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Opinion: No One is Immune to Online Manipulation. It’s Time we Take it Seriously

Published

5 years ago

May 21, 2020

It would appear as if certain people are more susceptible to misinformation and propaganda. That friend of yours on Facebook claiming COVID-19 came from 5G towers because they saw a YouTube video that “broke it down.” The Twitter rants against Bill Gates claiming he created the COVID-19 virus and is holding the vaccine from the public for some reason. None of these claims are based on factual research, yet conspiracy theories are often louder than the truth.

We often think that depends on what political leanings we have, our level of education and the beliefs we hold. Democrats and liberals tend to think those who favor President Donald Trump who uneducated and poor, while Republicans and Trump supporters believe they hold the truth in their convictions against liberals.

Earlier this year I watched the Democratic primaries unfold on Twitter and Facebook in a disturbing way that brought me back to 2016. As much as Democrats, progressives, liberals and leftists tend to believe they are far more educated and immune to misinformation campaigns, most of them can not see when right-wing propaganda starts to bleed into their political commentary. When they do see it, it is often too late.

According to pewresearch.org, 72% of adults have used at least one social media site as of Feb. 7, 2019. That is a 67% increase since March 21, 2005. Currently, about 22% of Americans are using Twitter, while 69% are using Facebook. The current trends are showing the impact that social media has on politics to spread information. How can we prevent the abuse that is used to influence public opinion?

First, let me explain what I watched unfold in the primaries that showed online manipulation in action. I was supporting Elizabeth Warren but would have favored Bernie Sanders’ policies as a second choice. Anyone other than Trump seemed like a more competent choice, a lot of candidates were bringing good ideas to discuss. Yet, anytime I tried to make a comment or post about Elizabeth Warren I would get insulted by Twitter trolls. They would comment so fast it was impossible for them to be real people. A post with an article would pop up and 30 seconds later there would be six comments claiming she is racist for claiming to be Native American. “She didn’t even bother apologizing,” many would say, which was not true at all. “She was a Republican,” another would say, trying to make it seem as if that was not over 20 years ago and she did not evolve her views in that time. Almost all of the accounts trolling Warren were Sanders supporters, which seemed odd considering they both have similar policies.

The Washington Post reported in January 2020 that Sanders supporters were posting mass attacks of memes about Warren. Vox also reported in January of this year that Sanders supporters were mass trolling Warren with a snake emoji and the hashtag #warrenisasnake.

This is feedback those of us backing Sanders were getting for some time, and we brushed it off for way too long.
A lot of women in my life–not just white women–told me they were aligned with his policies but just too turned off by dirtbag harassment. https://t.co/ogf6aepHIC
— Gwen Snyder is uncivil (@gwensnyderPHL) April 13, 2020

The Sanders campaign was notified by U.S. officials that Russia was trying to help him win his presidential campaign, according to The Washington Post on Feb 21. Sanders was quoted in the article saying he was notified a month earlier, and his message to Russia was to stay out of American politics. The reporting said Russia was trying to help Sanders campaign win, it did not say against who and the subject was not brought up again in mainstream media.

When Warren dropped out of the primaries Sanders supporters demanded that Sanders get her endorsement, but by then it was too late to reverse the damage. While Biden picked up a number of endorsements from other popular moderate presidential candidates who had dropped out like senators Kamala Harris and Cory Booker, Warren could not press forward to endorse Sanders.

Vox claimed the “dirt-bag left” was the possible cause of the problem as they reported on an interview Warren did with MSNBC reporter Rachael Maddow. In the campaign exit interview, Warren explained that due to online bullying from the left she could not endorse Sanders saying, “We are responsible for the people who claim to be our supporters and do really dangerous, threatening things to other candidates.” The “dirtbag left” refers to a podcast that Sanders had appeared on called “Chapo Trap House.” The podcast — as well as Sanders’ national press secretary at the time Briahna Gray who also wrote The Intercept, — repeatedly attacked Warren online, making Sanders’ request for his supporters to tone down their attacks seem disingenuous.

By early May, the Twitter hashtag #JoeBidenIsARapist went viral, as did #believewomen. Many self-proclaimed leftists on my timeline pushed the tags alongside right-wing twitter accounts. Both leftists and those on the right demanded Biden drop out, many leftists believed this would create an opening for Sanders to get back into the race and win. It seemed odd that Warren was largely attacked up until the point when Biden was the last contender in the primaries, and now both the left side of Twitter and the right were attacking Biden before further in-depth reports came out about the Tara Reade allegations against him. PBS Newshour reported on May 15 that Reade’s claims of sexual assault by Biden in 1993 contradicted the accounts of 74 former Biden staffers they spoke to.

