WASHINGTON − The State Department's Global Engagement Center, the highly touted nerve center for coordinating U.S. efforts to counter foreign disinformation – especially by Russia and China – shut down this week after becoming a lightning rod for conservative criticism. The mission of the GEC, as it is commonly known, was to “direct, lead, synchronize, integrate, and coordinate” the U.S. campaign against propaganda and disinformation efforts aimed at undermining or influencing the policies, security and stability of the U.S. and its allies. But the GEC, with a relatively tiny $60 million budget and staff of 120, was first criticized in 2023 by Elon Musk , the multibillionaire advisor to President-elect Donald Trump , as the " worst offender in U.S. government censorship & media manipulation." More: 'President-elect Musk': Elon's influence on display in government spending fight The GEC was initially included in a stopgap bill to fund the government past a Dec. 20 deadline , but GOP lawmakers deleted it from a last-minute bill ultimately passed by Congress. A State Department spokesperson said the GEC "will terminate by operation of law [by the end of the day] on December 23, 2024. The Department of State has consulted with Congress regarding next steps," the AFP news agency reported. GEC's origins in countering terrorist propaganda The GEC evolved from the Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications, established by the Obama administration in 2011 to counter online extremist recruitment and propaganda. An Obama 2016 executive order created the GEC to broaden its mission to include fighting disinformation by state and non-state actors. The GEC soon began to focus primarily on using high-tech tools such as social media analytics to identify and counter disinformation campaigns by Moscow and Beijing that were increasingly targeting Washington and its allies. It sought to broaden its impact by working with other U.S. agencies, foreign allies and the private sector. ‘Calling out China’ – and Russia too A Sept. 28, 2023 report by the GEC called out China for spending billions of dollars annually on foreign manipulation efforts. It detailed how Beijing employed “a variety of deceptive and coercive methods as it attempts to influence the international information environment.” The report said China extensively pushed propaganda , including through fake media and research papers "falsely blaming the United States for creating COVID-19." Those efforts falsely promoted China and the Chinese Communist Party's "desired narratives on issues such as Taiwan, its human rights practices, the South China Sea, its domestic economy, and international economic engagement.” More broadly, the GEC report said, China sought to leverage propaganda, censorship and “digital authoritarianism” to encourage foreign governments, journalists and civil society at large to accept its preferred narratives and avoid criticizing its conduct as it sought more influence on the global stage. The GEC also has published numerous hard-hitting criticisms of Russia. In 2020, the GEC has detailed how Russia spread conspiracy theories during the COVID-19 pandemic. It has called out the Kremlin for trying to sow chaos in U.S. And it has exposed Russian attempts to destabilize U.S. influence in Africa by spreading false claims about U.S. health programs. In September, it called out Moscow and its state-run media organization RT for using propaganda, disinformation – and sophisticated “cyber capabilities” – to sway the global community on issues like its war against Ukraine. More: Lara Trump, Kari Lake, other notable Republicans appeared on podcasts accused of Russia tie That effort by RT involved not only information operations but also covert influence and even military procurement efforts in targeting countries around the world, including in Europe, Africa, and North and South America, the GEC said in a Sept. 13 report. “When state or non-state actors spread disinformation, material deliberately meant to deceive or divide our public, they attack the very foundations of our free and open society,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in releasing the report. He laid out specific steps the Biden administration was taking “to hold accountable those who weaponize disinformation to undermine our democracy,” including coordinated crackdowns by the State, Justice and Treasury departments . In January, the GEC spearheaded an agreement to counter state-run disinformation campaigns that’s now backed by at least 21 countries including Spain, Poland, Finland and the West African nation of Côte d’Ivoire – and that could enable them to also create their own versions at home. Funding for the GEC ran into congressional opposition in 2024 by Republican lawmakers who claimed it was overstepping its authority by trying to silence conservative voices in the U.S. including pro-Trump influencers. Three ranking House Republicans wrote Blinken in July to accuse the GEC of straying from its statutory duty to counter propaganda and disinformation abroad. “Your Department refuses to acknowledge that ... any value the GEC provides is tempered by genuine concerns that the GEC is at best indifferent to, and at worst complicit in, an orchestrated and systematic effort to stretch the term ‘disinformation’ to encompass viewpoints that, among American progressives, are deemed to be politically disfavored or inconvenient...” the lawmakers wrote. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who co-authored the 2016 legislation that established the center, said such criticisms were unwarranted and politically motivated. He led the effort to save it from GOP shutdown , along with Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn. Former Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman is also a staunch supporter . “[The GEC] has played an indispensable role in combating Russian and Chinese disinformation,” Murphy said in October. “It would unnecessarily undermine U.S. national security if we eliminated this tool.” When Trump won a second term on Nov. 5, Republicans also retained control of the House and retook the Senate. The GEC tweeted its last on Dec. 18, praising the European Union for its “first-time use of designations under its Russia hybrid sanctions framework.” On Tuesday, the day before Christmas, the site went offline with this message: “This account is no longer in use as of 12/23/2024. For updates on the U.S. Department of State, please follow @StateDept .”
