Alliance for Securing Democracy

In 2016, the CIA, FBI, NSA, and the Director of National Intelligence{{cite web |url=http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2017/jul/06/17-intelligence-organizations-or-four-either-way-r |title=17 intelligence organizations or 4? Either way, Russia conclusion still valid |author=Lauren Carroll |date=July 6, 2017 |website=PolitiFact |access-date=January 26, 2018}} concluded that Russia had interfered in US elections of that year. Former acting CIA Director Michael Morell, who serves on ASD's advisory council, stated that the group will fulfill some of the role that ideally would have been handled by a national investigative commission.{{cite news |last1=Rogin |first1=Josh |title=National Security Figures Launch Project to Counter Russian Mischief |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/josh-rogin/wp/2017/07/11/national-security-figures-launch-project-to-counter-russian-mischief/ |accessdate=September 28, 2017 |issue=July 11, 2017 |newspaper=The Washington Post}}

The original iteration of the Hamilton 68 Dashboard, released in 2017, tracked 600 Twitter accounts that ASD asserted might be "linked to Russian influence", whether knowingly or unknowingly.{{cite web |last1=Rosenberger |first1=Laura|last2=Berger |first2=J.M.|date=August 2, 2017|title=Hamilton 68: A New Tool to Track Russian Disinformation on Twitter|url=https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/hamilton-68-a-new-tool-to-track-russian-disinformation-on-twitter/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129055057/https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/hamilton-68-a-new-tool-to-track-russian-disinformation-on-twitter/ |accessdate=January 29, 2023|archive-date=January 29, 2023 }}{{cite web |last1=Gallagher |first1=Sean |date=August 2, 2017 |title=New Web tool tracks Russian "influence ops" on Twitter |url=https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2017/08/new-web-tool-tracks-russian-influence-ops-on-twitter/ |accessdate=September 29, 2017 |work=Ars Technica}}{{cite news |last1=Wakabauyashi |first1=Daisuke |date=September 27, 2017 |title=Twitter, with accounts linked to Russia, to face Congress over Role in Election |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/27/technology/twitter-russia-election.html |accessdate=September 28, 2017}}{{cite news |last1=Elder |first1=Miriam |last2=Warzel |first2=Charlie |date=February 28, 2018 |title=Stop Blaming Russian Bots For Everything |work=BuzzFeed News |url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/miriamelder/stop-blaming-russian-bots-for-everything |accessdate=July 6, 2018}} ASD did not disclose which accounts the original version of Hamilton 68 tracked, citing its desire to "focus on the behavior of the overall network rather than get dragged into hundreds of individual debates over which troll fits which role".{{cite web |last=Rothrock |first=Kevin |date=August 2, 2017 |title=Tracking Russian propaganda in real time: The trouble with a new automated effort to expose Moscow's 'active measures' against Americans |url=https://meduza.io/en/feature/2017/08/03/tracking-russian-propaganda-in-real-time |accessdate=March 14, 2018 |work=Meduza}} Responding to what ASD viewed as inaccurate reporting on its dashboard, ASD's communications director, Bret Schafer, stated in a piece published on The Daily Caller they don't specifically track automated bot accounts. Schafer noted "that results on the dashboard are meant to be viewed in a nuanced way" and that not all instances of information appearing on the dashboard were evidence of pro-Kremlin accounts or biases.{{cite web |last1=Sinnenberg |first1=Jackson |title=Twitter Files 15 furthers the misunderstanding of 'Hamilton 68' |url=https://abcnews4.com/news/nation-world/twitter-files-15-furthers-the-misunderstanding-of-hamilton-68-russian-disinformation-the-daily-caller-right-wing-talking-points-social-media-mainstream-media-nuance-methodolgy-extremism-donald-trump-matt-taibbi-research-interference-trolls-bots |website=The National Desk |access-date=31 January 2023 |date=31 January 2023}}

The original version of Hamilton 68 was shut down in 2018.

