In the midst of the allegations of Russian tampering in the presidential election of November 8th the United States and the world as a whole must come to terms with the fact that in every way local News no longer exists. Any news item that affects another country is known in minutes and this has direct consequences on the image and prestige of every country.
Worldwide Press Conference
Donald Trump’s first press conference as President-elect was seen around the world via the 24 hour news channels, on the web sites of the major newspapers and press agencies and also on the social media.
This would have happened in any case, even without the controversial report on Russian interference announced by CNN and leaked by Buzzfeed the previous day.
The election of a new President is the cause of partisan interest around the world. Firstly within America’s allies who have planned their own foreign policies according to American directions, as well as those countries that are the country’s adversaries on the world stage.
The introduction of a new style leader of the United States had an immediate impact that will take some time to understand and it is part of the changes occurring to international politics due to modern technology. The explosive allegations are a face of this reality which we must now acknowledge was badly underestimated.
Repuations made and destroyed
We do not yet know whether or not the allegations are real, the intelligence services have yet to complete their investigations and release the results. For this reason it is still too early to draw conclusions on their veracity and the possible consequences of any eventual findings.
However, one aspect of the allegations must be addressed by all countries and not just the United States.
While we have always known about the potential effects of cyber espionage these allegations have made us all fully understand that it is a very powerful tool for creating or destroying people, corporations and countries.
Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin used rudimentary photographic technology to remove the presence of opponents from historical photos to destroy their memory and this method continues with us today.
For centuries secret services used false letters and documents to mislead and confuse the enemy. These tasks are now even easier and are done not only by intelligence experts, but even by groups aiming to create confusion in what they see as the world’s elite.
The capacity of the social media to spread any news in minutes and the activities of trolls, paid or otherwise, make is even more difficult to differentiate between what is real or "fake news," and what is manipulated or presently correctly. Even worse the facility with which anyone can fabricate ostensibly reputable sources and manipulate perceptions around the world make it even harder to debunk any fake news once it has begun to spread.
Action and not simple denial
Now that technology has made it easier to spread disinformation quickly and apparently credibly the heads of State must now understand and respond to this challenge. Any controversy must be addressed directly and the accusations must be confirmed or debunked as soon as possible with credible and undeniable evidence because lingering doubt is even more destructive than simply saying that the accusation is false. If he has not yet done so #Donald Trump will soon understand this reality of his new position. Simple denial is not a reply; only action can address the issues.
The world is now so small that the damage caused is seen by all and affects every country in real time.
Sadly the American authorities, beginning with the incoming POTUS, cannot afford to act as if nothing has happened. Inaction, or evasive answers will not make the problems go away, but will make them even worse and the results will haunt the country for a long time into the future. The world is too small to avoid acting publicly and quickly, the country’s reputation is at stake.
