Defeat the hoax

A few hours after the United States presidential election, it began to circulate on X, in YouTube or TikTok videos and in Substack newsletters, that there were millions of “missing” Democratic votes. It wasn’t true. The difference between the votes of Kamala Harris and Donald Trump seemed greater then because millions of votes had not yet been counted, especially in California and New York, highly populated states where the Democratic Party has more support and especially slow in counting due to its rules. local.

Still there are no votes to count and the estimate is that Harris will be a point and a half behind Trump when the scrutiny ends. But the defeat gave rise to the idea that Elon Musk had manipulated voting machines through his Starlink satellite Internet access network, that votes had been canceled en masse and even that Harris was sending out warning signals with his speech of recognition of defeat by saying that only when it is very dark “can you see the stars.” Trump’s followers took advantage of the initial gap to falsely say again that there was cheating in the 81 million votes that Joe Biden received in 2020. The difference is that on the Democratic side the voices that repeated the hoaxes were not party politicians and were not even activists with a substantial number of followers. On the Republican side, there was again former journalist and agitator Tucker Carlson, among others. Then Trump and his lieutenant Musk had already remained silent after a sustained campaign until election day about the alleged fraud. On November 5, when it seemed that turnout was rising in Philadelphia and Detroit, key cities for Democrats, Trump and Musk even invented that the police were on their way – no one knew where – over fraud accusations.

The dissemination of hoaxes without evidence about irregularities continues to circulate in corners of the Internet, but it only comes from there for denial articles in media such as the New York Timespublic radio NPR and many others, because politicians and other social democratic leaders have not fallen into the tempting path of fantasies as consolation. It is the difference now between two very different parties in the United States and the one that shows the way on how to resist hoaxes in public life.

Misinformation may seem like an unstoppable ball, but it only truly works if there are a powerful few to give it the push. And, although we seem like a drop in a sea of ​​lies, the media still has a role in stopping hoaxes, especially when they favor the parties or politicians most appreciated by our readers.

In an interview a few days ago, Bill Adair, the founder of PolitiFacta network of fact-checking pioneer, created in 2007 by the newspaper St Petersburg Times from Florida, said that his own brand has been the subject of attacks by Republicans in recent years despite his impeccable and non-partisan work. Fighting hoaxes among Trump’s followers is very difficult given the leader’s direct involvement, but Adair believes that media perceived as closer to the president-elect have a unique opportunity to reach these people. Another thing is that they want to do it and the reach they have beyond television, the most notable and still minority of information.

The group of voters Trump was most successful among were people who they little follow political information and that they receive it mainly through family and friends rather than through media of any kind. But there are examples, even if they are small, of media capable of breaking that bubble. For example, Tangle Newsa newsletter written by a Pennsylvania journalist who aims to explain the news in the most neutral tone possible, reflects what perceived Democratic and Republican voices say on an issue and tells his own opinion.

It’s harder when the leader of your favorite band insists on lying, but there have never been so many tools at our disposal to know what’s true.

#Defeat #hoax