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Securing Democracy Dispatch
Hamilton 2.0 Analysis Russian diplomats and state media focused on two main narratives this week: Blame Game over Ukraine: Russian messengers last week continued to cast blame on Europe for prolonging the war in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that the “responsibility for the continuation of the conflict in Ukraine lies with Europe†and alleged that “the West does not care about†Ukrainians, instead believing that “all nations must be serfs to the lords of powerâ€. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov remarked that the momentum for peace after the Alaska summit has been “exhausted†due to Western Europe’s desire to fight to “the last Ukrainianâ€
Securing Democracy Dispatch
Our Takes Until recently, US-funded media outlets provided an alternative to Russian state propaganda in Moldova. But now, after the Trump administration’s funding cuts, trusted US-funded broadcasters “are slowly but steadily receding from viewâ€, crippling media pluralism ahead of Moldova’s pivotal parliamentary election last week “to the seeming benefit of Russian propagandistsâ€, Senior Fellow Bret Schafer and Open-Source Intelligence Analyst Larissa Doroshenko find in new analysis. Hamilton 2.0 Analysis Russian diplomats and state media focused on two main narratives this week: False-Flag Provocations Against NATO: Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) ac
Rising and Falling Tides: How Russia Has Benefited from Cuts to US Government-Funded Media in Moldova
Moldovans return to the polls on Sunday to vote for their parliamentary representatives in an election whose outcome could determine whether the country continues its path towards EU membership or pivots back toward closer relations with Moscow. Given the geopolitical stakes, observers have alleged that the Kremlin is once again attempting to interfere in the election through information operations, vote buying, and incitement of “mass riotsâ€, in what former GMF colleague Laura Thornton has argued should be considered a “multi-vector war†rather than an “influence operationâ€. Although much of the Kremlin’s malign activities in Moldova are conducted covertly, the Russian go
Securing Democracy Dispatch
Our Takes American conservatives frequently criticize social-media companies for their content-moderation policies and the EU for its social-media regulations, alleging they infringe on freedom of speech. However, the lack of regulation further imperils online speech, leaving it subject to whichever way the political winds blow, Managing Director David Salvo and Senior Fellow Bret Schafer write. The decline of local news and changing ways that Americans receive information have created more pathways “for bad actors to infiltrate spaces to spread a specific narrativeâ€, Senior Fellow Bret Schafer told WFAE 90.7’s Charlotte Talks with Mike Collins. Hamilton 2.0 Analysis Russia
In Denouncing Regulation, Conservatives Put Freedom of Speech Online at Greater Risk
Social-media platforms have long drawn American conservatives' ire for the former's content-moderation policies. During the first Trump and Biden administrations, much ado was made about the platforms purportedly overzealously moderating and silencing conservative viewpoints on everything from anti-COVID-19-vaccine content to posts supporting January-6th rioters. Even Trump was temporarily banned from Facebook and Twitter shortly before he left office in January 2021. Now, after the same platforms have bowed to political pressure and largely abdicated responsibility for moderating political speech, they have drawn criticism for spreading gruesome footage of Charlie Kirk’s assassination a
Bret Schafer Discusses How to Combat False Information in Local Communities on WFAE 90.7’s Charlotte Talks with Mike Collins
Senior Fellow Bret Schafer join WFAE 90.7’s Charlotte Talks with Mike Collins to discuss how news deserts and the changing nature of how Americans receive information and news has amplified the flow of false information. [fusion_button link="https://www.wfae.org/show/charlotte-talks-with-mike-collins/2025-09-23/the-importance-of-trusted-local-news-during-natural-disasters-like-hurricane-helene" title="" target="_self" link_attributes="" alignment_medium="" alignment_small="" alignment="" modal="" hide_on_mobile="small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility" sticky_display="normal,sticky" class="" id="" color="default" button_gradient_top_color_hover="" hue="" saturation="" lightn
Securing Democracy Dispatch
Our Takes Foreign malign actors, in particular Russia and China, are employing a wide variety of tactics to undermine the integrity of Czechia’s October parliamentary election, including amplifying divisive narratives, deploying AI-generated content, and mobilizing online communities towards offline action, according to a report by the FIMI Defenders For Election Integrity (FDEI) consortium, of which ASD is a part. Hamilton 2.0 Analysis Russian diplomats and state media focused on two main narratives this week: Zapad 2025: Russian officials and state media celebrated the success of joint Belarusian-Russian military drills known as Zapad 2025. TASS reported that the goal
Securing Democracy Dispatch
Our Take Moldova’s 2025 presidential election faces persistent Russian-led hybrid threats—including information warfare, illicit financing, and cyberattacks—aimed at undermining the Moldovan government’s pro-EU agenda and boosting pro-Russian actors, according to a report by the FIMI Defenders For Election Integrity (FDEI) consortium, of which ASD is a part. Hamilton 2.0 Analysis Russian diplomats and state media focused on two main narratives this week: Drones in Poland: Russian officials and state media vehemently denied that drones breaching Poland’s airspace arrived from Russia and blamed Ukraine for staging a provocation. Russia’s chargé d’affair
Securing Democracy Dispatch
Our Takes “NATO has a different place in the Russian psyche†than the EU, Acting Manager for Europe and Fellow Etienne Soula tells DW News. Russia objects more to Ukraine’s NATO membership than its EU accession because Russia does not view the EU as a “serious military problem†without US operational support. Hamilton 2.0 Analysis Russian diplomats and state media focused on two main narratives this week: SCO Summit: Russian propaganda outlets celebrated Russia’s success in supposedly rebalancing global power at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Tianjin, China. Sputnik International described the meeting of Russian, Indian, and the People’s Re
Securing Democracy Dispatch
Our Takes Last week, the Trump administration announced it would close the Foreign Malign Influence Center, the last remaining US federal organ dedicated to tracking and analyzing foreign interference targeting US institutions, elections, and society. This decision is a “blow to US national security and a gift to America’s adversaries, who have no interest in slowing down†such operations, Managing Director David Salvo writes in Just Security. Hamilton 2.0 Analysis Russian diplomats and state media focused on two main narratives this week: USAID Interference in Moldova’s Elections: Russian propaganda outlets spread claims that Samantha Power, a former head of the Unite