An internal Facebook report is leaked to the MIT Technology Review. Its learned that almost all of the top Christian Facebook pages are run by troll farms in Eastern Europe. Evangelicals are being targeted by foreign powers. Its frightening because you think of how evangelicalism is an emotional theology system and along comes news that up to 75 million in the United States can be influenced by foreign troll farms.
“The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.“
Sun Tzu
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV
Late on Friday I learned something that is quite terrifying. What made it so frightening is that let’s be honest. Many evangelicals in the United States are sheep incapable of independent thought, or critical thinking skills. Its something I have to contend with in writing this blog. And in the context of what I am going to discuss in this post that sends chills down my spine. But let’s look at a leak that revealed a dark problem in Facebook.
A Dark Leak From a Facebook Employee and a Revelation About Eastern European Troll Farms
In October of 2019 Facebook did an internal report and the results were frightening. It was written by Jeff Allen who was the former senior data scientist for Facebook. The report revealed that foreign troll farms are reaching 140 million Americans on Facebook through disinformation. Keep in mind that the population of the United States is 329 million. The troll farms are located in Kosovo and Macedonia and they are targeting American Christians, who according to Facebook is one of the top groups being influenced. Of the top 20 Facebook pages, 19 are influenced by troll farms and are feeding 75 million Christians with disinformation. Even if a person is not in that Facebook group due to the algorithms used by the technology company the disinformation is reaching other people. The posts are intended to incite fear, be provocative and play to people’s concerns. “Our platform has given the largest voice in the Christian American community to a handful of bad actors, who, based on their media production practices, have never been to church,” as summarized by Jeff Allen. He went on and said, “This is not normal. This is not healthy. We have empowered inauthentic actors to accumulate huge followings for largely unknown purposes.”
A former Facebook employee who was not involved in writing the report but was aware of it took the document and leaked it to the MIT Technology Review which is a tech journal owned by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Below you can look at the list of the Christian groups that were managed and run by troll farms in Eastern Europe in 2019.
- MIT Technology Review, “Troll farms reached 140 million Americans a month on Facebook before 2020 election, internal report shows.“
- Relevant Magazine, “In 2019, Almost All of Facebook’s Top Christian Pages Were Run By Foreign Troll Farms.“
Deep Concerns About Evangelicals and Facebook
I’m frightened. I say that in all honesty. When I see the behavior by evangelicals whose thinking can be crafted by museums such as the Museum of the Bible or the ARK Encounter in Kentucky I’m bothered. Add on to that the culture war mentality by many evangelicals and think of organizations like Focus on the Family or the Family Research Council. Evangelicals in this country can become nothing but pawns of foreign powers committed to waging information warfare against the United States. I’m concerned about Facebook, but I am even more concerned about evangelicals sticking their head in the sand upon hearing this news. I mean stop and think about the following:
- A disinformation campaign by a troll farm telling evangelicals that vaccines are dangerous and have fetal tissue in the formula, which is false.
- Another campaign saying that the government is going to seize their churches or shut down Bible studies.
- How about a disinformation campaign aimed at Christians saying that Democrats want to convert the sex of their child in public schools.
- Then you can have a campaign saying that the Department of Education is going to arrest anyone who does not believe in evolution and those who subscribe to a young earth interpretation.
I mean..we’re talking about information warfare. Will evangelicals be able to pick up on this and detect it? I have my doubts.
Closing Thoughts
After reading this report and thinking about it now its clear to me why many evangelicals embraced Q Anon. I guess this also explains the behavior of some evangelical anti-vaxxers as well. They are not capable of thinking for themselves, and they are gullible and falling pray to foreign actors with malevolent interests. For me this is terrifying because evangelicalism as a theology system is an emotional movement. Its not based on reason, fact or logical thinking. Its based on emotion. And here comes along this troll farm situation and the potential for impact is frightening. Facebook needs to be proactive and this situation is a topic that should be on denominational agendas and seminary education. However, if this post is read by one of the troll farms in Eastern Europe this blogger has a request. Can you start a movement where evangelical women will start to wear make up like Tammy Faye? That would be funny if I start to hear reports that her makeup is back in style in evangelical churches.
