Active Measures

The Secret History of Disinformation and Political Warfare

De: Thomas Rid

Narrado por: Derek Perkins

This revelatory and dramatic history of disinformation traces the rise of secret organized deception operations from the interwar period to contemporary internet troll farms

We live in the age of disinformation - of organized deception. Spy agencies pour vast resources into hacking, leaking, and forging data, often with the goal of weakening the very foundation of liberal democracy: trust in facts. Thomas Rid, a renowned expert on technology and national security, was one of the first to sound the alarm. Even before the 2016 election, he warned that Russian military intelligence was "carefully planning and timing a high-stakes political campaign" to disrupt the democratic process. But as crafty as such so-called active measures have become, they are not new.

The story of modern disinformation begins with the clash between communism and capitalism after the Russian Revolution, which would come to define the Cold War. In Active Measures, Rid reveals startling intelligence and security secrets from materials written in more than 10 languages across several nations, and from interviews with current and former operatives. He exposes the disturbing yet colorful history of professional, organized lying, revealing for the first time some of the century's most significant operations - many of them nearly beyond belief. A White Russian ploy backfires and brings down a New York police commissioner; a KGB-engineered, anti-Semitic hate campaign creeps back across the Berlin Wall; the CIA backs a fake publishing empire, run by a former Wehrmacht U-boat commander that produces Germany’s best jazz magazine. Rid tracks the rise of leaking, and shows how spies began to exploit emerging internet culture many years before WikiLeaks. Finally, he sheds new light on the 2016 election, especially the role of the infamous "troll farm" in St. Petersburg as well as a much more harmful attack that unfolded in the shadows.

Active Measures takes the listener on a guided tour deep into a vast hall of mirrors old and new, pointing to a future of engineered polarization, more active and less measured - but also offering the tools to cut through the game of deception.

A Macmillan Audio production from Farrar, Straus and Giroux

©2020 Thomas Rid (P)2020 Macmillan Audio

Everyone should listen to this book

This book should be a most read for anyone who wants to understand the world

Historical Analysis of Disinformation

An Absolute Must read for those seriously wanting to fully understand the evolution of Narrative Warfare

Great insight into what’s behind the memes

Highly recommend this book!
We’re being led around by the nose. Monitoring of Merkel was an active measure. So much of what’s in the news is all out false, or massaged into appearing worse.

Incredibly interesting

I enjoyed the different perspectives and country creativity throughout the years. I also found many of these to still be thought as truth.

Enjoyable but only after it grows on you.

Very detailed account of disinformation. Almost too much detail at times, but that seems to be the norm for such material. Overall great information and substance.

Good information

Very interesting book with good information to know and the read is quick nice and fitting for the book.

Perfection

A Masterful work. Author knows his topic, and he m takes it to the 21st century.

Very informative histury of disinformation

Disinformation aka Active Measures, has been widely used by US, USSR and Russia for many decades to promote their world view short of outright war. It is complex, subtle, presistent and adaptive to perceived needs. The book goes through dozens of examples showing the complecity and creativity of the intrigue. Absolutely fascinating. Interesting how the Soviets supported the peace movement (no new nukes) in Europe keep the US from introducing our own intermediate range missles (NATO) when the Soviets already had their own SS20 missles in place. Active measures work best when it piggybacks on existing sentiments making it hard to assess the effect. Only the last few chapters covers current events - perhaps disappointing both sides of political debate. It's a book worth reading.

century of disinformation

one of the best books on the subject to date. documenting examples of disinformation, faking leaked documents, and manipulation, to newer cyber techniques.

Outstanding book

The history of disinformation is priceless. It was interesting to hear how active measures evolved from the 1920s to modern day. Great story, great book.