The moves could have national security implications, experts warn, granting US adversaries such as Russia and China more freedom to sow disinformation as geopolitical rivalries intensify.
The National Science Foundation recently cancelled hundreds of research grants that it said were “not aligned” with the agency’s priorities, including projects focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) as well as misinformation and disinformation.
“Shocking that understanding how people are misled by false information is now a forbidden topic,“ said Lisa Fazio, an associate professor of psychology at Vanderbilt University, confirming that her NSF grant to examine “how false beliefs form (and) how to correct them” had been cancelled.
Several of the terminated grants were focused on health misinformation as well as artificial intelligence and deepfake detection on tech platforms, researchers said, at a time when scams fueled by cheap and widely available AI tools are rapidly proliferating.
“Research on how technology impacts society is critical to holding powerful tech platforms accountable,“ said Becca Branum, a deputy director at the nonprofit Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT).
The cuts came just days after Secretary of State Marco Rubio shut down the State Department's Counter Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (R/FIMI) hub, which tracked and countered disinformation from foreign actors.
In a report this month, the anti-disinformation firm Alethea said it had uncovered a Russian network seeking to sow mistrust in US defense and military programs.
The R/FIMI was previously known as the Global Engagement Center (GEC), and once had dozens of employees operating with a budget of around $60 million.
'Truth and facts'
Its closing leaves the State Department without a dedicated office for tracking and countering disinformation from US rivals for the first time in over eight years.
The Trump administration is also targeting officials who had been examining foreign interference in US elections.
“As we approach 100 days of Trump 2.0, it’s harder than ever to believe that American politics -- and society writ large -- have reached a place where truth and facts are optional,“ said Shultz.
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