Version 2.0 of the Hamilton 68 Dashboard, released in 2019, tracks approximately 600 Twitter social media accounts that the ASD asserts can be "directly attribute[d] to the Russian, Chinese, or Iranian governments or their various news and information channels".{{Cite web |last=Schafer |first=Bret |date=2019-09-03 |title=Hamilton 2.0 Methodology & FAQs |url=https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/hamilton-2-0-methodology-faqs/ |access-date=2023-01-27 |website=Alliance For Securing Democracy |language=en-US}} The list of Twitter accounts currently tracked by Hamilton 2.0 has been released.{{Cite web |last=Nigro |first=Nick |title=Hamilton Monitored Accounts on Twitter |url=https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/hamilton-monitored-accounts-on-twitter/ |access-date=2022-04-23 |website=Alliance For Securing Democracy |language=en-US}}

In September 2017, and again in May of 2021, the group launched similar German-language dashboards focused on possible Russian influence in German politics ahead of the federal elections in those respective years.{{cite web |last1=Nigro |first1=Nick |title=2021 German Elections Project |url=https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/2021-german-elections/ |website=Alliance For Securing Democracy |access-date=27 December 2021}}{{cite web |last1=Nigro |first1=Nick |title=German Election Dashboard |url=https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/german-election-dashboard/ |website=Alliance For Securing Democracy |access-date=27 December 2021}}{{cite news |last1=Masis |first1=Julie |title=Real-time tracking system measures Russian interference in German elections |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/dashboard-measures-how-russian-disinformation-is-interfering-in-german-elections/ |accessdate=September 28, 2017 |issue=September 24, 2017}}

In January 2023, journalist Matt Taibbi tweeted about internal Twitter documents related to Hamilton 68 as part of the Twitter Files. The documents show that Twitter's former Head of Trust and Safety, Yoel Roth, attempted to identify the accounts tracked in the dashboard. Roth found that only 36 of the 644 accounts he identified were registered in Russia and argued that the dashboard used "shoddy methodology" to incorrectly label authentic accounts as "Russian stooges without evidence". ASD responded to Taibbi's release a few days later, noting that ASD had always maintained that not all of the accounts on the dashboard were controlled by Russia, despite what it described as persistent misunderstandings in the media.{{cite web |last1=Sinnenberg |first1=Jackson |title=Twitter Files 15 furthers the misunderstanding of 'Hamilton 68' |url=https://abcnews4.com/news/nation-world/twitter-files-15-furthers-the-misunderstanding-of-hamilton-68-russian-disinformation-the-daily-caller-right-wing-talking-points-social-media-mainstream-media-nuance-methodolgy-extremism-donald-trump-matt-taibbi-research-interference-trolls-bots |website=The National Desk |access-date=31 January 2023 |date=31 January 2023}}{{cite web |last1=Covucci |first1=David |title=Why there's an uproar over 'Russian' tracking board Hamilton 68 |url=https://www.dailydot.com/debug/hamilton68-twitter-russian-bots/ |website=The Daily Dot |access-date=31 January 2023 |date=30 January 2023}}{{Cite web |last=Soave |first=Robby |date=2023-01-27 |title=Twitter Files: Employees knew the media's favorite Russian bots list was fake |url=https://reason.com/2023/01/27/twitter-files-matt-taibbi-hamilton-68-russian-bots-fake/ |access-date=2023-01-27 |website=Reason.com |language=en-US}} The National Desk's Sinnenberg counters Taibbi's criticisms as being hyperbolic.

