New 'disinformation' board paused amid free speech questions

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, speaks during a Senate Appropriations - Subcommittee on Homeland Security, Wednesday, May 4, 2022, on Capitol Hill in Washington. The Department of Homeland Security paused the work of its new disinformation governance board Wednesday. The move responds to weeks of criticism from Republicans and questions about whether the board would impinge on Americans’ free speech rights. A statement says DHS’ advisory board on homeland security will review the board’s work.  (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, speaks during a Senate Appropriations - Subcommittee on Homeland Security, Wednesday, May 4, 2022, on Capitol Hill in Washington. The Department of Homeland Security paused the work of its new disinformation governance board Wednesday. The move responds to weeks of criticism from Republicans and questions about whether the board would impinge on Americans’ free speech rights. A statement says DHS’ advisory board on homeland security will review the board’s work. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)

By NOMAAN MERCHANT and AMANDA SEITZ

Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday paused a new and controversial board's work on disinformation and accepted the resignation of its leader, capping weeks of concerns about impinging on free speech rights and at times frenzied conspiracy theories about the board itself.

What remains to be seen is whether the debate over the board will damage ongoing U.S. efforts to counter disinformation used as a weapon by Russia and other adversaries. Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas acknowledged the board had become a distraction to the department's other work, which includes safeguarding U.S. elections, two officials familiar with his decision said.

The Disinformation Governance Board's director, Nina Jankowicz, wrote Wednesday that the board's future was "uncertain," according to a resignation letter obtained by The Associated Press.

While the board has not formally been shuttered, it will be reviewed by members of a DHS advisory council that's expected to make recommendations in 75 days. The Washington Post first reported the board's pause.

Federal and state agencies treat disinformation as a national security threat. In a statement announcing its launch, DHS said the new initiative would coordinate efforts around threats of Russian disinformation campaigns aimed at the U.S. and false claims that encourage migrants to travel to the U.S.-Mexico border.

But the new board was hampered from the start by questions about its purpose, funding and work with an uneven rollout that further confused its mission. Mayorkas struggled to answer questions about the board's work in front of lawmakers on Capitol Hill earlier this month.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre noted the board had never met and neither the department nor Jankowicz had any power to censor or remove content labeled as disinformation.

DHS officials had tried to quell concerns about how the board would impact issues of free speech and online privacy by describing it as an internal working group intended to study definitions of disinformation across the department.

But opponents remained unconvinced about the board's work and purpose.

Sen. Mitt Romney, a Utah Republican, told Mayorkas the board was a "terrible idea" that "communicates to the world that we're going to be spreading propaganda in our own country."

Experts on disinformation warned the controversy around the board could hurt existing efforts to identify and stop the spread of false narratives about elections and hot-button issues in American society.

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