Rod Rosenstein doesn’t believe voters were swayed by Russian social media ads
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who is overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation, said he does not believe American voters were “influenced” by ads from Russian-linked accounts.
“You know, American citizens are pretty savvy, and they decide who to vote for. I don’t think they’d be influenced by ads posted by foreign governments,” Rosenstein told J.J. Green, a national security reporter for WTOP-FM, on Wednesday, according to Politico. “I think people are more thoughtful about that in the way that they make their decisions. But nonetheless, you know, if we have foreign countries that are seeking to interfere in our elections, I think we need to take appropriate actions in response.”
Twitter is updating their advertising policies in an attempt to increase transparency about ads on Twitter after it was revealed various Twitter ads were connected to Kremlin-backed media outlets RT and Sputnik during the 2016 campaign.
Facebook announced in September that $100,000 in ads was purchased from June 2015 to May 2017 by a Russian group called the Internet Research Agency, which has promoted pro-Russia propaganda. The money was affiliated with approximately 3,000 ads and 470 “inauthentic accounts and pages.” The company has announced they are updating their advertising policies as well to promote greater transparency.
The Senate Intelligence Committee met with Twitter in September to discuss how Russia interfered with the election on Twitter. Twitter, Facebook, and Google are expected to testify at several hearings next week.
