CNN and MSNBC Owner Bought 18 Million Comments Undermining US Democracy

Years of investigation of New York Attorney General led to a report reveals CNN, MSNBC parent companies abusing their power and manipulating millions of fake comments online.

“The Office of the New York Attorney General (OAG) found that fake comments accounted for nearly 18 million of the more than 22 million comments the FCC received during its 2017 rulemaking,” the AG’s report reads. “This type of fraud has significant consequences for our democracy. Federal and state agencies rely on public comments to set standards that govern many aspects of our lives, from public health to consumer protection to the environment, and, in this case, the rules that govern how we share and consume content over the internet. Public comments can also influence legislators and the laws they enact.”

“The OAG found that millions of fake comments were submitted through a secret campaign, funded by the country’s largest broadband companies, to manufacture support for the repeal of existing net neutrality rules using lead generators,” the report continued. “And millions more were submitted by a 19- year old college student using made-up identities. The OAG also found that the FCC’s rulemaking proceeding was not unique. Some of the same parties and tactics have infected other rulemakings and processes for public engagement.”

The Office of New York Attorney General Letitia James launched a full-scale investigation in 2017 when it discovered that Broadband for America, which includes major internet providers like AT&T, Comcast and Charter, had poured a whopping $ 4.2 million into creating fake social media accounts and writing tens of millions comments.

After a multi-year investigation, we found the nation's largest broadband companies funded a secret campaign to influence the FCC's repeal of net neutrality rules — resulting in millions of fake public comments impersonating Americans.

These illegal schemes are unacceptable.

— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) May 6, 2021

The broadband industry hired marketing companies that co-opted and created identities and filed nearly 18 million fake comments with the FCC and sent over half a million fake letters to Congress in support of the repeal.

This practice was also used to influence other policies.

— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) May 6, 2021

Today, we stopped three of these marketing companies from continuing their illegal behavior and recommended reforms to stop this type of fraud in the future.

We will continue to shine a light on abuses and disinformation that drown out the voices of the American people.

— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) May 6, 2021

Earlier, the Democrats accused Russia of a similar practice of creating fake accounts to interfere in the US presidential election. A group of individuals was allegedly organized to write defamatory comments against Democrats and persuade Americans to vote for Republicans.

Source: USA Really