Examining who falls for online political manipulation, Companion Proceedings of The 2019 World Wide Web Conference collected datasets with over 43 million election-related posts on Twitter in the span of Sept. 16 to Nov. 9, 2016 which included accounts the US Congress associated with Russian trolls. The study called “Who Falls for Online Political Manipulation?” by Adam Badawy predicted accounts that spread trolls, and showed in the 2016 election that political ideology was highly predictive for those likely to spread troll-produced malicious content.

While the differences between spreaders and non-spreaders showed spreaders to have a more conservative political ideology in 2016, the study concluded that some spreaders fell for online manipulation campaigns and that identifying victims was the first step in containing the spread of online manipulation campaigns.

The study concluded that, “Declining trust of citizens of democratic societies in main-stream news and their increased exposure to content produced by ill-intended sources poses a danger to democracy.”

No one is immune to misinformation on social media as it is the level of trust in democracy and the kind of information spread on social media platforms that can make it easy to create victims of online manipulation.

An observation I’ve made in the connection between who of my friends spread false information and who does not is a difference in who is willing to take information and learn from it, and who has not done research but will spread any information they find as if they are an authority on the subject.

Friends don’t let friends spread ignorant claims causing confusion and possible danger to the public. The problem that many people do not recognize when they blame the media for misinformation is understanding the fact that all of us create media, that is what social media is. Social media does not exist without its users.

It is our responsibility to look into political candidates, public health and safety issues from fact-based scientific backed sources. It is harder to do educational science-backed research than opening an article in our newsfeed that tells us what to think, but if we want a functioning informed society it is our duty to realize our responsibilities as spreaders of information, especially to those in our inner circles and communities who trust us the most.

Michelle Snider

Associate Editor for The Post News Group. Writer, Photographer, Videographer, Copy Editor, and website editor documenting local events in the Oakland-Bay Area California area.

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Michelle Snider

Associate Editor for The Post News Group. Writer, Photographer, Videographer, Copy Editor, and website editor documenting local events in the Oakland-Bay Area California area.

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Bay Area

Glydways Breaking Ground on 14-Acre Demonstration Facility at Hilltop Mall

Glydways has been testing its technology at CCTA’s GoMentum Station in Concord for several years. The company plans to install an ambitious 28-mile Autonomous Transit Network in East Contra Costa County. The new Richmond facility will be strategically positioned near that project, according to Glydways.

Published

2 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Image of planned Richmond facility courtesy of Glydways.

The Richmond Standard

Glydways, developer of microtransit systems using autonomous, small-scale vehicles, is breaking ground on a 14-acre Development and Demonstration Facility at the former Hilltop Mall property in Richmond, the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) reported on social media.

Glydways, which released a statement announcing the project Monday, is using the site while the mall property undergoes a larger redevelopment.

“In the interim, Glydways will use a portion of the property to showcase its technology and conduct safety and reliability testing,” the company said.

The new Richmond development hub will include “over a mile of dedicated test track, enabling Glydways to refine its solutions in a controlled environment while simulating real-world conditions,” the company said.

Visitors to the facility will be able to experience on-demand travel, explore the control center and visit a showroom featuring virtual reality demonstrations of Glydways projects worldwide.

The hub will also house a 13,000-square-foot maintenance and storage facility to service the growing fleet of Glydcars.

“With this new facility [at the former Hilltop Mall property], we’re giving the public a glimpse of the future, where people can experience ultra-quiet, on-demand transit—just like hailing a rideshare, but with the reliability and affordability of public transit,” said Tim Haile, executive director of CCTA.

Janet Galvez, vice president and investment officer at Prologis, owner of the Hilltop Mall property, said her company is “thrilled” to provide space for Glydways and is continuing to work with the city on future redevelopment plans for the broader mall property.

Richmond City Manager Shasa Curl added that Glydways’ presence “will not only help test new transit solutions but also activate the former Mall site while preparation and finalization of the Hilltop Horizon Specific Plan is underway.

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

Last City Council Meeting of the Year Ends on Sour Note with Big Budget Cuts

In a five to one vote, with Councilmembers Carroll Fife and Janani Ramachandran excused, the council passed a plan aimed at balancing the $130 million deficit the city is facing. Noel Gallo voted against the plan, previously citing concerns over public safety cuts, while Nikki Fortunato-Bas, Treva Reid, Rebecca Kaplan, Kevin Jenkins, and Dan Kalb voted in agreement with the plan.

Published

2 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Oakland City Council voted on a plan to balance the $130 million deficit at their last regular meeting of 2024. The plan reduces police spending by $25 million, temporarily closes two fire stations, and guts the cultural arts programs. iStock photo.

By Magaly Muñoz

In the last lengthy Tuesday meeting of the Oakland City Council for 2024, residents expressed strong opposition to the much needed budget cuts before a change in leadership was finalized with the certification of election results.

Oakland police and fire departments, the ambassador program, and city arts and culture will all see significant cuts over the course of two phases.

