NEW 🚨 Trump alleged "fraud" even while votes were still being counted - the culmination of a strategy months in the making.

Voting disinformation spread online from April - and conspiracies like QAnon made the ground fertile.

I spoke to those impacted.

bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-tre…
Research by the Anti-disinformation unit reveals falsehoods about voter fraud were plugged by influential accounts on social media repeatedly, for months - and spilled into average social media feed.

Listen to this radio prog for more on how @O_Rob1nson conducted her research!
The big fear of many experts who have watched this unfold online is that the deep roots of this voting disinformation could provoke unrest in coming weeks - or erode faith in democracy and trusted institutions for millions.
In the early hours of a frosty November morning in Connecticut, 49-year-old Candy snuggled into her bed after a long night shift.

She immediately unlocked her phone - and began scrolling through her social media feed, as she does most nights.
But this was different - it was election night. The result was still hanging in the balance. Candy scrolled, catching up on the night's news while waiting for her favoured candidate to speak out.

And just after 1 a.m., he did!
Candy agreed. She was frustrated and wanted to act - so when one of her friends invited her to join a Stop the Steal Facebook group, she jumped at the opportunity.

Candy was expecting this. For months allegations of "rigged elections" have been punctuating her Facebook.
And she's not the only one.

Research reveals disinformation about voter fraud has been plugged by influential accounts on social media repeatedly, for months - especially Trump.

Between April and the election, he mentioned rigged elections or voter fraud more than 70 times.
It's not a new theme. Mr Trump made claims of voter fraud back in 2016 - after an election he won.

But this time around, evidence suggests many more people - like Candy - have been seeing unsubstantiated claims all over their social media feeds for weeks
Our research found influential right-wing accounts were instrumental in amplifying claims - and frequently retweeted by Trump.

That includes figures with big followings who are now involved in protest movement centred around the unsubstantiated idea of a "rigged" election.
Where did #StoptheSteal come from?

On election night the hashtag sprung up on Twitter after the first of many misleading videos about voter fraud went viral.

The video showed a poll watcher being denied entry to a Philadelphia polling station in what turned out to be a mix up.
The Stop the Steal slogan was then used by those setting up large Facebook groups which, since election night, have cumulatively amassed more than a million members.

They have become a hotbed for more misleading videos and false claims - which people like Candy have seen.
Candy spoke to me about claims about sharpies she’d seen online, about dead voters voting and about ballot dumping.

All of these have turned out to be false, misleading or unsubstantiated - but she genuinely believes them.

Read the debunks here 👉 bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-tre
In the background of this election is a series of increasingly popular conspiracy theories suggesting all is suspect.

QAnon and the belief a Deep State rigs everything against Trump may explain in part why these voting rumours spread like wildfire says @wphillips49
Her greatest fear is not about violence on the streets. She doesn't think people like Candy who join Stop the Steal groups are going to riot because of fake news online.

Instead, Whitney and others worry about the slow, gradual erosion of people's faith in democracy.
Do get in touch if you’re seeing disinformation and suspect posts about the US election on your social media feeds - or if someone you know has been affected by this!

Email or DM 📧
I've been covering this on air all day - more analysis here!

More on this report on @bbc5live now - tune in!

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More from @mariannaspring

21 Nov
NEW 🚨 Trump’s unsubstantiated claims about voter fraud inspired online movements and protests under #StopTheSteaI
 
But viral disinformation and conspiracies paved the way for doubts about election integrity months before.

Listen here! Online soon.

bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3…
Presented by my brilliant editor @mwendling produced by the excellent @_kRaay - and featuring top disinfo expert @O_Rob1nson 🧐

I interviewed dozens running big Stop the Steal Facebook groups - like Candy - victims of false, viral claims before and after voting night.
Catch my report on @BBCNews at Ten all about the Stop the Steal protests!

Experts fear that viral disinformation and conspiracies spread over months could have undermined democracy for millions.
Read 4 tweets
20 Nov
This week there’s been a worrying escalation in abuse I receive.

I’ve also been compiling some of my most impactful reporting for an exciting award’s entry!

Here are those highlights so far from my time as BBC’s specialist disinformation reporter - at the ripe old age of 24👇
This exclusive interview with the son of one of the leaders of Britain’s conspiracy community - who feared for the impact of coronavirus disinformation she promotes on public health and their relationship.

bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-546…
This investigation into the human cost of misinformation, exposing the real-world consequences of viral coronavirus conspiracy theories by speaking to those impacted by the infodemic!



bbc.com/news/stories-5…
Read 11 tweets
26 Oct
Exclusive 🚨 I interviewed Sebastian Shemirani, who’s mum has grown a big online following by spreading harmful coronavirus conspiracy theories - like denying Covid-19 exists.

He fears for her impact on public health - and their relationship!

👉 bbc.co.uk/news/uk-546692…
This will be across TV, radio and online today @BBCNews 📺 📻 📲

Have a listen to the @BBCtrending radio programme too👂

All expertly produced by Jonathan Griffin, brilliantly edited by Tobias Chapple and overseen by top Editor Mike Wendling.

bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3…
Sebastian is 21 into politics, travelling.

And his mum, Kate Shemirani has become notorious for spreading conspiracy theories during the pandemic.

He first heard about the online following she was gaining when his brother called him back in April!
Read 13 tweets
25 Oct
My cab driver started talking about YouTube videos from his mates about a plot to kill off the population with a vaccine.

“This pandemic is so weird I think there’s something to it”

This is how a lot of people engage with viral conspiracy theories.
People are trying to make sense of what’s happening, spending lots of time online and feeling anxious and confused.

Those spreading harmful disinformation on social media continue to advantage of that!

A big concern as the possibility of a vaccine grows.
He also started talking about rich and powerful people trafficking and abusing children.

I went on to explain what QAnon is - he’d never heard of it, even though he had come across political disinformation plugged by its supporters online!
Read 6 tweets
19 Oct
🚨 There are unsubstantiated claims that a computer allegedly owned by Hunter Biden contained images of child sexual abuse.

There’s no evidence that the claims are true – so where did they come from?

Here’s a thread on how this political disinformation spread and mutated!
After the controversial New York Post story about Hunter Biden broke last week, a story asking if “something darker” could be on the computer allegedly belonging to him appeared on this site, Revolver. Image
Revolver is a right-wing site tends to aggregate pro-Trump stories from other places – and links from it have been shared by the President himself.
 
It most recently did an exclusive Interview with the President’s former chief adviser Steve Bannon about the alleged hard drive.
Read 13 tweets
10 Oct
🚨 NEW from me 🚨

Will conspiracy theories influence the US Election?

Facebook has banned QAnon - but I’ve interviewed US voters + experts who fear political disinformation under new guises has already impacted voting - and could undermine democracy!

bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-tre…
📻 Listen on @bbcworldservice @BBCtrending - presented by @mwendling + produced by Ant Adeane!

I speak to voters from different backgrounds who fear the impact of QAnon-related disinfo - and experts who worry QAnon’s world view could undermine democracy. bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3…
There’s also a podcast on @BBCSounds 👉 bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3…

This is an in-depth follow up to this report on @BBCNews at Ten - looking at possible effects of conspiracy theories on voters!

We follow the characters + the influence of political disinfo beyond polling day.
Read 20 tweets

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