Dec 22, 2022

How Twitter Became the Pentagon’s War Propaganda Tool

In Part 8 of the Twitter Files, journalist Lee Fang revealed the military’s overseas psychological operations on the platform.
How Twitter Became the Pentagon’s War Propaganda Tool

Get smarter about politics.

Our daily brief brings you need-to-know news and insights you won’t find in the mainstream media. 100% free.

Written by Hudson Crozier

The scoop: At the request of the Pentagon, Twitter knowingly allowed the U.S. military to host fake accounts to spread propaganda overseas for at least five years. Despite its policies against deceptive state-run accounts, Twitter put U.S. accounts on a special “whitelist” granting immunity while it shut down accounts from other world governments.

The propaganda: The accounts were disguised as users native to different Middle Eastern countries, such as Iraq, Yemen, Syria, and Kuwait. They posted messages in defense of U.S. military actions, such as drone strikes in those regions, while accusing enemies of horrific violence in order to justify U.S. intervention. Some accounts are still active.

Kept under wraps: The Pentagon even held classified meetings with both Twitter and Facebook about its accounts. Twitter never admitted this partnership publicly and told Congress it always removed deceptive government accounts. Employees celebrated in emails when a Washington Post story failed to expose the company’s participation in military operations.

Big picture: The Twitter Files show that the platform has acted as an arm of the government not only for domestic political censorship but for war propaganda, raising many troubling questions. Did Twitter employees lie to Congress? Are other platforms involved in these operations? How else has the federal government covertly used social media companies to do its bidding?

Great! You’ve successfully signed up.
Welcome back! You've successfully signed in.
You've successfully subscribed to Upward News.
Your link has expired.
Success! Check your email for magic link to sign-in.
Success! Your billing info has been updated.
Your billing was not updated.