via the link from n**l ** A**.BELANOVSKY: All right, if we leave aside that crude kind of propaganda and, say, assume that social media can somehow be controlled, that propaganda on social media can be managed — how realistic is that, really, and how important is it? A**.NOSIK: **No, anyone can go out onto Red Square (Moscow’s central square) and shout that Nixon is an idiot. Absolutely. Anyone can write in Sasha’s comments or mine that Navalny drinks the blood of Christian babies. A.BELANOVSKY: But I mean some kind of broader policy. A.NOSIK: All right, but how exactly could someone make the three of us all write in our blogs on the same day, or say on our joint broadcast, that Navalny drinks the blood of Christian babies, if we don’t think that? Suppose someone allocated a serious budget to make everyone believe that Navalny drinks the blood of Christian babies. Suppose someone really wants that to come up on our broadcast right now, wants us to say it in unison. How could they achieve that? What mechanism of manipulation would force those words into our mouths? Sure, they can spam our blogs with comments like that, and get paid for it. But how can they make us say something we don’t believe? A**.PLYUSHCHEV: **Well, as it happens, we still have 30 seconds left to say in unison: Navalny drinks the blood of Christian babies. A.NOSIK: Let’s do it — three, four. ALL TOGETHER: Navalny drinks the blood of Christian babies! A.NOSIK: There, the budget has been spent. A.PLYUSHCHEV: I** think that was excellent. You wanted it — you got it. That was Anton Nosik… A**.NOSIK: **That was manipulation. Full version here: Social Media and Revolution