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Shannon Bond Shannon Bond is a correspondent at NPR, covering how misleading narratives and false claims circulate online and offline, and their impact on society and democracy.
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Wednesday

A man votes at a public library turned into an early voting polling station in Black Mountain, N.C., on Oct. 29.

A man votes at a public library turned into an early voting polling station in Black Mountain, N.C., on Oct. 29. Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP via Getty Images

Untangling Disinformation

Voting officials face an 'uphill battle' to fight election lies

The deck is stacked against election officials online, maybe even more so than in 2020. Conspiracy theories can quickly get millions of views while debunks gather a fraction of the attention.

State of election misinfo fight

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Friday

Director of the Board of Elections Tyler Burns holds a test ballot during a mail-in ballot processing demonstration at the Board of Elections office on September 30, 2024 in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. A fake video purporting to show ballots being destroyed in Bucks County, Pa., showed different envelopes and ballots than the county actually uses.

Director of the Board of Elections Tyler Burns holds a test ballot during a mail-in ballot processing demonstration on Sept. 30 in Doylestown, Pa. A fake video purporting to show ballots being destroyed in Bucks County, Pa., showed different envelopes and ballots than the county actually uses. Hannah Beier/Getty Images hide caption

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Hannah Beier/Getty Images

Untangling Disinformation

Russia is behind fake video of ballots being destroyed, U.S. officials say

Federal intelligence officials and the FBI say Russia is behind the video, which has spread widely on social media, including Elon Musk’s X.

Elon Musk jumps straight up with both arms outstretched on a stage in front of a giant American flag.

Elon Musk jumps onstage at a town hall event hosted by America PAC in support of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in Oaks, Pa., on Oct. 18. Ryan Collerd/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Ryan Collerd/AFP via Getty Images

Untangling Disinformation

2 years in, Trump surrogate Elon Musk has remade X as a conservative megaphone

It's been nearly two years since Elon Musk bought Twitter and turned it into X. He has turned the platform into a megaphone for himself and, increasingly, for former President Donald Trump.

Musk politics

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Thursday

Elon Musk is a Donald Trump Mega-Donor

Elon Musk speaks as part of a campaign town hall in support of Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump in Folsom, Pa., Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. Matt Rourke/AP hide caption

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Matt Rourke/AP

The NPR Politics Podcast

Elon Musk is a Donald Trump Mega-Donor

Elon Musk has gone all in on Trump and put $75 million into a super PAC he created to support the candidate. He's also assisting with get-out-the-vote operations, including offering multiple giveaways of a million dollars to registered voters in key states who sign a petition. This may or may not be legal.

Elon Musk is a Donald Trump Mega-Donor

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Tuesday

A general view to the Kremlin towers and Ivan the Great cathedral in May 2024. U.S. intelligence officials say Russia was behind an attempt to spread baseless claims about Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz.

A general view to the Kremlin towers and Ivan the Great cathedral in May 2024. U.S. intelligence officials say Russia was behind an attempt to spread baseless claims about Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz. Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images

Untangling Disinformation

U.S. intel officials say Russia is behind attempts to smear Tim Walz

A video making lurid and false claims about the Democratic vice presidential candidate was spread by pro-Trump accounts. Intelligence officials say Russia was behind the video.

Thursday

World

A look at the foreign influences trying to interfere with the U.S. election

The U.S. government has disrupted Russian influence operations targeting U.S. voters. And it says Iran is behind attempts to hack the campaigns of both presidential candidates.

A look at the foreign influences trying to interfere with the U.S. election

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A file photo from June 8, 2018 shows a control room at RT's Moscow studios. The state media organization has been accused by the Justice Department of covertly paying pro-Trump influencers in the U.S.

A file photo from June 8, 2018 shows a control room at RT's Moscow studios. The state media organization has been accused by the Justice Department of covertly paying pro-Trump influencers in the U.S. YURI KADOBNOV/AFP via Getty Images/AFP hide caption

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YURI KADOBNOV/AFP via Getty Images/AFP

Untangling Disinformation

Why Russia's broadcaster RT turned to covertly funding American pro-Trump influencers

RT was long known to be a source of Russian propaganda. But a recent indictment of two employees for covertly funneling $10 million to pro-Trump influencers shines a light on its covert activities.

RT's role in influence operations

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Monday

A woman walks in front of the Kremlin on September 23, 2024. U.S. intelligence officials say Russia has embraced artificial intelligence tools to try to sway American voters ahead of the November election.

A woman walks in front of the Kremlin on September 23, 2024. U.S. intelligence officials say Russia has embraced artificial intelligence tools to try to sway American voters ahead of the November election. Alexander Nemenov/AFP via Getty Images/AFP/Getty hide caption

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Alexander Nemenov/AFP via Getty Images/AFP/Getty

Untangling Disinformation

U.S. officials say Russia is embracing AI for its election influence efforts

The cutting-edge technology makes it easier for Russia as well as Iran to quickly and more convincingly tailor polarizing content aimed at swaying American voters, intelligence officials said.

Tuesday

Military musicians perform in Moscow's Red Square on Sept. 1. Researchers at Microsoft say Russia is pivoting its online influence operations to focus on Vice President Harris and her running mate, Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, in the final stretch of the election.

