The Disinformation Age

Publisher:

Cambridge University Press

Publication date:

October 2020

October 2020

ISBN:

9781108914628

9781108843058

9781108823784

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108914628

Creative Commons:

This content is Open Access and distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence CC-BY 4.0.
https://creativecommons.org/creativelicenses

Dimensions:

(228 x 152 mm)

Weight & Pages:

0.82kg, 322 Pages

Dimensions:

(228 x 152 mm)

Weight & Pages:

0.49kg, 322 Pages

Subjects:: Area Studies, American Studies, American Government, Politics and Policy, Film, Media, Mass Communication, Politics and International Relations, Comparative Politics, Media, Mass Communication
Series:: SSRC Anxieties of Democracy

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Subjects:: Area Studies, American Studies, American Government, Politics and Policy, Film, Media, Mass Communication, Politics and International Relations, Comparative Politics, Media, Mass Communication
Series:: SSRC Anxieties of Democracy

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The intentional spread of falsehoods – and attendant attacks on minorities, press freedoms, and the rule of law – challenge the basic norms and values upon which institutional legitimacy and political stability depend. How did we get here? The Disinformation Age assembles a remarkable group of historians, political scientists, and communication scholars to examine the historical and political origins of the post-fact information era, focusing on the United States but with lessons for other democracies. Bennett and Livingston frame the book by examining decades-long efforts by political and business interests to undermine authoritative institutions, including parties, elections, public agencies, science, independent journalism, and civil society groups. The other distinguished scholars explore the historical origins and workings of disinformation, along with policy challenges and the role of the legacy press in improving public communication. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

'This is a hard-hitting book that is richly layered theoretically. It adds much to our understanding of disinformation in democracy while also serving as proof of the necessity of making research on disinformation an area of study across disciplines. The intellectually diverse and distinguished contributors have produced a must-read volume for all interested in disinformation and anyone interested in the future of democracy.'

Bruce Bimber - University of California, Santa Barbara

'This volume traces the deep, thorny, and twisted roots of disinformation in American politics. In sobering detail, it lays bare the psychological, institutional, economic, partisan, technological, (geo)political, and regulatory underpinnings of disinformation, making it urgently clear why and how disinformation is neither accidental nor (easily) curable. Yet this book also offers a sliver of hope in the form of implicit and explicit guidance for changes that could help keep disinformation in check.'

Amber E. Boydstun - University of California, Davis

'The Disinformation Age offers a sweeping series of chapters from leading scholars that cover the history, politics, implications, and potential solutions to the problem of disinformation in democracy. This expertly curated book eschews disciplinary boundaries to offer a sophisticated holistic understanding of the problem of disinformation. Even more, it knits together the voices of scholars seldom in the same conversation and reveals the power of this emerging field to provide us with ways to protect democracy from those who seek to destroy its epistemological foundations.'

Daniel Kreiss - The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Contents

The Disinformation Age
pp i-i

Sponsored by the Social Science Research Council
pp ii-ii

SSRC Anxieties of Democracy - Series page
pp iii-iv

The Disinformation Age - Title page
pp v-v

Copyright page
pp vi-vi

Contents
pp vii-viii

Contributors
pp ix-xiv

Preface
pp xv-xxv

Acknowledgments
pp xxvi-xxviii

Part I - Disinformation in Political and Historical Context
pp 1-40

1 - A Brief History of the Disinformation Age
pp 3-40

Part II - The Current Situation
pp 41-92

2 - A Political Economy of the Origins of Asymmetric Propaganda in American Media
pp 43-66

3 - The Flooded Zone
pp 67-92

Part III - Historical Roots of Disinformation
pp 93-150

4 - How American Businessmen Made Us Believe that Free Enterprise was Indivisible from American Democracy: The National Association of Manufacturers’ Propaganda Campaign 1935–1940
pp 95-119

5 - “Since We Are Greatly Outnumbered”
pp 120-150

Part IV - The Policy Problem
pp 151-210

6 - How Digital Disinformation Turned Dangerous
pp 153-168

7 - Policy Lessons from Five Historical Patterns in Information Manipulation
pp 169-189

8 - Why It Is So Difficult to Regulate Disinformation Online
pp 190-210

Part V - The Role of Public Broadcasting
pp 211-258

9 - US Public Broadcasting: A Bulwark against Disinformation?
pp 213-237

10 - The Public Media Option
pp 238-258

Conclusion - Defending Democracy in the Disinformation Age
pp 259-260

11 - The Coordinated Attack on Authoritative Institutions
pp 261-294

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