Disinformation has ‘never been worse’ ahead of elections

The Democratic vice presidential candidate was falsely accused of sexually harassing students. These claims were spread by a former Florida sheriff’s deputy who now openly works in Moscow for the Russian propaganda apparatus on dozens of social media platforms and fake news outlets.

A fake video purporting to show one victim (creating fake people is a recurring Russian tactic) has received more than 5 million views on X, a platform owned by the world’s richest man, Elon Musk. Mr. Musk not only staked his claim on the Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, but also used his platform to revive discredited claims about the integrity of the election results.

Slanders, lies, and dirty tricks—what we now call disinformation—have long been a feature of American presidential election campaigns. But two weeks before this year’s vote, the torrent of half-truths, lies and fabrications, both foreign and domestic, has surpassed anything before, according to officials and researchers documenting disinformation.

The impact on the November 5 election remains to be seen, but it has already worsened what is seen as a political debate over the party’s two main candidates, Mr Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. It also undermined the foundations of the country’s democracy, eroding the once-general confidence that the country’s elections, no matter who won, were free and fair.

Russia, as well as Iran and China, are gleefully fueling a variety of narratives that portray American democracy as dysfunctional and unreliable. Politicians and powerful media figures, in turn, have given foreign adversaries plenty to work with, fueling and amplifying divisions for partisan advantage.

“They have different tactics and different approaches to influencing operations, but their goals are the same,” Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency in Washington, said in an interview, referring to foreign adversaries. “Simply put, they seek to undermine America’s trust in our democratic institutions and elections in particular, and to sow partisan discord.”