used to criticize conservative news organizations seeking to join Poynter’s International Fact-Checking Network’s Code of Principles.
In response, the State Department’s press team has issued statements attempting to discredit Taibbi and Washington Examiner journalist Gabe Kaminsky by portraying them as incompetent and uninformed.
The State Department also falsely claimed that the GEC did not fund the Global Disinformation Index to study, analyze, or report on social media platforms or accounts within the United States, and that their collaboration was restricted to disinformation efforts in East Asia and Europe.
However, the Global Disinformation Index did target US-based conservative media, and the GEC did provide funding to them.
As the House report stated, “While the GEC does not fund initiatives domestically focused on their face, many of them do impact the U.S.”
The State Department is trying to conceal its actions, but the report clearly indicates that the government has supported entities that aim to harm news and information outlets due to their lawful speech.
This behavior is not limited to the State Department, as evidenced by the FBI pressuring social media platforms to target right-wing accounts and the Harris-Biden administration’s efforts to establish a Homeland Security “disinformation board.”
Whenever the government claims to combat “disinformation,” it often ends up targeting legitimate information that certain “experts” do not want to be publicized.
The proper approach to combating false information is to share the truth, not to engage in censorship and character assassination as the Harris-Biden administration continues to do.