Wondering Eagle 
“After reading this report and thinking about it now its clear to me why many evangelicals embraced Q Anon.”
You gotta get over this lie David. I know ZERO Evangelicals who pay attention to Q-
Anon. While I’m sure there must be some out there; their numbers are so tiny as to be statistically irrelevant.
I was looking at the list of troll farm sites; Didn’t recognize any of them and I’ve been active on Facebook.
I think this article is helpful
https://www.christianheadlines.com/blog/40-percent-of-evangelicals-rarely-or-never-go-to-church-study.html
The term “evangelical” has become so watered down as to be almost useless.
Your “Q Anon Evangelicals” are probable those who never go to church.
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I get your point about “who is an evangelical,” and agree with much of it. That dovetails with the analysis David French referenced a couple of weeks back that indicates that most of the new growth in the ranks of self-identified “evangelicals” consists of people who identify that way almost entirely because of their political beliefs, and in fact are not churchgoing or affiliated with any local church.
As far as Q goes, I agree that the evangelicals who directly seek out and follow Q material are a minority. But I think you underestimate the number of evangelicals who are *indirectly* influenced by this material as it spills over and is referenced by the media outlets and personalities and politicians they do follow. Same as you observe in your circles, I don’t observe many evangelicals in my circles directly following Q. But I do see a plenty who make comments and assertions that show they have at least been indirectly exposed to some of the Q agenda items.
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Last year, I caught a guy I know reciting Q Disinformation chapter-and-verse – literally Witnessing Q-Drops to me word-for-word. And when I kept asking him about QAnon, he didn’t know who QAnon was beyond he’d heard the name. He was getting his Absolute TRVTHs “from research on the Internet” – people he’d chummed with online, NOT directly from Q.
In rumors and urban legends, a couple links down the Telephone Game and the original source drops away like a spent booster, leaving the payload flying.
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senecagriggs: “I think this article is helpful….”
From ‘Christian Headlines’? Seriously?? Is ‘World Net Daily’ too secular for you? Ironically, you’re proving David’s point regarding disinformation.
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Ah, yes, World Net Daily.
CHRISTIAN(TM).
With Blame-the-Jews Buchanan and Pin-the-Tail-on-The-Antichrist Lindsay on staff.
Several years ago on a visit to the East Coast, I came across a Birther billboard — “Where’s the REAL Birth Certificate???” northbound on Route 15 between Gettysburg and Harrisburg, somewhere around York Springs. Looping back and slowing down for a better look, I noticed “WND” — World Net Daily’s logo — in the bottom right.
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I am not surprised. I come from a strict Roman Catholic family but my parents (at least) were capable of rational thought (my father had a BA in Physics & a Masters in Engineering). But while my siblings have remained Catholic, most of my cousins have gone the born-again evangelical route & they are absolutely incapable of any kind of rational, logical thought whatsoever … the ones who haven’t gone that way have gone the other way … totally woke. I don’t go to many family functions anymore.
I enjoy your blog & read every post. Thanks for writing.
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Same Fundamentalist mentality, different objects of Worship.
Like the True Believer Communists and True Believer Nazis in Germany, exactly one Strauss-Howe Generational Cycle ago. Where the only choice the nation had became one or the other, because nobody else had the clout to defeat the other.
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By “foreign powers”, I assume you mean Putin’s Boyz?
But COMMUNIST China is Our Enemy! Putin is Our Friend — Our LORD and God Trump, Our Savior from The SATAN-Worshipping Left, says so! Oceania Has Always Been At War With Eastasia! Oceania Has Always Been At Peace With Eurasia! Long Live Trump! He Shall Return To Rule With A Rod Of Iron! And His Kingdom Shall Have No End!
