The U.S. Struggles against Russian Cyber Disinformation

Posted on October 25, 2017 by in Hot Off the Wire

As the Kremlin wages an unyielding disinformation campaign against the United States and its European allies, Washington is still reeling from Moscow’s interference in the 2016 election and only just beginning efforts aimed at tackling this major national security threat.

Almost a year after election day, there are some signs of life in U.S.-led efforts to counter disinformation. While allies across the Atlantic have long faced off against this Russian weapon, the 2016 presidential election — filled with revelations about the Democratic National Committee (DNC) hack, use of Facebook advertisements, and Russian troll armies on social media — opened the eyes of many in Washington to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s preferred tactics.

“When we look at the U.S. election, the size and the risk appetite was probably something that was of surprise — but as far as the methods and interest to actually attempt to sway the opinions, that is nothing new, at least in Europe,” Jānis Sārts, director at the NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence, told The Cipher Brief.

By using “fake news,” social media manipulation and amplification through bots, targeted advertising, weaponized stolen information, and other information warfare tactics, Russia has sought to sow discord, exploit societal divisions, and make an impact on the U.S. political scene….

[Read the rest of Mackenzie Weinger’s article at “The Cipher Brief”: https://www.thecipherbrief.com/article/international/u-s-struggles-russian-cyber-disinformation]

The Harvard Cubans: Film Screening and Q&A with Director

Posted on October 20, 2017 by in Past Events

Our friends at the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies invite Harvard undergraduates and friends of the FDR Foundation to  Monday’s screening of the documentary film The Harvard Cubans (Los cubanos de Harvard), produced by the Cuba Studies Program at DRCLAS/Harvard. The film covers the Cuban Teachers’ Expedition in 1900, when 1,273 Cuban schoolteachers attended Harvard Summer School in the largest people-to-people exchange between the two countries, at the time or since.
As background, here is an interesting article from the magazine OnCuba about the Expedition and the documentary (also available in Spanish). FDR arrived at Harvard around the same time as the Cuban teachers, while cousin Teddy and other Harvardians played key roles (both pro and con) in the Spanish-American War which led to the Expedition.
David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies
October 23, 2017 | 6:00pm | CGIS S-010*

In the year 1900, more than half of all Cuban public school teachers from across the island boarded five American military ships to travel to Cambridge to participate in a Summer School organized by Harvard, the largest such endeavor ever undertaken by the University. The Cuba Studies Program sponsored the making of a documentary film about the expedition. Visit our website for the full synopsis.

Following the premiere screening of the film, a question-and-answer session will be held with director Danny González Lucena and historian Dr. Marial Iglesias Utset, Visiting Research Scholar at the Afro-Latin American Research Institute at Harvard. Please note the 72-minute film is in Spanish with English subtitles. Reception to follow.

About the director: Danny González Lucena is a journalism graduate of the University of Havana. He currently works as a cultural journalist on Cuban television, where he specializes in music. He has also been involved in issues related to heritage conservation and folk traditions, with several international special reports. His work as a filmmaker includes the titles: Por qué luchamos (2011), dedicated to the life and work of the Saíz brothers; La Perla de Oriente (2016), which investigates little-known aspects of Guantanamo musician Lilí Martínez; and Los cubanos de Harvard (The Harvard Cubans) (2017).

“Fake News,” Disinformation, and “Election Hacking” 11/13 (NEW DATE)

Posted on October 19, 2017 by in Fireside Chats, Past Events

[NEW DATE AND TIME]

Concerned with foreign interventions in your elections? In your news? Do you trust the media? Should you?

You may be surprised to learn the FDR Foundation and Adams House are on the cutting edge of the struggle of democracy against disinformation. Come by to chat informally with Jed Willard about current trends in international media manipulation, defensive media monitoring and analysis, and counter propaganda.

