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America's Democracy 

Fake news is gaining momentum because of Americans' heavy use of social media as our primary news source. It's up to us to save the democratic process by stopping it when we spot it. Learn what to look for. 

We knew that there would be cybercriminals attempting to interfere in American democratic process since well before 2020. The FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) released an advisory to warn Americans about the potential threat of foreign actors and cybercriminals attempting to spread disinformation back in September.  

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A study by MIT researchers found that fake news spreads faster than truth in "all categories of information." This effect is even more pronounced in fake political news about terrorism and natural disasters because people are inclined to share the most novel information available to them. 

This means that once foreign actors create fake news we face a snowball effect as thousands and even millions of everyday Americans engage with it on social media. 

Fast Facts

Bots are dominating Twitter conversations about COVID-19 stay-at-home orders. 

 

Carnegie Melon University Study, 2020

55% of Americans get most of their news from social media.

Pew Research Center, 2019 

Of the 50 top influential retweeters, 82% of them are bots.

 

Carnegie Melon University Study, 2020

Want to help stop the spread of fake news? Here is a list of the sites targeting Americans with Fake News. If you see a story by one of them and it looks weird, be sure to report it.

Worst Offender Watch List

Sites that regularly publish disinformation targeting Americans:
  • RT.com
  • Sputniknews.com
  • OAN News (OANN)
  • Global Research
  • News Front
  • Postal Reporter
  • Southfront
  • New York Post

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