Counterfeit Authenticity

摘要

German-born political scientist Thomas Rid, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, has written a valuable history of "active measures" (AM), which he sees as mainly a product of Soviet intelligence (активные мероприятия or, anglicized, aktivnye meropriyatiya). The book is more than a history of disinformation, however. It is an insightful analysis of the political purposes, structures, and conduct of a major form of intelligence activity. Rid argues that AM have many uses but three core characteristics. They (1) are products of intelligence bureaucracies, (2) contain some element of disinformation, and (3) are designed to weaken an adversary. The latter included states and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), a special Soviet target in the spy-versus-spy wars of the Cold War. These characteristics mean that while operations' immediate goals are tactical-targeting persons and relatively small groups-the ultimate goal is strategically important political change.