How Democrats’ Rage-Tweeting Will Help Russia Weaponize the Election — Again
The intraparty social media spats of today will inspire Putin and Co.’s memes of tomorrow
TO: His Excellency Vladimir V. Putin
President of the Russian Federation
4 Staraya Square
Moscow 103132, Russia
DATE: 29.01.20
RE: Operation Infektion, 2020
Dear President Putin,
Per your request, here is a preview of our weaponized memes for the 2020 campaign. As was the case in 2016, Twitter activity in the 2020 primary season is once again providing us with troves of intelligence on which wedge issues to leverage against Americans in the general campaign and beyond. It’s as if this platform is doing our work for us!
To date, Bernie Sanders has emerged as the clear leader in the ability to stimulate potentially toxic responses. As in 2016, we base our enthusiasm for his candidacy — much as we did for Trump’s — not on a particular policy position but purely on the intensity and endurance of the hostilities he catalyzes. After monitoring the most popular and virulent Twitter threads in this election cycle, we’ve identified several trending topics as fertile ground…
