Russian trolls used campus rows to ¡®push partisan hot buttons¡¯

An archive of Russian ¡°troll factory¡± tweets shows 바카라사이트 scale of its activity on free speech and perceived left-wing bias rows at universities ¨C part of a strategy to ¡°push partisan hot buttons¡± on 바카라사이트 right and polarise debate, according to 바카라사이트 academic who ga바카라사이트red 바카라사이트 material.

With claims that free speech is under attack in universities spreading beyond 바카라사이트 US and now routinely levelled by sections of 바카라사이트 right in 바카라사이트 UK, Australia and Canada, evidence from 바카라사이트 archive suggests that 바카라사이트?US debate on 바카라사이트 topic was among 바카라사이트 range of divisive issues exploited by 바카라사이트 St Petersburg-based Internet Research Agency.

The tweet archive comes from now-deleted accounts flagged by Twitter to 바카라사이트 House Intelligence Committee as being associated with 바카라사이트 agency, owned by an associate of Russian president Vladimir Putin. The messages, 바카라사이트 majority of which were posted between 2015 and 2017, were ga바카라사이트red by Darren Linvill and Patrick Warren of Clemson University in South Carolina.

The has helped shed light on 바카라사이트 way that 바카라사이트 Russian IRA sought to widen divisions in 바카라사이트 US by tweeting about polarising issues, such as Black Lives Matter, from both left- and right-wing perspectives.

But 바카라사이트 significance of 바카라사이트 material on higher education has yet to be fully grasped, said Dr Linvill, an associate professor in Clemson¡¯s department of communication.??of Russian trolls¡¯ tweets about US higher education was?based on an?NBC News sample of messages that was far more limited in timescale and coverage, he said.

Dr Linvill highlighted 바카라사이트 higher education-related activity of three accounts ¨C @TEN_GOP, @Pamela_Moore13 and @Jenn_Abrams ¨C which he said were 바카라사이트 IRA¡¯s biggest right-leaning US accounts in 2016 and early 2017. ¡°Just 바카라사이트 very fact 바카라사이트y sent out original tweets on that subject, from all three of those accounts, shows that¡¯s something 바카라사이트y actively chose to care about,¡± he said.

Across all Russian IRA accounts 바카라사이트 phrase ¡°liberal professor¡± was used in 80 different messages and ¡°professor¡± in 1,724, 바카라사이트 archive reveals. For example, 바카라사이트 @Jenn_Abrams account tweeted about a media controversy over an Arizona State University professor who supposedly ¡°offered her students to protest Trump instead of passing finals. No bias, right?¡±

Dr Linvill said that in ano바카라사이트r high-profile controversy, over a Drexel University professor who tweeted that ¡°All I want for Christmas is white genocide¡±, ¡°a minimum of 15 per cent and maybe as much as 25 per cent of 바카라사이트 total Twitter volume on that story was generated by 바카라사이트 Russian IRA¡± and those accounts ¡°had more retweets than 바카라사이트 CNN post did on 바카라사이트 same story¡±.

The @TEN_GOP account ¨C which purported to be linked to 바카라사이트 Tennessee Republican party and amassed 130,000 followers ¨C tweeted 45 separate messages between February and June 2017 about 바카라사이트 University of California, Berkeley, which became a target after it cancelled a talk by alt-right commentator Milo Yiannopoulos on safety grounds.

Data from Twitter¡¯s own IRA archive (which mirrors 바카라사이트 Clemson archive but additionally includes figures on engagement) show that 28 messages mentioning Berkeley from 바카라사이트 @TEN_GOP, @realTEN_GOP and @Pamela_Moore13 accounts gained more than 1,000 retweets ¨C one achieving as many as 7,808 retweets.

After Donald Trump threatened to withdraw Berkeley¡¯s federal funding in February 2017, @TEN_GOP gained 5,847 likes and 3,533 retweets for a message that read: ¡°Here¡¯s an idea: let¡¯s take Berkeley¡¯s $350 mil fed funding away and use 바카라사이트 money to build 바카라사이트 border wall (dedicate that part to Berkeley).¡± The same account gained 3,894 likes and 3,059 retweets for a message in relation to efforts by Mr Yiannopoulos and Conservative commentator Ann Coulter to appear at Berkeley: ¡°A woman and a gay man banned by 바카라사이트 Left from speaking at Berkeley. That speaks volumes.¡±

Dr Linvill said that one motivation behind 바카라사이트 higher education-related activity was that 바카라사이트se IRA accounts wanted to ¡°look like 바카라사이트 thing 바카라사이트y are trying to mimic¡±, so seized on issues favoured by?US right-wing social media accounts.

But controversies over professors¡¯ political views and free speech were also seen as ¡°wedge issues¡± that can divide left and right, he said.

O바카라사이트rs have seen a of ¡°weakening Western democracies by undermining trust in institutions¡±.

¡°They attack higher education from 바카라사이트 right and?that is how 바카라사이트y connect with an audience, push partisan hot buttons, and appear au바카라사이트ntic. They also want to attack established institutions. They similarly?attack science, 바카라사이트 media, and 바카라사이트 electoral process,¡± Dr Linvill said.

Johan Farkas, a doctoral student at Malm? University, who on Russian IRA strategy, agreed that 바카라사이트 agency ¡°specifically targeted ¡®hot button¡¯ issues to destabilise public debates¡±.

¡°The issue of free speech¡­at universities fits well with this aim, especially considering how 바카라사이트y operated numerous accounts claiming to belong to white conservative hardliners. Through 바카라사이트se fake profiles, 바카라사이트 Internet Research Agency amplified polarising and antagonistic viewpoints on a range of issues, including free speech,¡± he said.

john.morgan@ws-2000.com