Disinformation Wars

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks to two prominent Israeli experts, former Jerusalem Post editor Yaakov Katz and Lt. Col. (Res.) Sarit Zehavi of the Alma Research and Education Center, regarding the new war now facing Israel in the wake of Hamas' October 7th campaign of terror - and the stories that aren't being told about the conflict. BIOS: Yaakov Katz is a...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to journalist Bethany Allen about the role that disinformation, propaganda and influence play in China's foreign policy - and their impact on the unfolding strategic competition between Beijing and Washington Bethany Allen is the China reporter at AXIOS. She was previously the lead reporter on the China Cables project of the Intern...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to Tuvia Gering, a scholar at Israel's Institute for National Security Studies, about the ways in which Beijing is shaping global discourse - and what the PRC is saying to the world. Tuvia Gering is a researcher at the Diane & Guilford Glazer Foundation Israel-China Policy Center at the Institute for National Security Studies (...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with Jimmy Quinn of National Review about the current state of the political debate over one of the world’s most popular social media apps - and what it tells us about the larger Great Power Competition that's now unfolding between the United States and China. 

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with Jacki Alexander, Chief Executive Officer of HonestReporting, about how her organization is harnessing social media and badly-needed context in order to combat bias in reporting about Israel and its place in the Middle East.  Materials referenced in this episode: — Report by Israel’s Channel 14 on the Palestinian Authority’s “pris...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with Joshua Kurlantzick of the Council on Foreign Relations regarding his new book on Chinese media strategy, and the methods and means by which the PRC is shaping global perceptions.  Materials referenced in this episode: Kurlantzick’s book, Beijing’s Global Media Offensive: China’s Uneven Campaign to Influence Asia and the World (Ox...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with Michael Sobolik of the American Foreign Policy Council about China's efforts to shape global perceptions surrounding COVID19 at the start of the global pandemic - and how that war of narratives has now returned with a vengeance. 

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with Ivana Stradner of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies about how Russia weaponizes information to achieve its geopolitical objectives -- and how the United States and its allies can begin to push back. 

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with Amb. David Saranga, the head of digital diplomacy at Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, about how Jerusalem is using new media and innovative techniques to share Israel’s story with global audiences.

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to Joseph Humire, Executive Director of the Center for Secure Free Society, about how Russian narratives and tropes are resonating in the Americas - and what that means for local politics, as well as for American security. Materials referenced in this episode: — Ilan Berman and Joseph M. Humire, eds., Iran’s Strategic Penetration of La...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to Roman Anin, Editor-in-Chief of Russian investigative outlet iStories , about the consequences of the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine, the moral and practical stakes involved, and the emergence of a new media ecosystem for Russian opposition journalists.

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to Klon Kitchen of the American Enterprise Institute about how technology is enabling China’s deepening domestic repression, and how that same technology is becoming an important - and ominous - export commodity for the PRC.

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to Eric Olander, Editor-in-Chief of the China Global South Project, about how China is seen throughout the developing world - and why these views are so different from Western perceptions of the PRC. MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE: — The China Global South Daily Brief is available at https://chinaglobalsouth.com

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to the Washington Post ’s Josh Rogin about how China is working to reshape global narratives to advance its geopolitical agenda and improve its international standing. MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE: — Josh’s book, Chaos under Heaven: Trump, Xi, and the Battle for the 21st Century: https://www.amazon.com/Chaos-Under-Heaven-Americ...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to Alexander Pevzner of Strategy Risks, a business risk consultancy, about the mechanics of how China has set about building presence - and popularity - in Israel, and what it might mean. MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE: — The Pew Research Center’s 2019 survey of attitudes toward China: https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2019/12/0...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to AFPC Fellow and disinformation specialist Monika Richter about the missteps that torpedoed the Biden administration’s latest initiative - and the underlying problems with how the U.S. and Europe approach today’s digital disorder. MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE: -- Monika Richter, “Is Biden’s Disinfo Czar Qualified?” The Bulwar...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to Israeli disinformation specialist Moshe Kwiat about recent terror attacks in Israel - and how they are linked to a broader Iranian media campaign to destabilize the country.  MOSHE KWIAT is an open source intelligence analyst specializing in disinformation, and a graduate researcher at Reichman University. He is a captain in th...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman talks to veteran Russian journalist Yulia Latynina regarding the myths, misconceptions and errors that have helped shape the Kremlin’s current war in Ukraine. YULIA LATYNINA is an award-winning journalist and literary writer who worked for decades in Russian media, most recently as a correspondent with the Ekho Moskvy radio station and the N...

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with Mollie Saltskog of The Soufan Group about how Russia is now trying to harness propaganda and disinformation to discourage the Nordic states from joining the NATO alliance. 

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with Cliff May, president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, about the informational and ideological contest surrounding the current war in Ukraine, and its implications for the global order.

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman visits once again with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty president Jamie Fly to talk about how the war in Ukraine has served as a catalyst for a new, more restrictive media environment in Russia, and how U.S. public diplomacy is adapting as a result.

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with Bill Browder, CEO of Hermitage Capital and one of the world's leading anti-corruption crusaders, about the economic pressure the U.S. and its allies are bringing to bear against Moscow in an effort to deter Russian aggression.

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with leading Russia expert Michael Kofman of CNA about the strategic realities and media optics surrounding Russia’s military offensive against Ukraine and the new war in Europe.

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with lawyer and digital activist Arsen Ostrovsky about the state of Israeli public diplomacy, the messaging challenges facing the Jewish state, and the future of regional engagement.

In this episode of DISINFORMATION WARS, host Ilan Berman speaks with Amb. Mark Wallace, CEO of the Counter Extremism Project, about the origins and influence of Al-Jazeera, as well as its role as an instrument of Qatari foreign policy.