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| Addressing Disinformation Overseas, at 16 (May 2017).; Polygraph.info, About https:// www.polygraph.info/p/5981.html (visited Dec. 15, 2017). These efforts include monitoring, fact-checking, promoting objective news content, and providing training and grants to improve skills in media literacy and investigative journalism. The National Endowment for Democracy (NED, for example, has increased support for media literacy programs in the Baltics and Eastern Europe that address Russian disinformation. The GEC is tasked with coordinating counter-disinformation efforts across the US. government and includes personnel from the Department of Defense, Department of Treasury, Central Intelligence Agency, National Security Agency, National Counterterrorism Center, and the Broadcasting Board of Governors. around-the-clock breaking news coverage and original programming. RFE/RL and VOA also produce other regionally-focused programming, such as Crimea Realities, a weekly show that features news and stories on life in Crimea under increasingly authoritarian governance Schemes, a weekly investigative news program that reports on corruption throughout Ukraine and See Both Sides, a weekly show that explores the differences in how media indifferent regions—especially Russian state-owned media—cover the same news stories. 843 BBG has also contracted with PBS to bring almost 400 hours of US. public media programming to Estonia, Lithuania, and Ukraine. 844 Bringing more high-quality US. educational and entertainment content to broadcasters in Russia’s periphery can help displace Russian television content, which is licensed for next- to-nothing but often comes with obligations to also broadcast Krem- lin-sponsored news programs. In addition to TV programming, RFE/RL and VOA create Rus- sian-language video content for social media and mobile platforms, mostly aimed at youth, and operate a fact-checking website, Poly- graph.info. 845 Polygraph focuses on fact-checking statements on relations between Russia and the West, however, the website is only in English, severely limiting its ability to reach Russian-speaking audiences in Europe. 846 ASSESSING THE STATE DEPARTMENTS GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT CENTER In contrast to many European countries, especially the Baltic and Nordic states, the US. government still lacks a coherent, public strategy to counter the Kremlin’s disinformation operations abroad and at home. Instead, it has a patchwork of offices and programs tasked with mitigating the effects of Kremlin disinformation operations. 847 At the direction of the US. Congress, the central hub for these activities is the Global Engagement Center (GEC), within the State Department. 848 In December 2016, Congress expanded the GEC’s mandate from countering terrorist communications to include foreign state and non-state propaganda and VerDate Mar 15 2010 04:06 Jan 09, 2018 Jkt PO 00000 Frm 00155 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6601 S:\FULL COMMITTEE\HEARING FILES\COMMITTEE PRINT 2018\HENRY\JAN. 9 REPORT FOREI-42327 with DISTILLER 150 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017, PL. 114-328, Section 1287, Enacted Dec. 23, 2016. The GEC’s state-sponsored propaganda mandate includes Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran, with different teams dedicated to each. 851 Nahal Toosi, ‘‘Tillerson Spurns $80 Million to Counter ISIS, Russian Propaganda Politico, Aug. 2, 2017. 852 Nahal Toosi, ‘‘Tillerson Moves Toward Accepting Funding for Fighting Russian propaganda Politico, Aug. 31, 2017. Committee Staff Discussion with GEC Officials (2017). disinformation efforts that target the US. and its interests. 849 However, alack of urgency and self-imposed constraints by the current State Department leadership has left the effort in limbo. Launched in March 2016, the GEC is the latest in a line of State Department attempts to coordinate interagency counter-messaging efforts. 850 Recognizing the severity of the disinformation threat and the additional resources needed to counter it, Congress increased the GEC’s budget by nearly threefold by enabling the State Department to request up to $60 million a year from the Department of Defense (DoD), and gave the GEC new hiring and grant-making authorities. GEC officials planned to use about half of those new funds on countering Kremlin disinformation, and a quarter of the new funds to increase the organization’s data science capability currently the GEC works across four lines of effort messaging partnerships, content planning, government coordination, and data analysis. But Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was slow to approve the additional funding, with one of his top aides reportedly concerned that the extra money would anger Moscow. 851 After coming under pressure from Congress, Tillerson eventually approved $40 million, but inexplicably rejected another $20 million that could have been used to counter Russian disinformation. 852 The GEC was also hamstrung by the Department’s hiring freeze, kept in place by Tillerson, which prevented the hiring of new personnel to meet the office’s expanded mandate and mission. In the State Department, the GEC reports to the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, a position for which the Trump Administration waited nearly eight months to announce a nominee. As of publication of this report in January 2018, the Administration has yet to fill the Special Envoy and Coordinator of the GEC, suggesting that the Administration does not consider the GEC’s new mission of countering foreign state propaganda a priority. The Administration’s lackadaisical approach to staffing these positions and providing leadership to US. efforts to fight Kremlin disinformation stands in sharp contrast to the accelerating nature of the threat. As one GEC official put it, every week we spend on process is a week the Russians are spending on operations.’’ 853 The GEC has a critical role to play in closing the gaps in the US. government’s efforts to counter the Kremlin’s disinformation operations. New funding and grant-making authorities delegated to the GEC should be used to support existing, effective organizations in Russia’s periphery engaged in monitoring disinformation, promoting media literacy, and producing objective news content and investigative journalism. These organizations would benefit greatly from additional funding that would enable them to expand operations and reach larger audiences. To ensure that the GEC is fulfilling its objectives and funds are used as intended, Congress must be vigilant in monitoring the GEC’s progress and effectiveness if VerDate Mar 15 2010 04:06 Jan 09, 2018 Jkt PO 00000 Frm 00156 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6601 S:\FULL COMMITTEE\HEARING FILES\COMMITTEE PRINT 2018\HENRY\JAN. 9 REPORT FOREI-42327 with DISTILLER 151 Two offices in the State Department conduct audience research around the world to inform public diplomacy messaging efforts The Office of Opinion Research, located within the Bureau of Intelligence and Research, and the Office of Policy, Planning, and Resources, located within the Office of the Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. The Department of State also launched a Russian-language Twitter feed into enable US. diplomats to share official statements directly with Russian-speaking audiences (some analysts report that this Twitter account only appeals to a very limited audience. 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