By John Vibes
The federal government spent $1 million to create an online database that will collect “suspicious” memes and track “misinformation.” The project, which is known as the “Truthy Database” is being funded by The National Science Foundation, but it seems as if the operation has some powerful political motivations.
Ironically enough, the project takes its name from a term that was popularized by television personality, Stephen Colbert.
The project will seek to understand how misinformation is spread online, but it will be up to a team of government-funded researchers at Indiana University to decide what type of political speech is true and which is false.
According to the grant for the project, the operation will be open source and the database will be open to the public.
“The project stands to benefit both the research community and the public significantly. Our data will be made available via [application programming interfaces] APIs and include information on meme propagation networks, statistical data, and relevant user and content features. The open-source platform we develop will be made publicly available and will be extensible to ever more research areas as a greater preponderance of human activities are replicated online. Additionally, we will create a web service open to the public for monitoring trends, bursts, and suspicious memes. This service could mitigate the diffusion of false and misleading ideas, detect hate speech and subversive propaganda, and assist in the preservation of open debate,” the grant said.
However, the database has yet to actually go online, and they have not followed through with the promise of making their information open source.
The website for the project goes on to explain the importance of memes in their research, and their intentions to find out exactly where certain memes originate.
“While the vast majority of memes arise in a perfectly organic manner, driven by the complex mechanisms of life on the Web, some are engineered by the shady machinery of high-profile congressional campaigns,” the website stated.
The project focuses on Twitter specifically, but will also be reaching into Facebook, Instagram and other sites in their data mining operations.
This may not be the most money that the government has spent on a frivolous project, but it shows that they really are willing to funnel large sums of money into programs that accomplish nothing. Also, this project exposes the extent of the federal government’s paranoia about dissent and alternative political information.
Also Read:
- Social Media Surveillance Expands as IBM Taps Twitter
- Instagram Joins Trend of Social Media Surveillance
John Vibes is an author and researcher who organizes a number of large events including the Free Your Mind Conference. He also has a publishing company where he offers a censorship free platform for both fiction and non-fiction writers. You can contact him and stay connected to his work at his Facebook page. You can purchase his books, or get your own book published at his website www.JohnVibes.com.
All your meme are belong to us.
Eskimos!
As usual, (((they)))’re trying to (((shut it down)))!
Does this include their own “memes” and disinformation? Just curious–the pot calling the kettle black
Why is there an issue as to what political speech is true or not? Also who determines that?
Very important point, Juanita–there is a Latin phrase, Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? which loosely asks your question, who guards the guardians, who decides–just because I may not like what you say or think, it is NOT my right to deny you the right to your thoughts and speech
“You will believe our truth as reported, or face banishment.”, stated an unidentified government official.
Ministry of Truth.
Say the wrong thing and you’ll get what the Feds are dishing out to the Patriot movement people…
I have a few~
Sure, are they going to track down Obama’s “twin” brother that he met in college and would split the homework with and that is why we can’t see his homework because the 2 different hand writings are obvious?
This is why we can’t have nice things. We’re footing the bill for crackpots to search for the Illuminati on 4chan.
Anything that will stuff a sausage into the mouths of Donald Chump supporters is fine with me.
Zio
“donald trump is an authoritarian (after all, the tv and other authorities said so), therefore I am willing to give up all of my rights to an authority to combat him”
I don’t need the media to tell me when someone is a rightwing a-hole. I can see that for myself.
IMG_1680.gif
Irony Alert: Most of the misinformation found on the web is coming from the government.
“Suspicious” as in false information. I’ve seen all sides put out a ton of crap that just isn’t true, but makes for a catchy meme.
Lemme guess…activistpost is a subsidiary of The Onion.
It’s another one of it enemy government people trying to control everything whatever happened to freedom of speech in America if things keep going the way they are gone this country will be a third world country with Sharia law and everybody we turned into slaves except for American patriots like me who will fight till the last drop of blood to take back this country god bless america
America is under JUDGMENT from God, why would He bless a nation of perverts and god-haters?
Patriotism is not an exception to DO NOT KILL, nor is that a gift of the Holy Spirit. Do you really want to play into that game?
So they are going to find out that politicians, red & blue are doing the same thing the other is doing… Wonder which special interest is getting their donation back in the form of this study?
Preserving open debate by monitoring “suspicious” internet memes? What a waste of money.
¯_(ツ)_/¯
It’s really really hard to keep calling the TFH crowd “paranoid” when you read stuff like this.
this is major orwellian bullshit and these people are swine
Your taxpayer money at work!
Pool’s closed.
TRACK WHAT YOU WANT YOU SOBs..the REVOLUTION IS STILL ON!
Liberals = Perverts
We are supposed to trust the US government to decide who is telling the truth???????LOL! These people haven’t told the truth since the civil war. Today (as always) they are made up of traitors, money-grabbers, trash lawyers, Christian haters, New World order sell-outs, and murderers. These are the people we are supposed to put in charge of what is right and wrong and over speech????? All I can say is they really want a revolution and they may get one.
THE GOYIM ARE POSTING TOO MANY FROG PICTURES. SHUT IT DOWN!
A database full of rare pepes
Sod them – keep sharing
Wait, wait, they want to track memes so they can delete the one’s they say are dishonest? Do they not understand how the Internet works? Ask Beyonce how that worked out for her?
Delete the federal government.
meme magic
What an idiot.