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The Los Angeles Chargers struggled with the New England Patriots for years but finally broke that curse last season with a sluggish 6-0 victory at Gillette Stadium. This year's Patriots have a poor record at 3-12 but have still been competitive in many of their games, so they would love to play spoiler to a team they have been playing since the AFL days. Because of a dominant stretch where Tom Brady was the guy in New England, the Patriots won 10 of 11 meetings against the Chargers. They held a seven-game winning streak over them until last season when the Chargers got the shutout win on the road. The Patriots lead the all-time series 27-16-2. The Chargers are looking for their first consecutive wins over the Patriots on the road since 1969-70. Chargers have fared well on the road against the Patriots Though winning consecutive games on the road against the Patriots has been rare, the Chargers have won nine times in New England. The Patriots hold a 14-9-1 all-time record against the Chargers at home. However, that number is a bit skewed. Seven of those nine wins came when the Patriots were the Boston Patriots with games coming before 1970 in the AFL. Since the merger, the Chargers have won just twice in New England... 2005 and last year. The Chargers did almost nothing offensively against the Patriots last year and won on the strength of two Cameron Dicker field goals. It will be interesting to see if the team has more success in Foxborough this time around. MORE CHARGERS CONTENT NFL Week 17 Expert Picks: Chargers vs. Patriots NFL Power Rankings: Chargers get little respect despite big win over Broncos Chargers wanted Diontae Johnson, but another team beat them out Los Angeles Chargers: 3 game balls from Week 16 win over Broncos Following win over Broncos, here is how Chargers clinch playoff spot this weekChristmas arrived early as the Lincoln Children’s Zoo has officially named its triplet red panda cubs that will soon be visible to the public. On Wednesday, the zoo introduced Juniper, Spruce and Cedar. The panda cubs — one female and two males — were born Aug. 10 to third-time mom Tián and second-time dad Rowan. Juniper is the female, and Spruce is the larger of the two males (because spruce trees are bigger than cedar trees). Zoo officials paired the panda naming contest with the annual Zoo Lights event and asked the public to submit holiday- or winter-themed name suggestions last week. More than a thousand name suggestions were submitted, with three sets of finalists selected for the public to vote on. Over 2,600 votes were submitted. The runner-up name suggestions were: Noelle, Jack and Nickolas; and Ruby Sue, Clark and Eddie. People are also reading... Rest assured, Nebraska volleyball fans: The missing fan behind the servers will be back Saturday Matt Rhule, Luke Fickell both downplay postgame encounter between Fickell, Donovan Raiola Arrest made in 55-year-old cold case of Nebraska teen stabbed to death Signing Day: Meet Nebraska volleyball's five-player 2025 class Wisconsin officer grabbing Donovan Raiola's arm a 'misunderstanding,' UW police say ‘I don’t care who’s played': Nebraska’s Dana Holgorsen on personnel changes at tight end Amie Just: Bring out the tissues — and the brooms — for Nebraska volleyball's emotional win Man found dead in north Lincoln, police say Cover Five: With pressure rising, Matt Rhule delivers Nebraska a bowl bid in Year 2 Nebraska GOP to seek hard-right social policies in 2025 legislative session Sound waves: What others are saying about Nebraska's win against Wisconsin Here's how Nebraska doctors are finding 'more opportunities to save lives' from lung cancer UNO freezes funds for LGBTQ+, multicultural, other student groups after audit Amie Just: Ahead of milestone birthday, local sports figures give advice on turning 30 As Nebraska's Democratic Party shrinks, some former party officials call for change "We loved getting the community involved in the naming of these incredibly rare red panda triplets," Evan Killeen, CEO of the zoo, said in a message to the Journal Star. While the red panda triplets -- like most other animals at the zoo -- won’t be visible to the public during the Zoo Lights event, the animals have slowly made some public appearances, and the zoo estimates the pandas will be in the exhibit full time by the end of the month. Red pandas face a very high risk of extinction in the wild, which is why they are listed as endangered on the International Union Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species. Erin Lenz, communications director for the zoo, said that so far this year, 12 red panda cubs have been born in zoos across North America. However, births of healthy triplets are rare. "In North American zoos, so far only three litters of red panda triplets have fully survived, including ours," Killeen said. "These red pandas are important animal ambassadors for their wild counterparts, and we're thrilled that our community had a part in naming them." The pandas join several other births at the Lincoln zoo this year, including a giraffe in November , a spider monkey in May and a Humboldt penguin chick in April . Zoo Lights Powered by LES begins Friday and runs through Dec. 30. Tickets can be purchased online at lincolnzoo.org .Garrett Wilson hints at 'losing problem' despite Aaron Rodgers making Jets breakthrough