Centralized Control of Information, i.e. Censorship and Narrative Control

Quite a few of the speakers at the Event 201 simulation (hosted by the Johns Hopkins Center in partnership with World Economic Forum [WEF] and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) spoke of the need for the centralized control of information during a pandemic, including one speaker Lavan Thiru (described as a Monetary Authority of Singapore) who mentioned “a step up from the part of the government on enforcement actions against fake news.“

There were some who said Big Tech is a no longer a platform but a broadcaster and must be made to combat fake news. Another speaker in typical fashion demonized conspiracy theories.

Here is a quote directly from the simulation/make-believe event (which came true 6 weeks later): “Disinformation and misinformation are wreaking havoc … pharmaceutical companies are being accused of introducing the … virus so they can make money on drugs and vaccines, and have seen public faith in their products plummet.

Unrest due to false rumors and divisive messaging is rising, and is exacerbating spread of the disease as levels of trust fall, and people stop cooperating with response efforts. This is a massive problem, one that threatens governments and trusted institutions.

National governments are considering or have already implemented a range of interventions to combat misinformation. Some governments have taken control of national access to the internet; others are censoring websites and social media content, and a small number have shut down internet access completely to prevent the flow of misinformation. Penalties have been put in place for spreading harmful falsehoods, including arrests.“

The plan is to continue the censorship which Big Tech has been spearheading for years now, using the excuse of harmful “fake news” by claiming that the dissemination of false information during an emergency is a bigger problem than usual and must be stopped.

Some other quotes:

“I do think that there needs to be sort-of an honest broker, a centralized command-and-control organization that really brings together the public-private sector, both on a global approach and also on a local approach …”