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President Trump's Massive Disinformation Campaign; The Rise Of Michael Bloomberg

Connecticut Public Radio | By Betsy Kaplan
Published February 10, 2020 at 1:00 PM EST
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Michael Bloomberg, former New York City Mayor and 2020 presidential candidate

The Atlantic writer McKay Coppins says President Trump's reelection team is waging a massive disinformation campaign that uses the same tactics of information warfare used by autocrats like Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and by Russian President Vladimir Putin in our 2016 election.

He says their tactics include coordinated bot attacks, micro-targeting millions of voters susceptible to radicalization and conspiratorial thinking, anonymous mass texting, and infiltrating local news stations with Potemkin local news websites. It's all meant to flood our senses and confuse our ability to discern fact from fiction.

Also this hour: Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg is on the rise. Results from the Iowa caucus and President Trump's high approval ratings have some wondering if any of the existing frontrunners could beat Trump. Is it time to take another look at Bloomberg?

GUESTS:

  • McKay Coppins - Staff writer at The Atlantic and the author of The Wilderness: Deep Inside the Republican Party's Combative, Contentious, Chaotic Quest to Take Back the White House
  • Mike Pesca - Host of the Slate daily podcast The Gist and the editor of the book Upon Further Review: The Greatest What Ifs in Sports History

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Colin McEnroe, Cat Pastor, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show.
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elections
Betsy Kaplan
Betsy started as an intern at WNPR in 2011 after earning a Master's Degree in American and Museum Studies from Trinity College. She served as the Senior Producer for 'The Colin McEnroe Show' for several years before stepping down in 2021 and returning to her previous career as a registered nurse. She still produces shows with Colin and the team when her schedule allows.
See stories by Betsy Kaplan

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Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.

Donate

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