Military musicians perform in Moscow's Red Square on Sept. 1, 2024. Researchers at Microsoft say Russia is pivoting its online influence operations to focus on Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, in the final stretch of the election. Stringer/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Stringer/AFP via Getty Images

Untangling Disinformation

Microsoft says Russia’s election interference efforts have pivoted to Harris and Walz

The company identified a number of recent Russia-linked campaigns that have shifted focus to Harris, relying on videos to spread conspiracy theories and falsehoods about the Democratic nominee.

Friday

Roundup: Trump court reprieve, Hunter's guilty plea, election disinfo

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference held at Trump Tower, Friday, Sept., 6, 2024 in New York. Stefan Jeremiah/AP hide caption

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Stefan Jeremiah/AP

The NPR Politics Podcast

Roundup: Trump court reprieve, Hunter's guilty plea, election disinfo

It was a busy week in U.S. courtrooms. After being convicted of 34 felonies earlier this year in a New York state trial, former President Donald Trump will have to wait until after the presidential election to find out what punishment he may face. Meanwhile, in a federal courthouse in California, Hunter Biden unexpectedly pleaded guilty to tax charges. And, the Department of Justice returned indictments accusing Russian agents of trying to interfere in the 2024 presidential election through, among other ways, paying right-wing online influencers.

Roundup: Trump court reprieve, Hunter's guilty plea, election disinfo

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Thursday

This photo shows political commentator and YouTuber Benny Johnson on the left side of the photo while he speaks with Eric Trump, a son of former President Donald Trump, during the 2024 Republican National Convention. Johnson is wearing a black T-shirt and is holding a microphone. Eric Trump, standing on the right side of the photo, is also holding a microphone and is wearing a white shirt and gray suit jacket.

Political commentator and YouTuber Benny Johnson (left) speaks with Eric Trump, a son of former President Donald Trump, during the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Johnson made videos for Tenet Media. The Justice Department accused a company matching Tenet's description of working closely with employees of Russian state broadcaster RT to covertly spread pro-Russian narratives in the United States. Johnson says he was not aware of Tenet's ties to Russia. Daniel Slim/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Daniel Slim/AFP via Getty Images

Untangling Disinformation

How Russian operatives covertly hired U.S. influencers to create viral videos

Details in an indictment match Nashville-based Tenet Media, which offered lucrative paychecks to prominent right-wing influencers. The influencers say they were deceived.

Russia RT Interference

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Wednesday

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland delivers remarks alongside Ukrainian officials at the Department of Justice in 2022 in Washington, D.C.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland delivers remarks alongside Ukrainian officials at the Department of Justice in 2022 in Washington, D.C. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images hide caption

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Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Untangling Disinformation

U.S. accuses Russia of sophisticated influence campaigns against U.S. voters

The U.S. government accused Russia of trying to interfere with this year's elections and announced new steps to counter those actions.

DOJ Russia Election Interference

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Tuesday

A photo illustration of the TikTok logo next to U.S. and China flags. Researchers have uncovered more accounts tied to a Chinese influence operation known as "Spamoflauge" which includes an account on TikTok with one video that managed to get 1.5 million views before being taken down.

A photo illustration of the TikTok logo next to U.S. and China flags. Researchers have uncovered more accounts tied to a Chinese influence operation known as "Spamoflauge" which includes an account on TikTok with one video that managed to get 1.5 million views before being taken down. Ezra Acayan/Getty Images hide caption

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Ezra Acayan/Getty Images

Untangling Disinformation

China is pushing divisive political messages online using fake U.S. voters

The campaign known as “Spamouflage” includes accounts claiming to be American voters and U.S. soldiers posting about hot-button topics including abortion, Israel and Ukraine.

Friday

An AI-generated depiction of Donald Trump riding a lion. The image was first posted by a Trump supporter on X before Trump reposted the depiction on his Truth Social account. Trump has embracing reposting AI-generated images created by his supporters. NPR added the border to the image to make clear it was generated with AI.

An AI-generated depiction of Donald Trump riding a lion. The image was first posted by a Trump supporter on X before Trump reposted the depiction on his Truth Social account. Trump has embracing reposting AI-generated images created by his supporters. NPR added the borders to the image to make clear the image was AI-generated. @TRUMP_ARMY/screenshot by NPR hide caption

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@TRUMP_ARMY/screenshot by NPR

Untangling Disinformation

How AI-generated memes are changing the 2024 election

Donald Trump has repeatedly shared AI-generated content on social media in the latest example of how artificial intelligence is showing up in the 2024 election.

AI ELECTION MEMES

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Friday

The Meta logo at a trade fair in France earlier this year. The social media firm says it has disrupted more accounts tied to Iranian hackers who are targeting the U.S. presidential election.

The Meta logo at a trade fair in France earlier this year. The social media firm says it has disrupted more accounts tied to Iranian hackers who are targeting the U.S. presidential election. Julien De Rosa/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Julien De Rosa/AFP via Getty Images

Untangling Disinformation

Meta takes down more accounts tied to Iranian hackers targeting the U.S. election

The company says the hackers posed as tech support to target people affiliated with President Biden and Donald Trump, in the latest evidence of Iran’s attempts to influence the 2024 election.