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https://www.christianpost.com/news/evangelical-leaders-denounce-qanon-as-political-cult-satanic-movement.html
[ Comments will often object to info found on a “right wing website” but the issue isn’t the politics of the site; the issue is “Did Al Mohler actually say that?” If he indeed he said that, then who cares what website accurately conveys his words.
If he said it, he said it.]
When Albert Mohler starts quoting Q-Anon, let me know. Otherwise, Q-Anon appears to have zero impact upon Evangelical leaders.
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They may denounce it but the ideas run rampant through the evangelical community. I doubt anyone knows what’s really “Q” or not as Q itself was a rip of the earlier Pizzagate conspiracy.
Maybe the satanic cult stuff associated with the Democratic party doesn’t have as much traction but the stolen election garbage sure did. Look how many Q flags, Jesus flags, Trump flags and Confederate flags were on Capitol Hill January 6.
Triplesix, I’m not evangelical or American but you guys scare me.
All these troll farms have to do is lob information grenades through select sites and you’re off at the races.
How the hell else does fish tank cleaner and horse dewormer become covid medicine? No doubt these troll farmers are enjoying a bumper crop.
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Just use the right Christianese buzzwords, trigger the pre-existing handles for Fear and Guilt Manipulation, season with hints of End Times and Spiritual Warfare and Demons and Satanic Illuminati Conspiracy, and you just wind them up and let them go.
Like the Last Temptation of Christ movie, where pissing off the Chrisitians and letting them go was the key to all this self-generating, self-sustaining free publicity.
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If any of you are actually living in fear of Evangelicals, I don’t know what to tell you. Upon what reason would you fear Evangelicals; It’s not like they occupy the halls of power; they simply don’t. There are none on the Supreme Court, there are none that are Presidents of secular universities etc., not sure any Senators are announced Evangelicals, you simply can’t find them in positions of governmental power. So why the fear?
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Why, yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus….
https://www.pewforum.org/2021/01/04/faith-on-the-hill-2021/
Let me ask you a question. Do you believe the “put to death” edicts in Leviticus should be the law of the land?
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Jack, do you believe Evangelicals are coming for your?
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You didn’t answer the question. That told me enough, Herr Verdreifachen Sechs.
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You seriously don’t think that evangelicals hold many offices and have an outsized impact on the direction of the Republican Party and in right-leaning media?
Here is some helpful perspective from a Christianity Today article discussing the breakdown of religious affiliations of the current Congress, of which 88% self-identifies as Christian, versus 65% of the US population as a whole:
“As fewer members belong to mainline denominations, a growing number of lawmakers have adopted the more generic “unspecified/other” Protestant label rather than associating with particular evangelical traditions, even a group like “nondenominational.”
The “other Protestant” designation continues to be the fastest-growing faith label in Congress and the second most popular behind “Catholic.”
In 2021, 18 new members of Congress fell into the “other Protestant” camp—over a quarter of all freshman lawmakers—bringing the total to 96. While just 5 percent of Americans use this label, 18 percent of Congress does.
As CT reported when the previous Congress was sworn in two years ago, “unspecified/other” applies to “those who say they are Christian, evangelical Christian, evangelical Protestant, or Protestant, without specifying a denomination” in the congressional questionnaire from CQ Roll Call, the basis for the Pew report.”
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“Other” doesn’t strike me as particularly devout. It seems more like convenient check of a box. I could be wrong.
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You usually are
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The Congresspeople aren’t specifying themselves as “other.” The pollsters are including in “unspecified/other” those who do not cite a denomination, i.e. those who identify themselves as Christian, evangelical Christian, evangelical Protestant, or Protestant, without specifying a denomination.
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Known as “Nondenominational”, i.e. “Fundamentalist Baptist with the labels painted over”.
Though where Muff & I hail from, “Nondenominational” means “Calvary Chapel or Calvary Chapel Clone”.
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The exact same subject as encountered on the Herman Cain Awards Reddit:
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WTF DID THAT COME FROM?
Second try Resending the link:
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