As the US election creeps nearer you’ll hear of the risk to democratic institutions posed by another Trump Presidency. The worry is that many agencies of governance which are supposed to be independent and loyal only to the nation will be hollowed out and corrupted by the appointment of Trump and his MAGA loyalists.

A clear example of this surfaces in a recent Making Sense podcast. The podcast is hosted by Sam Harris and in this episode he speaks with Renée DiResta, former Research Manager at the Stanford Internet Observatory. The interview (titled Digital Delusions) was posted 2nd August 2024 and it’s mostly behind a paywall but I’ll explain what resonated most for me.

Sam and Renée discuss the toxic state of the online information landscape. They discuss trends such as propaganda, audience capture, and unwillingness to criticize ones own side. Renée also explains how conspiracy theorists are quick to fill voids in public knowledge to their own advantage (as happened in relation to vaccines during COVID 19). Renée then goes on to explain the depressing details of what happened during her time at the Stanford Internet Observatory.

For background: the Stanford Internet Observatory (SIO) was set up to “learn about the abuse of the internet in real time, to develop a novel curriculum on trust and safety that is a first in computer science, and to translate our research discoveries into training and policy innovations for the public good.”

In the course of highlighting online falsehoods related to the last Presidential Election, the SIO (as well as DiResta and other staff memebers) fell foul of Republicans and conspiracy theorists who felt threatened by the work. The result has been twofold:

1. An ongoing court case against the SIO costing the prestigious University millions in defence fees. Despite Stanford carrying these financial costs many former staff members such as DiResta are now hiring their own defence lawyers for fear that they could be held personally liable.
2. The SIC has effectively wound down it’s operation by choosing not to renew the contracts of DiResta and other senior members of staff. Stanford have been hushed from carrying out their vital role by the financial burden of defending itself against spurious cases by well financed but politically motivated plaintiffs.

Few other Universities will be keen to recreate a similar institution given the experience at Stanford and in this way, another voice of truth and transparency is extinguished. And similarly professionals working in this space will be wary of becoming the target of whacky conspiracy theorists (who use doxing as a means of intimidation) and are likely to put their efforts elsewhere. It doesn’t bode well for US democracy.

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