this post was submitted on 21 Sep 2025
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Fediverse vs Disinformation

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Pointing out, debunking, and spreading awareness about state- and company-sponsored astroturfing on Lemmy and elsewhere. This includes social media manipulation, propaganda, and disinformation campaigns, among others.

Propaganda and disinformation are a big problem on the internet, and the Fediverse is no exception.

What's the difference between misinformation and disinformation? The inadvertent spread of false information is misinformation. Disinformation is the intentional spread of falsehoods.

By equipping yourself with knowledge of current disinformation campaigns by state actors, corporations and their cheerleaders, you will be better able to identify, report and (hopefully) remove content matching known disinformation campaigns.


Community rules

Same as instance rules, plus:

  1. No disinformation
  2. Posts must be relevant to the topic of astroturfing, propaganda and/or disinformation

Related websites


Matrix chat links

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[–] jaijai@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 5 days ago (1 children)

What Kirk did should be called serial gaslighting. It was a vocation for him. He excelled at it.

[–] bigfondue@lemmy.world 4 points 5 days ago

It's called a Gish gallop. It's a known debate technique. Spout out so much nonsense that your opponent can't refute it all while still having time to advance their position

[–] Corelli_III@midwest.social 1 points 5 days ago

seems like it was pretty well rejected

[–] DegenerationIP@lemmy.world 1 points 5 days ago

That seems to be a Thing in social Media as well.

Discussing stuff Luke civilized people is often Impossible. I point my Arguments (With source If needed) and let it go

[–] funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works 1 points 5 days ago

the answer to the steamroller is to either pick the weakest or the last thing they said and hound them on it. Usually they trail off with the worst point leaving their first one and most prepared one at the top.

[–] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 73 points 1 week ago (1 children)

What Kirk did wasn't debating.

[–] Sunshine@piefed.social 14 points 1 week ago

Kirk pulls videos of him losing to vegans.

[–] DaddleDew@lemmy.world 60 points 1 week ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (2 children)

You don't genuinely debate in good faith and with true open mindedness with people opposing your points of view for this long and still remain firmly with such extreme opinions.

He wasn't debating, he was putting on a show. I've seen people like that. You prove their argument wrong and the next day they'll repeat it again with someone else.

[–] YoSoySnekBoi@kbin.earth 38 points 1 week ago

This - people like this who pretend to debate while resolutely refusing to actually listen or learn are so utterly insufferable.

You can tell them from a mile off because they always exude a nasty aura of thinking they're better than literally everyone else.

[–] magic_lobster_party@fedia.io 16 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Debates are mostly for show though. It’s not about bringing the opponent to the other side. It’s about convincing the audience.

[–] commie@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 6 days ago

"sophistry"

[–] magic_lobster_party@fedia.io 26 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Unsurprisingly, the use of cheap debate tactics isn’t very effective against people who know how to properly debate.

[–] thisbenzingring@lemmy.sdf.org 19 points 1 week ago (1 children)

understanding logical fallacies is a must

so you can attack the argument when used by your opponent and so you don't use one and ruin your own argument

[–] commie@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 6 days ago

constructing an argument is hard. defending one is almost impossible (except very simple arguments). I prefer to never state an opinion on any matter, but sow doubt about confident claims made by others. that's easy.

[–] Eldritch@piefed.world 25 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Despite how disheveled and rough the kid looks he knew his points. Every time Charlie used his gish-gallop, the kid just came back and stomped him. Any small applause Kirk got for a line or propaganda, the kid just dwarfed.

[–] miked@piefed.social 4 points 6 days ago (1 children)

"Disheveled and rough?" He was clean with a Cambridge style outfit. His hair style was different than mine but I saw a few others in the audience with similar hair.

He was great at at shutting down Kirk. That should be the only take away here.

[–] Eldritch@piefed.world 4 points 6 days ago

Yeah, mostly the wild hair. It wasn't a knock on him. He was on point.

[–] ramenshaman@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago

That kid in particular destroyed Kirk in the debate I saw.

[–] sunzu2@thebrainbin.org -3 points 1 week ago

And he was free to do this until he questioned israel

And then just like that... He is done