Opinion

Extremism thrives in 'keyboard courtroom' — America must think like jurors, not mobs

China, Russia and Iran spread divisive falsehoods as younger Americans struggle to assess what they see online

By Roy K. Altman Fox News

Published April 8, 2026 7:00am EDT

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The West is losing its ability to tell truth from falsehood, and the consequences are no longer abstract. What we’re witnessing is the rise of what I call the "keyboard courtroom," a digital arena in which out-of-context photos and doctored videos pass as "proof" and where moral judgments are rendered instantly, emotionally, and often incorrectly.

In the keyboard courtroom, terrorism is reframed as "resistance," victims are recast as "oppressors," and atrocities are dismissed as propaganda, while unverified claims spread unchecked. Our geostrategic enemies — China, Russia and Iran — play an outsized role, spreading divisive falsehoods. And a growing number of Americans, especially younger voters who get most of their news online, are ill-equipped to assess, at a baseline level, the veracity of what they’re seeing.

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