Disinformation

Disinformation is intentionally false or inaccurate information that is spread deliberately. It is an act of deception and false statements to convince someone of untruth. Disinformation should not be confused with misinformation, information that is unintentionally false.

Unlike traditional propaganda techniques designed to engage emotional support, disinformation is designed to manipulate the audience at the rational level by either discrediting conflicting information or supporting false conclusions. A common disinformation tactic is to mix some truth and observation with false conclusions and lies, or to reveal part of the truth while presenting it as the whole (a limited hangout).

Another technique of concealing facts, or censorship, is also used if the group can affect such control. When channels of information cannot be completely closed, they can be rendered useless by filling them with disinformation, effectively lowering their signal-to-noise ratio and discrediting the opposition by association with many easily disproved false claims.

Disinformation (company)

The Disinformation Company (abbreviated as Disinfo) was a privately held, limited American publishing company until 2012 when it was sold to Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari it also owned Disnformation Books which focused on current affairs titles and books exposing alleged conspiracy theories, occultism, politics, news oddities and purported disinformation. It is headquartered in New York City, New York. Arguably, its most visible publications to date are 50 Things You're Not Supposed to Know and the Everything You Know About (subject) is Wrong series, both by the company's editor-at-large Russ Kick.

History

In 1996, Tele-Communications Inc. (now Comcast) funded a Hollywood-based internet initiative responsible for online projects like the Getty Museum and an internet-based political humor soap opera entitled Candidate 96. The initiative launched its own interactive website, featuring the tag line; "everything you know is wrong". Soon after the site's launch, TCI cancelled funding and support for the site.

Disinformation (TV series)

Disinformation, also known as Disinfo Nation, was a television show hosted by Richard Metzger. It was aired for two seasons on Channel 4 in the UK as part of their late night "4Later" programming block. Called a "punk rock 60 Minutes" and "wilder than Jackass" by the Los Angeles Times and Wired magazine respectively, the sixteen 30-minute episodes produced for C4 (and several segments never aired in the UK) were then cut down to four one-hour "specials" intended for the Sci Fi Channel in America, but never aired due to the controversial nature of what was portrayed on screen. According to interviews Metzger was told just twelve days prior to the first specials' air-date that he would have to cut 50% of the material from the show in order to pass the USA Network's corporate lawyers' scrutiny. Those four shows have subsequently been released on a DVD with a second bonus disc presenting highlights of The DisinfoCon, a twelve-hour event featuring shock rocker Marilyn Manson, underground filmmaker Kenneth Anger, painter Joe Coleman, and others such as Douglas Rushkoff, Mark Pesce, Grant Morrison, and Robert Anton Wilson.