Phase 1 will eliminate two police academies, brown out two fire stations, eliminate the ambassador program, and reduce police overtime by nearly $25 million. These, with several other cuts across departments, aim to save the city $60 million. In addition, the council simultaneously approved to transfer restricted funds into its general purpose fund, amounting to over $40 million.

Phase 2 includes additional fire station brownouts and the elimination of 91 jobs, aiming to recover almost $16 million in order to balance the rest of the budget.

Several organizations and residents spoke out at the meeting in hopes of swaying the council to not make cuts to their programs.

East Oakland Senior Center volunteers and members, and homeless advocates, filled the plaza just outside of City Hall with rallies to show their disapproval of the new budget plan. Senior residents told the council to “remember that you’ll get old too” and that disturbing their resources will only bring problems for an already struggling community.

While city staff announced that there would not be complete cuts to senior center facilities, there would be significant reductions to staff and possibly inter-program services down the line.

Exiting council member and interim mayor Bas told the public that she is still hopeful that the one-time $125 million Coliseum sale deal will proceed in the near future so that the city would not have to continue with drastic cuts. The deal was intended to save the city for fiscal year 2024-25, but a hold up at the county level has paused any progress and therefore millions of dollars in funds Oakland desperately needs.

The Coliseum sale has been a contentious one. Residents and city leaders were originally against using the deal as a way to balance the budget, citing doubts about the sellers, the African American Sports and Entertainment Group’s (AASEG), ability to complete the deal. Council members Reid, Ramachandran, and Gallo have called several emergency meetings to understand where the first installments of the sale are, with little to no answers.

Bas added that as the new Alameda County Supervisor for D5, a position she starts in a few weeks, she will do everything in her power to push the Coliseum sale along.

The city is also considering a sales tax measure to put on the special election ballot on April 15, 2025, which will also serve as an election to fill the now vacant D2 and mayor positions. The tax increase would raise approximately $29 million annually for Oakland, allowing the city to gain much-needed revenue for the next two-year budget.

The council will discuss the possible sales tax measure on January 9.

Oakland Post

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Activism

Living His Legacy: The Late Oscar Wright’s “Village” Vows to Inherit Activist’s Commitment to Education

Kingmakers of Oakland (KOO), a nonprofit organization that works to improve educational and life outcomes for Black boys and men, stated that “Oscar Wright is one of the most prolific, consistent, and committed advocates of equity for Black students and Black Families here in Oakland for the past six decades.”

Published

2 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Oscar Carl Wright, 101, who passed away on Nov. 18, was still involved in Oakland’s educational affairs until his death.

By Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌, California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌

Activists mourning Oscar Carl Wright’s death, have pledged to continue his lifelong mission of advocating for Black students and families in Northern California.

Wright, 101, who passed away on Nov. 18, was involved in Oakland’s educational affairs until his death.

Now, friends and admirers acknowledge that carrying on his legacy means doubling down on the unfinished work that Wright dedicated his life, time, and resources to, according to Y’Anad Burrell, a family friend and founder of San Francisco-based Glass House Communications (GHC).

“Mr. Wright did a lot of work around equity, specifically, for Black students based on their needs — whether it was tutoring, passing classes, or graduating,” Burrell said.

Wright became a champion for his children’s education, recognizing the disparities between their school experiences and his own upbringing in the Mississippi Delta.

Burrell told California Black Media (CBM) that the crisis of unequal access to resources and a quality education continues to affect the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD).

According to Oakland Reach, in the city of Oakland, only 3 in 10 Black and Brown students are reading at or above grade level. In addition, only 1 in 10 are doing math at or above grade level.

Oakland REACH is a parent-run, parent-led organization. It aims to empowers families from the most underserved communities to demand high-quality schools for their children.

Wright’s work as an activist had impact across the state but he was primarily known in the Bay Area. Alongside the Black United Front for Educational Reform (BUFER), he filed a complaint against OUSD for violating the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

In 2000, the OUSD school board proposed an action plan to address educational inequity, but it was never implemented.

Wright later founded the African American Honor Roll Celebration at Acts Full Gospel Church, an award that recognizes Black students with a grade point average of 3.0 or better.  Each year, more than 1,000 students are honored at this ceremony.

Burrell said that one of the main reasons Wright’s work was so essential for families and children in Oakland that is the direct relationship between acquiring a quality education and affording quality housing, maintaining food security, achieving mental wellness, and securing stable employment.

Wright was the child of sharecroppers from Coahoma County, Mississippi. He attended Alcorn State University, a Historically Black College and University (HBCU).

In the late 1950s, Wright and his family relocated to the Bay Area where he worked as a contractor and civil engineer. He later became an active member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Burrell said the people who will carry on Wright’s work are part of a “village” that includes KOO’s CEO Chris Chatmon.  Wright was a mentor to Chatmon.

“It will not be one entity, one person, or one organization that picks up the baton because it was a village effort that worked alongside Mr. Wright for all these years,” Burrell said.

Burell says that legacy will live on.