A fat load of good it was doing before anyway. The misinformation and disinformation campaigns were and are in full swing whether we understand it or not. Unless the plan was to figure out how to stop it, the research is purely academic.
I don’t think it was the NSF directly (though their research could have been utilized), but the US did try to do something about it (at least with COVID misinfo). But then the whole “ConSErvaTivE voICEs aRE beINg SilEncED!” peanut gallery whipped themselves into a frenzy.
A fat load of good it was doing before anyway. The misinformation and disinformation campaigns were and are in full swing whether we understand it or not. Unless the plan was to figure out how to stop it, the research is purely academic.
I don’t think it was the NSF directly (though their research could have been utilized), but the US did try to do something about it (at least with COVID misinfo). But then the whole “ConSErvaTivE voICEs aRE beINg SilEncED!” peanut gallery whipped themselves into a frenzy.