Skip to main content

Hillary Clinton asks 'great disruptors' of Silicon Valley to 'disrupt ISIS'

Hillary Clinton asks 'great disruptors' of Silicon Valley to 'disrupt ISIS'

Share this story

Speaking last night at Washington-based think tank the Brookings Institution, Hillary Clinton suggested that Silicon Valley and the government should work hand in hand to "disrupt" ISIS as the terrorist organization wages an online propaganda campaign. "Fight them in the air, fight them on the ground, fight them online," Clinton said during a speech and following question-and-answer session.

"They are now the most effective recruiter in the world," Clinton said of ISIS, saying that "we need to put the great disruptors to work in disrupting" the terrorist organization. Although Clinton made comments regarding encrypted apps and "all of the usual complaints" that stopped take-downs of online material — "freedom of speech, et cetera" — no specific plan seem to be laid out beyond having an ongoing conversation with technology companies.

The comments came at a moment when the Obama administration seems to be showing signs of rolling back its attempts to counter online ISIS propaganda. Last week, The Washington Post reported that the State Department would consider scaling down its messaging efforts following an apparently critical review issued by a panel with members of the technology industry.