U.S. military infiltrates social media

[Uncle Joe]

(The Underreported Story)

http://current.com/groups/news-blog/93591636_u-s-military-infiltrates-social-media.htm

"Just when you thought it was safe to post that scurrilous update to your favorite social network. Earlier this year, The Guardian reported that the U.S military awarded a $2.76 million contract to Ntrepid, a California corporation, to develop software that will create fake personas (sock puppets) to try to influence dialogue among online denizens while propagating American propaganda (though after the Guardian’s article published, military officials told them these fake personas will not be on Twitter or Facebook).

The program has been described as an “online persona management service,” where a military official can operate up to 10 different identities from all around the globe, infiltrating all sorts of social networks.

(snip)

Critics of this project, the Guardian points out, say that this project is like:

"China's attempts to control and restrict free speech on the internet. Critics are likely to complain that it will allow the US military to create a false consensus in online conversations, crowd out unwelcome opinions and smother commentaries or reports that do not correspond with its own objectives."

Does anyone else believe this program will be used to sway political debate here in the U.S.?