Story by Annika Moody, ODNI Office of Strategic Communications
Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence Dr. Stacey Dixon discussed how the IC is addressing disinformation as part of the panel, “Disinformation: How Spies Can Help Find Truth,” at the annual South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas on March 14, 2022.
South by Southwest is a collection of conferences and festivals providing an intersection point for film, music, tech, education and culture. SXSW brings together a diverse group of people to foster new ideas and opportunities.
Suzanne Kelly from the Cipher Brief moderated while former Assistant Secretary for Intelligence and Research at the State Department Ellen McCarthy and former senior CIA analyst Teresa Smetzer joined Dr. Dixon on the panel.
Dixon spoke on how the Intelligence Community separates the truth from the noise.
“Intelligence analysts identify relevant, credible information to pierce the disinformation spread by both foreign state and non-state actors,” said Dixon.
Dixon also emphasized the importance of a diverse workforce from a variety of disciplines.
“[Analysts] understand that the most powerful antidote to biased thinking comes from seeking a diversity of expertise and engaging in inclusive analytic practices that leverage different perspectives.”
In addition to the panel, Dixon was able to visit the CIA and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency recruiting booths set up at SXSW. Dixon spent some time getting to know the recruiting teams and talking about how recruiting efforts were going.
Dixon will rejoin Smetzer, McCarthy, and Kelly also known as “The Sisterhood of Spies” for a virtual discussion open to the public via the Cipher Brief on April 13.