A Department of Homeland Security adviser issued a one-sentence statement saying the agency has “no need” to revive its Disinformation Governance Board. The board was headed by Nina Jankowicz but collapsed shortly after it was rolled out.
The White House announced the disinformation board in April. The board was already in operation two months before Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas informed Congress. Mayorkas said the new DHS board would combat disinformation spread by “foreign states such as Russia, China, and Iran.”
After the board was announced, Jankowicz was made its head. She is a self-labeled expert on disinformation. However, Jankowicz had previously promoted several infamous stories from the Russiagate conspiracy that were revealed as disinformation generated by the Hillary Clinton campaign.
Jankowicz also targeted the Hunter Biden laptop story in 2020. She boosted the evidenceless claim that the younger Biden’s laptop was disinformation from Russia meant to interfere in the coming presidential election.
On May 18, Jankoicz resigned and the board’s activities were paused.
The statement from the DHS advisory group suggests the agency’s leadership will not try to revive the disinformation board anytime. Most of the advisory group is appointed by the head of DHS.
The Washington Post reports the advisory group’s one-sentence statement was made during “the public section a meeting was held via audio only. Officials did not identify all the members on the call or respond to questions afterward.”
