Disrupt Disinformation with Indivisible

Truth Brigade Tactics and Resources

  • 650,000,000+ Social Media

    and as many on Facebook plus offline conversations

  • 14% of Misinfo-Spreaders

    shift their thinking – with just one Indivisible Truth Sandwich message

  • 90+ Trainings Held

    and thousands of people have learned to open minds, online and offline

  • 13,000+ People

    have joined the Truth Brigade with members in every state!

Woman holding a sign that reads "Above all else Democracy"

Indivisible Disinformation Disruption

Grassroots-powered lie-stopping. Person by person, mind by opened mind. We know grassroots volunteers can throw a meaningful wrench into the democracy-destroying lie machine, and, for more than five years, our Truth Brigade program developed, trained and mobilized thousands of people to do just that. Indivisible is now integrating disinformation-disruption strategies across the organization, and no longer launching new Truth Brigade trainings or message campaigns. However, our evidence-based disinformation-countering tools and tactics are evergreen, and yours to access here.

Take the fight against disinformation to where it goes viral – on social media. Here are hundreds of messages you can personalize and share with a click. See all the messages by clicking on the right arrow ( >) in the margin, or by heading over to our social media sharing platform.

To send your message immediately, first choose your network–like Facebook, or Bluesky– by clicking the little triangle by the network name you see. It's in the same line as “Select social network.” Then click the “Share on …” button. You’ll get the hang of it!

Disrupt Disinfo on Social Media

 

Resources

Watch this space over the next few months for Truth Brigade archives, including legacy campaigns, toolkits and videos.

Pushing Positivity

Volunteers are the lifeblood of the Truth Brigade. 

Truth Brigade messaging tactics rest on the power of authentic, positive conversations. Volunteers learn to find common ground with people who are misinformed, and to encourage those people to check the sources of disinformation before sharing. We shift mindsets and open hearts – that’s why so many volunteers stick around and bring in more people.

Frequently Asked Questions

Through disrupting disinformation, we hope to help reclaim a civil society built on the shared value of the pursuit of objective truths. The primary role of the Truth Brigade in this space is to mobilize and train grassroots activists to disrupt the flow of disinformation and misinformation through peer-to-peer sharing of consistent messages and tactics that:

  • Discourage interaction with disinformation, so it loses momentum, and
  • Encourage critical thinking, so our work extends beyond any single message and empowers individuals to question before clicking

We did a whole bunch of research, and everything we recommend is vetted--daily--by independent advisors who study disinformation and how to combat it. Here are a few studies and other resources we found helpful in developing our tactics--find more about best practices in fighting the lies in our Welcome Guide:

Peer-to-peer persuasion works better than bots or bad actors

Start and end messages with the truth: from George Lakoff and the Debunking Handbook 2020

The psychology of disinformation -- 3 part series

Not clicking, commenting or sharing can stop the lies from rising to the top of social media feeds: from Sprout Social and Business Insider.

This MIT study describes how most disinformation is shared inadvertently online, how thinking critically disrupts the sharing of disinformation exponentially, and how many people will think more critically and refrain from sharing misinformation for the long haul with just one correction

Find common ground to open minds: Race/Class Narrative recommendations

All of this suggests that real people sharing, with trusted contacts, strategically-written truthful content that exposes bad actors is the most effective tactic individuals can employ to make folks stop and think, and thereby disrupt the flow of the lies.

Truth Brigaders share messages online within their existing personal networks (as well as offline). Most people wonder whether an in-network message can really stop the spread of disinformation outside their communities–outside what is sometimes called their “bubbles.” The answer is YES. You make an impact even if most of your contacts see the world as you do. Disinformation seeps into our minds no matter who we are. Reinforcing the truth is always important. And most misinformation is spread accidentally! Reminding people to think before sharing disrupts disinformation across the board. Most importantly–every bubble includes a spectrum of beliefs at any time, even if most lean one direction. By encouraging your full network to think critically, you share an important lesson that people on the fringes of your network may well share with their networks, in an ever-growing ripple of positivity and persuasion.

Aha! Sounds like you need to read Using the “Indivisible Truth Sandwich”.

Oh, wow, we love that question, so glad you clicked! After you have attended a couple of our webinars and drafted a few of your own messages, get in touch with us at TruthBrigade@Indivisible.org and we'll provide guidance. Many Indivisible groups incorporate small working groups to fight disinformation into their regular meetings, where a couple members attend Truth Brigade calls and report back to the full group. Some groups hold message-creation virtual parties each month. And others join together to launch statewide disinformation-disruption campaigns. It's up to you to determine what works best for you, and we're here to support you.