New version of the “Disinformation Governance Board” is now available.

New Federal Office to Protect US Public Opinion from Foreign Disinformation Sparks Controversy

Critics Sound Alarm Over New Federal Office

Critics are sounding the alarm that a new federal office to shield U.S. public opinion from purported threats of foreign disinformation is a thinly veiled reboot under a new name of the abortive Disinformation Governance Board, the Homeland Security Department office abandoned after being defined in the public mind as an Orwellian “Ministry of Truth.”

New Foreign Malign Influence Center Sparks Fears

Housed in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the new Foreign Malign Influence Center (FMIC) was launched with little public notice but is already provoking fears that it will use overstated foreign threats as a pretext to interfere in domestic political debate or will duplicate other federal efforts, especially a controversial State Department unit that tries to squelch populism abroad.

FMIC’s Objective

“The threat to U.S. democratic processes and institutions from foreign malign influence is persistent and dynamic,” according to FMIC’s undated fact sheet. “Informing efforts to counter it requires constant attention, a whole-of-government approach, support from the private sector, and engagement from the public.”

Concerns Over Policing Domestic Narratives

Though its name starts with “foreign,” FMIC’s congressionally determined objective includes protecting American “public opinion,” suggesting the potential for policing domestic narratives.

Controversy Over FMIC’s Launch

It’s not clear whether ODNI proactively told the public about the center until Thursday, when Director Avril Haines mentioned it 45 minutes into a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing. It’s not even mentioned in her prepared testimony, which discusses “malign influence” several times.

FMIC’s Funding and Purpose

The Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 approved initial funding for FMIC, which was first established in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020, according to a Senate Intelligence Committee report March 28.

Congress tasked the center with protecting “political, military, economic, or other policies or activities” of federal, state and local governments, including elections, and domestic “public opinion.”

Similar Federal Entities

Haines’ testimony was surfaced on Friday by The Intercept, which noted other federal entities play similar roles: the FBI’s Foreign Influence Task Force, DHS’ Countering Foreign Influence Task Force and Foreign Influence and Interference Branch, and the Pentagon’s year-old Influence and Perception Management Office.