"So they're just getting more and more brazen the more confident they feel about how propaganda-addled and submissive the population has become. " This is a really negative interpretation of what's going on. I'd say it's more that they know what the asset is worth and who values it, and have decided there's not much point in trying to be subtle or secretive anymore: the people who still believe these sources are likely to do so regardless, and the ones who are lost are going to stay lost. I find they idea that the believers aren't going to budge regardless counter-intuitive, but you can be sure they've considered the question.
"So they're just getting more and more brazen the more confident they feel about how propaganda-addled and submissive the population has become. " This is a really negative interpretation of what's going on. I'd say it's more that they know what the asset is worth and who values it, and have decided there's not much point in trying to be subtle or secretive anymore: the people who still believe these sources are likely to do so regardless, and the ones who are lost are going to stay lost. I find they idea that the believers aren't going to budge regardless counter-intuitive, but you can be sure they've considered the question.