Social media companies are continuing to struggle with the onslaught of deceptive and divisive ... [+]
Did you hear the one about (fill in a candidate's name) on social media this week? Chances are by now most of us have read or seen something on social media about a candidate that was misleading, deceptive or simply not true. Misinformation, and worse disinformation, remains in full swing across all the social media platforms and there is little the tech world is doing or even can do to stop it.
This month Politico reported that social media companies are continuing to struggle with the onslaught of deceptive and divisive messaging from political parties, foreign governments and hate groups.
Out With The Old Media
There is no denying that old school TV ads will still be important.
In fact, we can all expect to see a lot – and we do mean a lot – of ads on TV, and Politico also reported that according to ad tracking firm Advertising Analytics and analytics company Cross Screen Media from May, spending on political ads is expected to reach $6.7 billion. That is up by 12% over the initial $6 billion projection for this campaign cycle. The bump is the result, in part, due to a record level of primary spending, but the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic is actually expected to boost the total as candidates may not be able to press the flesh and hold in person rallies.
However, 2016 proved that social media has become as important as TV or other forms of media at catching those eyeballs. Then there is the fact that as more people turn to streaming media – with services such as the newly launched Peacock even allowing viewers of NBC shows to go "commercial free" it is increasingly harder for ads to find an audience.
Moreover, while some sports have made a comeback in recent weeks – notably professional hockey and basketball – the year's biggest sporting event isn't happening. That is the 2020 Olympic Games, which has always had its fill of political advertising.
Simply put, without the Olympics and with more viewers going to streaming services TV could be looking less attractive, which makes social media more powerful – and riper for the spreading of misinformation.
In With The New Media
As has been previously noted, more Americans turn to social media for news, and that has only increased in the past year.
"A study a few days ago suggested that nearly 60% of Americans use Facebook and Twitter as their primary news sources so it would be natural for candidates and the PACs that support them to channel advertising dollars to those and other online news sources," said Charles King, principal analyst at Pund-IT.
"However, it's worth noting that the ability of those platforms to personalize their users' feeds combined with what looks like an increasingly polarized electorate is likely to mean that political ads are likely to reinforce existing opinions more than convince voters to switch sides," King added. "It's also worth considering this same effect in terms of traditional news sources – like Fox News and MSNBC – which mostly cater to specific political viewpoints. Will Trump ads run on MSNBC or Biden ads on Fox? Maybe though it's hard to see what they might accomplish."
The lack of some content, namely sports could also be a concern.
"The lack of professional and college sports is also bang on, and could lead to a massive shift of advertising dollars away from broadcast TV stations to online platforms," said King.
Social Is Ripe For Misinformation
Unlike the traditional news media, which must vet stories, check facts and use sources, social media is often opinion disguised as news; but because there is no fact checking system it allows misinformation and even disinformation to spread.
"Issues around misinformation are numerous and complex: on one hand, you have individuals and interest groups who are actively twisting the truth or spreading outright lies for their own benefit," warned King. "On another, you have social media platforms that have, despite actively claiming otherwise, become de facto news publishers while failing to support the kinds of oversight traditional publishing outlets were expected to supply."
What makes the matter worse is that social media users are often uninterested in a civil discourse and instead of listening to the other side are more concerned with spreading what they see as the "truth" – and will do so without checking facts.
"Considering a 17 year old video game hacker from Tampa just took over one of the largest social networks in the world (Twitter), it's clear that misinformation spread by wildfire on social media has become a global plague, and this is just the beginning," explained Neil Sweeney, CEO and founder of Killi, a consumer data privacy platform.
"We as consumers should be increasingly concerned, as people in government are still not acknowledging the spread of misinformation is a massive issue," warned Sweeney.
"Facebook is too big to manage the news flow in their own platforms, and propaganda will reign as we move closer to the election," he added. "In fact, Facebook has already acknowledged that, 'due to Covid,' they are behind in their ability to take down things like hate speech and other forms of fake news. It's hard to police a platform that is so big and fluid, like Facebook and others. Until elected officials start to grasp the severity of the issue, the faults of social media will continue to plague our society like a virus, mutating and spreading faster than it could ever be managed."
A final consideration is that social media has begun to fragment, with conservative voices saying they've been driven to Parler and other services, while liberals have dug into Twitter and Facebook. This has only worsened the divide.
"Should we be concerned," pondered King? "Absolutely. Should we do all that we can to set things right? Again, absolutely."