The Hamilton 68 Dashboard has been cited by many news outlets, including The New York Times,{{Cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/27/technology/twitter-russia-election.html |title = Twitter, with Accounts Linked to Russia, to Face Congress over Role in Election|newspaper = The New York Times|date = September 28, 2017|last1 = Wakabayashi|first1 = Daisuke|last2 = Shane|first2 = Scott}} The Washington Post,{{cite news|first1=Elizabeth|last1=Dwoskin|first2=Craig|last2=Timberg|accessdate=2019-10-02|title=Lawmakers press social media companies — again — on the forces behind the #ReleaseTheMemo campaign|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2018/01/31/lawmakers-press-social-media-companies-again-on-the-forces-behind-the-releasethememo-campaign/|newspaper=Washington Post|date=2018-01-31|issn=0190-8286}} NPR,{{cite web|accessdate=2019-10-02|title=Tracking Shows Russian Meddling Efforts Evolving Ahead Of 2018 Midterms|url=https://www.npr.org/2018/02/08/584144083/tracking-shows-russian-meddling-efforts-evolving-ahead-of-2018-midterms|website=NPR.org}} and Business Insider.{{Cite web | url=http://www.businessinsider.com/russian-bots-support-fox-news-host-laura-ingraham-amid-advertiser-exodus-2018-3 |title = Russian bots are rallying behind embattled Fox News host Laura Ingraham as advertisers dump her show|website = Business Insider|date = April 2018}} The dashboard has received criticism for its "secret methodology"{{cite news |publisher=Rolling Stone |first=Matt |last=Taibbi |author-link=Matt Taibbi |title=The new blacklist |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/the-new-blacklist-202612/ |date=5 March 2018}} and refusal to disclose the Twitter accounts it tracks.{{cite news |last=Ingram |first=Mathew |date=February 21, 2018 |title=The media today: Are Russian trolls behind everything? |work=Columbia Journalism Review |url=https://www.cjr.org/the_media_today/russian-trolls.php |accessdate=June 16, 2018}}{{cite news |publisher=The Intercept |first1=M.C. |last1=McGrath |first2=Glenn |last2=Greenwald |authorlink2=Glenn Greenwald |date=20 April 2018 |url=https://theintercept.com/2018/04/20/how-fake-news-and-western-propaganda-about-russian-interference-in-catalonia-coerced-ecuador-to-silence-julian-assange/ |accessdate=6 July 2018 |title=How shoddy reporting and anti-Russian propaganda coerced Ecuador to silence Julian Assange}} ASD founders Laura Rosenberger and Jamie Fly said that the accounts are not disclosed to prevent Russia from shutting them down.{{cite web |last1=Glasser |first1=Susan B. |title=The Russian Bots Are Coming. This Bipartisan Duo Is On It. |url=https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/02/26/russia-social-media-bots-propaganda-global-politico-217084/ |website=Politico |access-date=31 January 2023 |date=26 February 2018 |quote=Rosenberger and Fly disclose their methodology on their website and say they can't reveal the list of the 600 accounts they are following or the Russians will simply shut them down.}} James Carden wrote in The Nation that the dashboard seemed to characterize factual news items as Russian propaganda and questioned its impact on political discourse.{{cite news |title=Our Russia fixation is devolving into an assault on political discourse |first=James |last=Carden |publisher=The Nation |date=7 August 2017 |url=https://www.thenation.com/article/our-russia-fixation-is-devolving-into-an-assault-on-political-discourse/ |access-date=June 25, 2018 |archive-date=December 7, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191207141420/https://www.thenation.com/article/our-russia-fixation-is-devolving-into-an-assault-on-political-discourse/ |url-status=dead }}

The ASD is governed by an Advisory Council and an operating staff who are drawn from the American Marshall Fund. The Washington Post called the membership of the advisory council "a who's who of former senior national security officials from both [the Democratic and Republican] parties." Members of the advisory council include Michael Chertoff (a Republican who worked in the George W. Bush administration as U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security) and Mike McFaul (a Democrat who worked in the Obama administration as U.S. Ambassador to Russia),{{Cite web|url=https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/about-us/advisory-council/|title=Advisory Council|first=Nick|last=Nigro|access-date=October 2, 2019|archive-date=March 23, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220323044229/https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/about-us/advisory-council/|url-status=dead}} former Estonian president Toomas Hendrik Ilves,{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/josh-rogin/wp/2017/07/11/national-security-figures-launch-project-to-counter-russian-mischief/ |title=National security figures launch project to counter Russian mischief |first=Josh |last=Rogin |date=July 11, 2017 |newspaper=The Washington Post |accessdate=June 25, 2018}}{{cite web |url=http://www.gmfus.org/press-releases/alliance-securing-democracy-launches-gmf |title='Alliance for Securing Democracy' Launches at GMF |date=July 11, 2017 |publisher=German Marshall Fund |accessdate=June 25, 2018}} neoconservative political analyst and commentator William Kristol, and Hillary Clinton's former foreign-policy adviser Jake Sullivan.{{cite journal |url=https://www.thenation.com/article/our-russia-fixation-is-devolving-into-an-assault-on-political-discourse/ |title=Our Russia Fixation Is Devolving Into an Assault on Political Discourse |first=James |last=Carden |date=August 7, 2017 |journal=The Nation |accessdate=June 25, 2018 |archive-date=December 7, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191207141420/https://www.thenation.com/article/our-russia-fixation-is-devolving-into-an-assault-on-political-discourse/ |url-status=dead }}

