(This is an archived page, from the Patterns of Power Edition 3 book. Current versions are at book contents).
'Fake news' (6.2.4.6) can be used for subversion. It is a new manifestation of an older strategy: disinformation. Russia has actively used disinformation as a tactic for decades, as described in a Guardian article entitled Russian fake news is not new: Soviet Aids propaganda cost countless lives.
Using social media such as Facebook or Twitter, 'fake news' can be passed between individuals and it can be almost impossible to trace its origin. This makes it ideally suited for covert aggression.
Repeating Internet messages, or 'liking' them, increases their profile and has the effect of strengthening their credibility. The Euronews article, Scale of Russian bots promoting Trump on Twitter revealed, revealed that “Russian bots retweeted Donald Trump almost half a million times in the run-up to the US presidential elections” for example, to strengthen his support and thereby weaken American democracy.