Articles by Helle Dale

InternationalAnalysis

Press Freedom Is Under Attack Around the World

Helle Dale | April 27, 2016

The 2016 edition of the World Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders is out, and the news is not good. According to the group,… Read More

InternationalCommentary

The Russian Propaganda War on Reality

Helle Dale | April 18, 2016

The Russian government’s reliance on propaganda to advance its aggressive agenda and control its own population should give the West pause before partnering with Vladimir Putin…. Read More

InternationalCommentary

Why We Stand With Belgium

Helle Dale | March 23, 2016

Landmarks in major Western countries were illuminated last night in a show of solidarity with the victims in Brussels and the people of Belgium. In… Read More

SecurityCommentary

Obama Administration Reshuffles Counterterrorism Strategies

Helle Dale | March 23, 2016

Tuesday’s terrorist attack during Brussels’ morning rush hour was horrific proof again that Islamist terrorists are waging war on Europe and the United States. Islamic… Read More

SecurityCommentary

Broadcasting Reform Is Urgently Needed To Fight ISIS

Helle Dale | February 29, 2016

The U.S. government desperately needs new and better tools to fight the information war against the Islamic State (ISIS) and other terrorist networks. One such… Read More

SecurityCommentary

Why ISIS Has Threatened the CEOs of Facebook and Twitter

Helle Dale | February 27, 2016

U.S. social media companies are taking steps to curb support for terrorist causes on their websites. According to news reports, both Facebook and Twitter have rooted… Read More

InternationalCommentary

A Chilling Account of Vladimir Putin’s Brutal Regime

Helle Dale | February 01, 2016

For anyone who ever harbored doubts about the brutal nature of the Russian regime, an afternoon reading the newly published British report of the death… Read More

PoliticsCommentary

Why the US Should Look to the Leadership of Churchill and Thatcher

Helle Dale | January 25, 2016

At a time when the United States faces multiple dangers from abroad, a lack of presidential leadership has many Americans deeply unnerved. However, it does… Read More

PoliticsCommentary

4 Issues Benghazi Committee Is Focused On

Helle Dale | January 13, 2016

The House Select Committee on Benghazi, far from intimidated by its critics, is plowing ahead with a heavy schedule. Last week, former CIA Director Gen…. Read More

SecurityCommentary

Congress Must Exercise Oversight of Obama Strategy Against ISIS Social Media Propaganda

Helle Dale | December 09, 2015

Terrorists’ use of social media has turned the Internet into a battlefield unlike any we have seen before. As a tool for terror, propaganda, and… Read More

InternationalCommentary

Why John Kerry Should Apologize to France

Helle Dale | November 19, 2015

On Tuesday, Secretary of State John Kerry visited French President Francois Hollande to show American support to the French government. Unfortunately Kerry then proceeded to… Read More

InternationalCommentary

Iran’s New Wave of Anti-Americanism

Helle Dale | November 10, 2015

Tehran seems determined to demonstrate that the nuclear agreement struck by the Obama administration will not alter the nature of the Iranian regime one whit…. Read More

InternationalCommentary

New Emails: Benghazi Cover Story Continues to Unravel

Helle Dale | November 05, 2015

A new lot of emails released by the State Department on Halloween were so newsworthy that not even the holiday could drown it out. It… Read More

 InternationalPoliticsSecurityCommentary

Architects of Disaster: The Destruction of Libya

Helle Dale | October 30, 2015

Benghazi has been much in the news because of the long-awaited testimony by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. As important as it is to… Read More

InternationalCommentary

Russia and Iran Are Winning a War of Images in Syria

Helle Dale | October 27, 2015

The leaders of Russia and Iran both have ramped up their propaganda machines to project images of surging regional influence within Syria. This aggressive news… Read More

InternationalCommentary

Finally, Clinton Faces Panel on Benghazi: 5 Key Questions She Could Be Asked

Helle Dale | October 20, 2015

On Thursday, Hillary Clinton will make her long-awaited appearance before the House Select Committee on Benghazi. This will be a crucial moment in the Benghazi… Read More

InternationalCommentary

State Department Fumbles Response to Palestinian Violence

Helle Dale | October 19, 2015

For a brief moment the State Department got its reaction right to the Palestinian knife attacks against Israeli citizens last week. A very brief moment…. Read More

InternationalCommentary

Putin Begins Propaganda Blitz to Sell his Syrian Bombing Campaign

Helle Dale | October 15, 2015

The Russian government has launched an all-out media campaign to sell its involvement in Syria to the Russian people. On all official television channels (which… Read More

InternationalCommentary

US Still Without Strategic Focus in the Long War on Terror

Helle Dale | October 06, 2015

As incredible as it may sound, the U.S. government still lacks the capacity to coordinate its global counterterrorism strategy. This disturbing finding is reflected in… Read More

SecurityCommentary

Yes, the Benghazi Committee Has Been Important

Helle Dale | October 02, 2015

Critics of the House select panel probing the Benghazi attacks, and the news media in general, have had a field day as the committee concluded its… Read More

InternationalCommentary

Poll Shows Americans Ready for Tougher Approach to ISIS, al-Qaeda

Helle Dale | September 22, 2015

The cover of a new survey by Chicago Council of Global Affairs entitled “America Divided: Political Partisanship and US Foreign Policy” creates the impression that… Read More

InternationalCommentary

Putin Looks to Remove American Influences From Russia

Helle Dale | September 21, 2015

Last week the Russian government added one more issue to its growing heap of disputes with the United States. By pulling the plug on the… Read More

InternationalCommentary

3 Years After Benghazi Attack, Select Committee Hones in on Clinton Emails

Helle Dale | September 14, 2015

Bryan Pagliano, a State Department employee hired by Hillary Clinton to work on her controversial private email server, appeared before the House Benghazi Select Committee… Read More

InternationalCommentary

To Be Effective Against Terrorist Propaganda, US Broadcasting Needs Reform

Helle Dale | September 09, 2015

The strategic importance of countering the aggressive recruitment and propaganda campaigns of the Islamic State (ISIS) is indisputable, but can the U.S. government get its… Read More

InternationalCommentary

How to Combat Putin’s Propaganda War

Helle Dale | August 07, 2015

The war is on. Russian President Vladimir Putin has unleashed a vast information network across Central and Eastern Europe, as well as within the European… Read More

SecurityCommentary

How to Decode Terrorists’ Tweets

Helle Dale | July 30, 2015

With every new terrorist attack, the inevitable question we all end up asking is “why didn’t anyone see it coming?” Even with the increased experience… Read More

InternationalCommentary

Reeling From Suicide Bombing, Turkey Targets Twitter

Helle Dale | July 24, 2015

The Turkish government’s distrust of social media is well documented, so its reaction to Monday’s ISIS-inspired suicide bombing that killed 32 young Turks near the… Read More

SecurityCommentary

Why Are Russian Hackers Posing as ISIS Propagandists?

Helle Dale | July 24, 2015

The multi-front cyberspace information war in which we recently have found ourselves just got a little more complicated. A group which calls itself Cyber Caliphate,… Read More

InternationalCommentary

Russia Is Showing Cold War-Era Levels of Aggression

Helle Dale | July 13, 2015

President Obama’s nominee for chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Joe Dunford, startled members of the Senate Armed Services Committee last week when… Read More

InternationalCommentary

Think That News Story Online Is a Hoax? It May Be Written By Russian Propagandists

Helle Dale | June 10, 2015

Did you ever hear the one about the Columbian Chemicals factory in Centerville, La., blown up by ISIS terrorists on Sept. 11? Possibly not—because it… Read More