In a 2017 article in The Atlantic, Peter Beinart argued that ASD's efforts were important in understanding Russia's involvement in American politics.{{cite news |title=Donald Trump's Defenders on the Left |first=Peter |last=Beinart |work=The Atlantic |date=July 23, 2017 |accessdate=June 16, 2018 |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/07/russia-trump-left/534534/}} Glenn Greenwald wrote that ASD represented a political alliance between neoconservatives and establishment Democrats.{{cite news |url=https://theintercept.com/2017/07/17/with-new-d-c-policy-group-dems-continue-to-rehabilitate-and-unify-with-bush-era-neocons/ |last=Greenwald |first=Glenn |author-link=Glenn Greenwald |title=With New D.C. Policy Group, Dems Continue to Rehabilitate and Unify With Bush-Era Neocons |newspaper=The Intercept |date=July 17, 2017 |accessdate=August 6, 2017}}{{cite news |first=Katrina |last=vanden Heuvel |title=The emerging unholy alliance between hawkish Democrats and neoconservatives |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-emerging-unholy-alliance-between-hawkish-democrats-and-neoconservatives/2017/08/08/3c1c7676-7bb5-11e7-9d08-b79f191668ed_story.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=August 8, 2017 |accessdate=June 16, 2018}}{{cite news |title=Are Democrats turning to an alliance between neocons and neoliberals? If so, it's a terrible strategy |first=Conor |last=Lynch |newspaper=Salon |date=January 24, 2017 |accessdate=June 16, 2018 |url=https://www.salon.com/2017/07/24/are-democrats-turning-to-an-alliance-between-neocons-and-neoliberals-if-so-its-a-terrible-strategy/}}

• A Strategy for US Public Diplomacy in the Age of Disinformation, September 2023 (co-authored by Jessica Brandt, Bret Schafer, and Rachael Dean Wilson){{Cite web |date=2023-09-28 |title=A Strategy for US Public Diplomacy in the Age of Disinformation |url=https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/a-strategy-for-us-public-diplomacy-in-the-age-of-disinformation/ |access-date=2023-10-23 |website=Alliance For Securing Democracy |language=en-US}}
• Civil Society in Ukraine’s Restoration: A Guide to CSOs Mobilizing for a Marshall Plan, September 2023 (co-authored by Josh Rudolph, Elena Andreeva, Viacheslav Kurylo, and Vitalli Nabok){{Cite web |date=2023-09-26 |title=Civil Society in Ukraine's Restoration: A Guide to CSOs Mobilizing for a Marshall Plan |url=https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/civil-society-in-ukraines-restoration-a-guide-to-csos-mobilizing-for-a-marshall-plan/ |access-date=2023-10-23 |website=Alliance For Securing Democracy |language=en-US}}

• China and the Digital Information Stack in the Global South, April 2022 (co-authored by Bryce Barros, Nathan Kohlenberg, and Etienne Soula){{Cite web |date=2022-06-15 |title=China and the Digital Information Stack in the Global South |url=https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/china-digital-stack/ |access-date=2023-10-23 |website=Alliance For Securing Democracy |language=en-US}}

• PropOrNot

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