United States and Canada

Sat, Jun 25, 2022

US right-wing influencers stoke fears of left-wing mass violence after Supreme Court ruling on abortion

Contextualizing narratives about political violence surrounding the Dobbs v. Jackson ruling.

by Jared Holt

Civil Society Disinformation

Fri, Jun 3, 2022

Latinos in the US turn to WhatsApp groups for information on the Uvalde shooting

Spanish-language WhatsApp groups discussed solutions to school shootings and shared information from Latin American media sources.

by Iria Puyosa

Civil Society Crisis Management
US President Joe Biden departs Japan on May 24, 2022. (Source: Reuters/Kyodo Pictures)

Thu, May 26, 2022

Chinese netizens accuse Biden of using gaffes as a “strategic advantage”

Chinese social media accounts disparaged the US president by claiming Biden intentionally weaponizes his verbal gaffes.

China Government
BANNER: Nicholas Fuentes of far-right group America First speaks at an anti-vaccine protest in front of Pfizer world headquarters in New York, November 13, 2021. (Source: Reuters/Ron Adar /SOPA Images/Sipa USA)

Wed, May 25, 2022

Allegations of platform manipulation stir tensions in online white nationalist movement

Former associates of white nationalist podcaster Nicholas Fuentes allege Cozy TV manipulates view counts, though the truth is unclear.

by Jared Holt

Civil Society Digital Policy
Participants walk at the convention center prior to the inauguration of the VIII Summit of the Americas in Lima, Peru, April 13, 2018. (Source: Reuters/Ivan Alvarado)

Thu, May 19, 2022

Op-Ed: Making the Americas resilient to information operations against democracy

Leaders attending the Summit of the Americas must define actionable policies to promote resilience to disinformation and foreign influence.

by Iria Puyosa

Americas Civil Society
(Source: Iria Puyosa/DFRLab via Gephi)

Wed, Mar 23, 2022

Understanding Telegram’s ecosystem of far-right channels in the US

DFRLab analysis of nearly 6,000 Telegram channels identified distinct “communities” ranging from MAGA supporters to QAnon

by Iria Puyosa, Esteban Ponce de León

Extremism Gephi
A nurse holds a vial of Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine doses in n Råå, Sweden on December 27, 2020.

Tue, Feb 8, 2022

Tracing the myth that COVID-19 vaccines alter human DNA

Incorrect claims falsely attributed to public health experts were later amplified by anti-vax doctors and activists

by Nika Aleksejeva, Lukas Andriukaitis, Jean le Roux, Roman Osadchuk, Ayushman Kaul, Daniel Suárez Pérez

Africa Coronavirus
A person wears a yellow arm band with a Star of David during a protest of vaccine mandates at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. on January 23, 2022. Anti-vaccine protesters have worn yellow arm bands to compare their current treatment in the United States to the treatment of Jewish people in Germany during the holocaust.

Wed, Feb 2, 2022

DC anti-mandate rally leveraged to broaden audience for anti-vax narratives

January 23 anti-vax rally softened messaging and utilized support from anti-mandate doctors to reach broader audiences.

by Jared Holt, Max Rizzuto

Coronavirus COVID-19

Fri, Jan 28, 2022

Russian War Report: Kremlin pushes claims about Ukrainian offensive, ‘junk’ weapons from West

The Council's Digital Forensic Research Lab is tracking the latest from Russian troop movements to social media conspiracy theories to Duma debates.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

Tue, Jan 4, 2022

After the insurrection: How domestic extremists adapted and evolved after the January 6 US Capitol attack

This report by the Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab) provides an overview and analysis of the shifts observed in domestic extremist movements since the 2021 Capitol attack.

by Jared Holt

Democratic Transitions Elections
DFRLab Democracy + Tech Initiative Director Rose Jackson testifies before the US Senate, December 9, 2021.

Fri, Dec 10, 2021

Democracy + Tech Initiative Director Rose Jackson Testifies to Senate

Rose Jackson, Director of the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab)’s Democracy & Tech Initiative testified to the Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband’s Thursday hearing on Disrupting Dangerous Algorithms: Addressing the Harms of Persuasive Technology.

United States United States and Canada
DFRLab Democracy + Tech Initiative Director Rose Jackson testifies before the US Senate, December 9, 2021.

Thu, Dec 9, 2021

Written testimony of DFRLab’s Rose Jackson at Senate hearing on disrupting dangerous algorithms

Delivered before the US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

Business Digital Policy