Trust Engineering: Algorithmic Measurement of Media Messaging Integrity

This white paper introduces trust engineering as an emerging discipline that treats trust not as a philosophical abstraction, but as a measurable, auditable property of digital information systems. Powered by recent advances in artificial intelligence, trust engineering aims to embed transparency, accountability, and resilience directly into the architecture of public communication infrastructure. As a practical application, we present a prototype Propaganda Detection Engine (PDE)—a modular system designed to detect and evaluate manipulative content using explainable AI, provenance tracking, and dynamic trust scoring. The PDE serves as both a technical testbed and a civic prototype for trust engineering in action. This work proposes a scalable, open, and ethically grounded approach for strengthening the credibility of public discourse. By translating trust into quantifiable system behavior, we enable institutions, platforms, and communities to resist manipulation and promote truthful, resilient communication in an era of information warfare.