This is an interactive discussion, limited to 14, undergraduates only if numbers allow. RSVP here:

www.SignUpGenius.com/go/10C0E44AEAD29A4FA7-fake

(There is an RSVP option for those who cannot make this time slot but are interested in future events on this topic – make sure to indicate your interest even if you can’t make it!)

Date: 11/13/2017 (Mon.)

Time: 7:00pm – 8:00pm EDT

Location: FDR Suite, B-17, Adams House

Populism in America and Europe 12/4

Posted on October 12, 2017 by in Past Events

The liberal order has recently come under threat from uncountable angles in all corners of the world. New populist leaders have learned to successfully deploy divisive and forceful rhetoric along with seemingly reasonable policies. Will there be room in 2018 for cosmopolitanism, secularism, reason, and empathy?

Join Prof. Alex Görlach at a fireside chat about our new age of real and manufactured identity crises.

Monday, December 4, 7:00-8:00pm, at the FDR Suite (Adams House B-17). Limited to 12, undergraduates given preference. RSVP here: www.SignUpGenius.com/go/10C0E44AEAD29A4FA7-populism 

Alexander Görlach is an advisor to the FDR Foundation’s Defense of Democracy Program. He is also a fellow to the Center for Humanities (CRASSH) at the University of Cambridge, UK, and a senior fellow to the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs. Alex holds a PhD in linguistics and a PhD in comparative religion. He is the publisher of the online-magazine www.saveliberaldemocracy.com and an op-ed contributor to the New York Times.

All Campus Canada Caucus, with Consul General of Canada to New England, David Alward 11/15

Posted on September 29, 2017 by in Past Events

Civilization, after all, is not national — it is international — even though that observation, trite as it is to most of us, seems to be challenged in some parts of the world today… In a large sense, we in the Americas stand charged today with the maintaining of that tradition… We know the sorrow and the wreckage which may follow if the ability of men to understand each other is rooted out from among the nations.

FDR: ADDRESS AT QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY, KINGSTON, ONTARIO 18 AUGUST 1938

canflagEighty-three years ago, during the negotiations for the 1935 Reciprocal Trade Agreement between Canada and the United States, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King began a friendship that would prove critical to both nations in the decade to follow. Although the two men had not met previously, they shared a Harvard connection: FDR received his B.A. in 1904; King his doctorate in 1909. Likewise, the pair discovered that they shared a world-view: both FDR and King understood that close cooperation between our countries was required to realize their goal of a peaceful and prosperous hemisphere.

Recently, in the United States and elsewhere, some have begun to question the intertwined nature of our global existence, with pugilistic nationalism taking the place of international negotiation. Canada has not only resisted these trends, but in fact redoubled its efforts at preserving and promoting a global order based on rules. Given the strong Harvard-Canada connection, and the historical friendship between two of North America’s greatest leaders, we are honored to host the Consul General of Canada to New England, David Alward.

Date: Thursday, November 15, 2018
Time: 6:30-8:30pm
Location: Adams House Upper Common Room, 26 Plympton St, Cambridge
 
The Consul General will give welcoming remarks on Canada-US relations, the Boston consulate’s activities, and engaging with the Canadian community in New England. We will have the rest of the time to meet fellow Canadians and our friends, undergraduate and graduate, across Harvard University.
 
Light refreshments and snacks will be served.

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Réception à Harvard avec le Consul général du Canada en Nouvelle-Angleterre, David Alward
Organisée par les groupes d’étudiants canadiens à l’Université Harvard
Date: jeudi le 15 novembre 2018
Heure: 18.30 h à 20.30 h
Lieu: Adams House Upper Common Room, 26 Plympton St, Cambridge, MA 02138
 
Le Consul général adressera quelques mots de bienvenue sur les relations canado-américaines, les activités du consulat à Boston, et participer dans la communauté canadienne en Nouvelle-Angleterre. Le reste du temps est ouvert pour rencontrer des collègues canadiens, de premier cycle et des cycles supérieurs, de toute l’université. 
 
Des rafraîchissements et des amuse-gueules seront servis.