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Common Core: RH.6-8.3, RH.6-8.7, RI.6-8.1, RI.6-8.2, RI.6-8.3

C3 (D2/6-8): Civ.1, Civ.2, Civ.14, His.1, His.3

NCSS: Power, authority, and governance; Science, technology, and society

Is Your Facebook Friend a Russian Hacker?

Russians used fake social media accounts to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election. They’re sure to try again. Why? 

The facebook page of Melvin Redick seemed innocent enough. His profile photo showed a friendly-looking American posing with his daughter. He said he lived in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and had graduated from Central High School.

But Redick, it turns out, was the fictional creation of Russians. The charming photos were actually stolen from the Facebook account of a Brazilian man (see graphic, at top).

The real purpose of the Facebook page, posted during the presidential campaign of 2016, was to direct readers to a website called DCLeaks. The site featured emails hacked from the computers of the Democratic Party and false stories damaging to Hillary Clinton, the Democratic candidate for president. The Russians’ intent, U.S. officials say, was to boost the campaign of Republican Donald Trump.

It’s now clear that Russian operatives created hundreds of fake accounts on social media sites like Facebook and Instagram to “sow discord in the U.S. political system, including the 2016 presidential election,” according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

“The [Russians’] themes are consistent across platforms,” Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff of California has said: “to help Donald Trump, to hurt Hillary Clinton, and the desire to set Americans against each other.”

Was Russian President Vladimir Putin behind this campaign? Perhaps. U.S. intelligence officials concluded last year that he was responsible for hacking the Democrats’ computers. But why?

Former FBI director Robert Mueller has been appointed as a special by the Justice Department to investigate the matter. His team also continues to probe whether any member of the Trump campaign “colluded with” (actively aided) the Russians. President Trump strongly denies that any collusion took place. 

In February, the Justice Department handed down an against 13 Russians. The document adds many pieces to the puzzle of what happened in the 2016 election—and what experts warn could easily happen again. 

How Russia Attacked

The Justice Department indictment traces the 13 Russians back to a shadowy firm called the Internet Research Agency (IRA). From an ordinary office building in St. Petersburg, Russia, this group ran a “ farm”—an organization that churns out social media posts. 

Starting in 2014, the IRA used fake Facebook groups to spread inflammatory content on issues such as immigration and race. One group called Secured Borders falsely warned of a “huge upsurge of violence toward American citizens” by Muslim refugees. Another named Heart of Texas promoted Texas seceding from the U.S. 

Some of those groups attracted hundreds of thousands of followers. The Russians’ posts reached an estimated 126 million Americans on Facebook alone.

The disruption of the 2016 election reflects Putin’s anger toward the U.S.

During the election campaign, the IRA also paid for a steady stream of anti-Clinton political ads on social media. Some falsely said that Clinton was under investigation for committing voter fraud. Thousands of bots spread tweets with hashtags like #Hillary4Prison, flooding the web with Trump’s claims that Clinton was “crooked.”

Meanwhile, IRA operatives posing as Americans contacted Trump supporters in closely contested states such as Florida and Pennsylvania to help promote or organize pro-Trump events. Then, as the election approached, the Russians tried to discourage support for Clinton among traditional Democratic voters.

Putin’s Role

Was Vladimir Putin involved in the work of the IRA? Putin has scoffed at the question. (President Trump has said he believes Putin’s denials.) 

Experts say it’s very possible Putin was involved—but even if he was, his tracks are well hidden. According to Keith Darden, a Russia expert at American University in Washington, D.C., “There’s not ever likely to be a direct link to Putin.”

Steve Sack/The Minneapolis Star-Tribune, MN/PoliticalCartoons.com

Seeking to “sow discord” among Americans, Russian trolls used hundreds of phony Facebook accounts to weaponize information, say officials.

Regardless of whether Putin gave a direct order, say experts, Russia’s interference in the election reflects his hostility toward the U.S.—and Clinton, who angered him during her time as U.S. secretary of state under President Barack Obama. 

The disinformation campaign is also a legacy of the long conflict between Russia and the U.S.

Soviets vs. the U.S.

For decades, Russia was the dominant force in the Soviet Union. The massive Communist country made up of 15 republics controlled most of Eastern Europe and was America’s greatest rival in the Cold War (1947-1991). During that struggle, the two nations spread their competing systems of Communism and democracy through political and military clashes around the globe.

Over time, the Soviet economy weakened, and many of its republics began to seek freedom. In 1991, the Soviet Union broke up into 15 nations, including Russia.

Putin was infuriated by the spread of the U.S. into former Soviet areas.

