Disinformation and Elections

Watch

• How false news can spread - Noah Tavlin ↗TED-Ed
• How Social Media is Shaping Our Political Future | Victoria Bonney | TEDxDirigo ↗TEDx Talks
• How AI and deepfakes are changing politics | BBC News ↗BBC News
• The 10 tactics of fascism | Jason Stanley | Big Think ↗Big Think
• Facebook preparing measures to minimize disinformation and unrest before Election Day ↗CNBC Television

Read

• Propaganda ↗This foundational text reveals the enduring principles of public opinion manipulation, essential for understanding the historical roots of modern disinformation campaigns.Edward Bernays
• Active Measures: The Secret History of Disinformation and Political Warfare ↗A meticulous historical account of state-sponsored disinformation, from the Cold War to the digital age, illuminating its strategic evolution and persistent threat.Thomas Rid
• Network Propaganda: Manipulation, Disinformation, and Radicalization in American Politics ↗An incisive analysis of how partisan media ecosystems amplify disinformation and contribute to political polarization in the digital sphere.Yochai Benkler, Robert Faris, Hal Roberts
• The Hype Machine: How Social Media Disrupts Our Elections, Our Economy, and Our Health—and How We Must Adapt ↗Explores the mechanics of social media's influence on information spread, offering insights into how platforms can be both vectors for and antidotes to disinformation.Sinan Aral
• The Spread of True and False News OnlineThis landmark empirical study quantifies the alarming speed and reach of false news compared to true information on social media, offering crucial data for understanding online virality.Soroush Vosoughi, Deb Roy, Sinan Aral
• Social Media, Political Polarization, and Political Disinformation: A Review of the Scientific LiteratureA comprehensive review synthesising early academic findings on the interplay between social media, political division, and the proliferation of misleading content.Hunt Allcott and Matthew Gentzkow

Voices to follow

• Claire Wardle ↗Her work has been instrumental in defining and categorising disinformation, offering practical frameworks for journalists and researchers to combat its spread.Co-founder, First Draft News; Research Fellow, Shorenstein Center
• Renee DiResta ↗A leading voice in dissecting the mechanics of online propaganda and foreign influence operations, she illuminates the sophisticated tactics employed to manipulate public discourse.Research Manager, Stanford Internet Observatory
• Kathleen Hall Jamieson ↗A venerable scholar of political communication, she meticulously analyses the interplay between media, campaigns, and public understanding, often dissecting the rhetorical strategies that underpin electoral narratives.Director, Annenberg Public Policy Center; Professor, University of Pennsylvania
• Yochai Benkler ↗His extensive research maps the architecture of the networked public sphere, revealing how digital platforms can be weaponised to distort information flows and polarise electorates.Professor, Harvard Law School

Glossary

• Conspiracy TheoryThis is an explanation for an event or situation that suggests it was caused by a secret and often harmful plot by powerful people or groups. For example, believing that a major historical event was secretly planned by a hidden society, even without strong evidence.
• Critical ThinkingThis is the skill of carefully and objectively analyzing information, questioning assumptions, and forming a reasoned judgment rather than just accepting things at face value. For example, instead of believing every headline you see, you use critical thinking to check the source and look for other evidence.
• DeepfakeThis is a highly realistic but fake video or audio recording created using advanced artificial intelligence (AI) technology, often making it look like someone said or did something they never did. For example, a deepfake video could show a politician saying something controversial they never actually said, making it hard to tell it's fake.
• DisinformationThis is false information that is deliberately created and spread to trick people and cause harm, especially during elections. For example, someone might create a fake social media post claiming a candidate dropped out of the race, hoping fewer people vote for them.
• Echo ChamberThis happens when you only hear or see opinions and information that already match your own beliefs, often because you mostly interact with people who think like you. For example, if all your friends support the same sports team and you only talk about how great that team is, you're in an echo chamber for that topic.
• Election InterferenceThis refers to any actions taken by individuals, groups, or even other countries to unfairly influence or change the outcome of an election. For example, a foreign government might hack into a political party's emails to leak damaging information right before an election.
• Fact-checkingThis is the process of carefully checking if statements, claims, or information are actually true and supported by evidence. For example, before sharing a news story, you might use a fact-checking website to see if the claims in it have been verified by experts.
• Filter BubbleThis is a personalized world of information that internet algorithms create for you, showing you only content that they think you'll agree with or like, based on your past online activity. For example, if you often click on news about one political party, social media might start showing you mostly news from that party, even if you want to see other viewpoints.
• Media BiasThis occurs when news organizations or journalists report information in a way that favors one side, viewpoint, or political party over others, either intentionally or unintentionally. For example, if a news channel always highlights the negative stories about one political candidate and only positive stories about another.
• MisinformationThis is false information that is spread, but the person spreading it might not know it's false or intend to cause harm. For example, if your friend shares an incorrect news story they saw online, thinking it's true, that's misinformation.
• PropagandaThis is information, often biased or misleading, that is used to promote a specific political idea, cause, or candidate. For example, a political party might create posters that only show the good things about their candidate and only bad things about their opponents, trying to sway public opinion.
• Voter SuppressionThese are actions or laws that make it harder for certain groups of people to register or cast their votes in an election. For example, if a state closes many polling places in areas where a specific group of people lives, making it harder for them to get to a place to vote.

Threads 6

Where this connects to other fields, and why it's worth knowing.

• Orthodoxy and Heresy Religion

  Share a 'secret truth' that everyone else laughs at, and the people who believe it stick together even harder. So proving them wrong often makes them believe more. A lie spread this way builds a loyal group, the same way banned beliefs once built followers.

• Cryptography & Digital Security Mathematics

  A deepfake fools you because you can't check who really made a video. The fix reporters want, a hidden cryptographic stamp proving where a clip came from, is the same trust tech that keeps your bank app safe. Spotting fake videos and protecting your money turn out to be the same puzzle.

• The Scientific Method Science

  Casting doubt on election results and casting doubt on scientists use the exact same trick: flood people with fake uncertainty. And both fight back the same way, by having others check and repeat the work until the truth holds up.

• Game Theory & Strategy Mathematics

  A liar just blurts out a fake claim in seconds. The fact-checker then has to dig up sources and carefully prove it wrong. Truth always costs more to defend than a lie costs to throw, an unfair matchup baked right into the game.

• Procedure & Evidence Law

  Courts figured out how to catch lying witnesses ages ago: strict rules about evidence and tough cross-examination. Elections have nothing like that, so wild claims fly around with no fact-check. Weirdly, a courtroom often gets closer to the truth than a public debate.

• Market Failure & Externalities Economics

  A shared set of facts is something everyone benefits from, like clean air. Every lie is like a puff of pollution, making it a little harder for all of us to know what's true. And no market ever charges the liar for that damage.