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President Joe Biden\u2019s administration reportedly considered hiding its expenditure on research aimed at countering online \u201cmisinformation\u201d following revelations by the Daily Caller News Foundation, as outlined in a House Judiciary Committee report published on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
According to the DCNF\u2019s reporting on February 19, 2023, Biden\u2019s National Science Foundation (NSF) received funds for \u201cmisinformation\u201d research under a plan called \u201cTrack F,\u201d with videos of the agency\u2019s efforts linked in the report<\/a>. NSF program manager Michael Pozmantier\u2019s email, captured in a screenshot, indicated plans<\/a> to swiftly remove or restrict access to these videos the next day.<\/p>\n Since Biden\u2019s inauguration, the NSF has allocated $38.8 million to research initiatives combating \u201cmisinformation\u201d by November 2022, the Foundation for Freedom Online (FFO) reported, cited by the DCNF. However, further grants were awarded post-FFO report, primarily under the \u201cConvergence Accelerator Track F: Trust & Authenticity in Communication Systems\u201d or \u201cSecure and Trustworthy Cyberspace (SaTC)\u201d categories.<\/p>\n The House Judiciary Committee report contends that these taxpayer-funded projects aim to develop AI-powered censorship and propaganda tools for governments and Big Tech to influence public opinion by restricting or promoting viewpoints.<\/p>\n For instance, the University of Houston received a $50,000 grant from NSF in December 2022 to establish a \u201csocial media misinformation interactive dashboard\u201d forecasting trends to address misinformation. Additionally, Syracuse University secured a $495,478 grant in July 2019 to study the \u201conline dynamics of misinformation,\u201d focusing on how it integrates into online narratives and how design can impact this process.<\/p>\n