ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that the market’s failure was not as significant as is often portrayed and that it is less vulnerable to foreign interference than many believe. In the wake of the 2016 presidential election, American intelligence services unanimously concluded that Russia used social media and other means in an effort to polarize the American electorate and to help Donald Trump win the election. Nationalists of both parties benefit from calling the United States the “greatest country” in the world, not because the statement is accurate, but because it strikes a deep emotional chord with most Americans. Contrary to the predictions of the marketplace of ideas model, a growing number of Americans have embraced this position and the number of children not being immunized is steadily rising. The American marketplace is certainly quite defenseless in one sense; there is no way to prevent actors from introducing malicious messages into the public sphere.
