(Washington) Automated accounts on X that spread disinformation and hate speech ahead of the British election are now amplifying conspiracy theories surrounding the US presidential campaign, an NGO investigation revealed on Wednesday.
Some 45 accounts analysed by Global Witness, which have collectively generated more than four billion posts since the end of May, were active just before the UK election in early July.
Some then turned to other high-profile events in the United States, including the recent assassination attempt on Donald Trump and President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential campaign, the NGO said.
PHOTO KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Donald Trump
His report shows that the activity of the ” bots » (automated accounts) continues to plague X, despite Elon Musk’s promises to tackle the scourge when he bought the social network in late 2022 for $44 billion.
These accounts, which collectively produced approximately 610,000 posts and amplified racist messages and sexist slurs, also spread climate misinformation.
“It is shocking how easy it has been to find accounts that appear to be “bots”who are sowing division around the British vote, and then having them interfere directly in political discussions in the United States,” said Ava Lee of Global Witness.
The platform did not respond to AFP’s request for comment.
Unfounded theories
The NGO does not know who is controlling these automated accounts.
Global Witness found no evidence that British political parties paid for, used or promoted these ” bots ” as part of their campaigns.
After the attempted assassination of Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania on July 13, the NGO saw some accounts – which previously supported the right-wing British party Reform UK – spreading unfounded theories blaming Biden for the attack.
PHOTO GENE J. PUSKAR, ARCHIVES ASSOCIATED PRESS
Site of Donald Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania on July 13.
Accounts supporting the British Labour Party have suggested that the incident may have been staged by Donald Trump, the report said.
After Joe Biden withdrew from the presidential race in November, several accounts targeted US Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic Party nominee, by relaying “sexist misinformation” and racist comments.
Before buying the platform, Elon Musk had pledged to “defeat spambots or die trying” to do away with them.
“Protecting our democracies”
But the activity of the ” bots » is not abating on X, according to a report last year from Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Australia, which analyzed about a million messages.
“The network is flooded with various manipulations, it does not moderate content sufficiently and does not have a clear strategy in the face of political disinformation,” the report concluded.
Ava Lee of Global Witness called on X to “increase its moderation efforts and better enforce its own policies against inauthentic activity.”
“We are counting on them to protect our democracies from interference,” she added.
The California-based company has laid off thousands of employees, including many content moderation teams formerly tasked with combating misinformation, and significantly relaxed its regulations.
Last week, Elon Musk, who recently announced his support for Donald Trump, himself shared a video on X of the type ” deepfake » (manipulated content) featuring Kamala Harris.
He has come under heavy fire from many associations. According to several experts, this video violates the platform’s rules.