Disinformation is the most potent tool for manipulating mass consciousness. While there is no shortage of innocent misinformation stemming from logical fallacies, wishful thinking, false assumptions, selective evidence, and outright ignorance, the difference is that disinformation intentionally exploits these weaknesses to shape the beliefs and actions of targeted audiences.
Disinformation is especially successful when its core agenda is bundled in the sincere convictions of disseminators who have their own vested interests for believing and defending it. For instance, a cold and calculating intelligence may engineer a disinformation package which is then propagated through a naive individual who finds it so appealing to his ego identity and emotional security that he will do everything to defend it. This allows a small and unseen group of disinformers to work through a vast body of unsuspecting vectors who sincerely believe in what they are doing.
Disinformation also uses selective truths to support false conclusions. Good reasoning may proceed from false premises, fallacious twists of logic are used, or reasoning is discouraged altogether and the conclusion is asked to be taken on emotional appeal or the authority of its purported source. Disinformation has no problem throwing strategic gambits, revealing genuine but convenient truths to make its case if the payoff is bigger than the sacrifice.