To much of the world, it seemed that the U.S. had won the Cold War. A number of former Soviet republics and Eastern European nations allied themselves with the West. To date, nine such countries have joined , a military partnership led by the U.S. (see map, below).

Putin, who once worked for the KGB, the Soviet spy agency, came to power in 1999. Historians say he was infuriated by what he saw as the spread of U.S. influence into former Soviet areas.

Seeing Clinton As the Enemy

In February 2014, the U.S. supported an uprising in Ukraine, Russia’s neighbor. The country’s pro-Russia government was forced from power. Russia then invaded Ukraine, seizing some of its territory, and backed pro-Russian with arms and troops. 

The U.S. and other Western countries responded by imposing economic sanctions, or penalties, on Russia. Those sanctions helped cause a sharp economic decline in the country. 

Since the crisis in Ukraine, says Darden, “Russia has been on a war footing with the U.S.” 

Then in 2015, Clinton announced her candidacy for president. As U.S. secretary of state from 2009 to 2013, Clinton was a vocal critic of Russian power and encouraged anti-Putin protesters. If she were to be elected president, “the Russians believed that Clinton would increase the confrontation in Ukraine,” Darden says. As the U.S. election approached, Putin seemed prepared to take extreme measures to keep Clinton from winning.

Another Cold War?

Putin’s ultimate goal, according to experts, is simple: to make Russia great again. They say he is waging a new Cold War—one he is determined to win.

In many ways, Russia’s cyber offensive brings that conflict to mind. During the Cold War, both the U.S. and the Soviet Union tried to influence each other’s internal politics in numerous ways—including by spreading false information in the other’s media. 

Today, the internet makes this much easier to do. The web provides a vast new battleground for spreading disinformation and fanning national conflicts. 

Experts believe the recent Russian cyberattack is especially troubling because of its enormous scale. The U.S. isn’t yet prepared to fight it, they say.  Neither are such Western European nations as Germany and Denmark, which also have been the victims of web-based assaults.

Carlos Barria/Reuters

Did Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) help to elect Donald Trump in 2016?

More Meddling

“We will never know for certain whether Russia’s intervention changed the outcome of the 2016 election,” write Russia experts Robert Blackwill and Philip Gordon of the Council on Foreign Relations. “The point is that it tried.”

Last month, U.S. intelligence officials warned Congress that Russians had learned key lessons from their interference in 2016 and will use them to meddle in our midterm elections this fall. “We should expect that . . . they’re going to come back in a much more sophisticated way,” said Douglas Lute, a security director under President George W. Bush.

Along with lawmakers, Facebook and other tech companies are trying to prevent similar cyberattacks in the future. But it won’t be easy. 

Meanwhile, Trump has mostly dismissed accusations of Russian meddling as “a hoax.” But after the indictments were announced in February, he seemed frustrated by all the finger pointing and the many news stories that have resulted from Russia’s actions. 

“If it was the GOAL of Russia to create discord, disruption, and chaos within the U.S.,” Trump tweeted, “they have succeeded beyond their wildest dreams.” 

CORE QUESTION: Why might Vladimir Putin have interfered in the election?

Russia and NATO 

After World War II (1939-1945), the Soviet Union seized much of Eastern Europe. In 1949, the U.S. and other Western nations created NATO to oppose further Soviet expansion. Today, the alliance’s 29 member nations include 9 that were once Soviet republics or under Soviet control during the Cold War. Four other countries are currently seeking to join NATO.

After World War II (1939-1945), the Soviet Union seized much of Eastern Europe. In 1949, the U.S. and other Western nations created NATO to oppose further Soviet expansion. Today, the alliance’s 29 member nations include 9 that were once Soviet republics or under Soviet control during the Cold War. Four other countries are currently seeking to join NATO.

Jim McMahon/Mapman®

MAP SKILLS

1. What is the capital of Russia? 

2. On which continent are most member nations of NATO located? 

3. Which three NATO members were once part of the Soviet Union?

4. Which body of water do all three touch?

5. Crimea sits in which body of water?

6. Which two potential NATO members were once part of the Soviet Union?

7. Which potential NATO member borders Croatia?

8. Which fellow NATO members does Hungary border?

9. What small part of Russia bordering Poland is separated from the rest of the country?

10. Which NATO countries are not on this map?

1. What is the capital of Russia? 

2. On which continent are most member nations of NATO located? 

3. Which three NATO members were once part of the Soviet Union?

4. Which body of water do all three touch?

5. Crimea sits in which body of water?

6. Which two potential NATO members were once part of the Soviet Union?

7. Which potential NATO member borders Croatia?

8. Which fellow NATO members does Hungary border?

9. What small part of Russia bordering Poland is separated from the rest of the country?

10. Which NATO countries are not on this map?

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