"There is a powerful industry in character assassination for hire" Dr Emma L Briant

As Dr. Emma L. Briant, an expert in propaganda and information warfare—whose research played a key role in exposing the Cambridge Analytica–Facebook data misuse scandal—puts it: “There is a lucrative industry in character assassination for hire that powerful and wealthy individuals and companies can deploy to dredge up dirt and minimise the damage of assault allegations by attacking the accuser's credibility with PR or online astroturfing of support.” That’s precisely why smear campaigns have remained such an effective tool: they work not only to discredit individuals but to protect networks of power.

Survivors rarely have access to the legal firepower, PR teams, or political protection afforded to their alleged abusers. The reputational damage done by even a whisper campaign can take years to undo, that’s if it’s undone at all. Dr. Briant warns of the infrastructure that supports such efforts: “The media feed on conflict and scandal… This encourages men to seed the public discrediting of women with disparaging information.”