Election 2020: Foreign Interference and Domestic Manipulations Aimed at Voters and Electoral Outcomes

IN 2016 WE LEARNED ABOUT EFFORTS BY FOREIGN ACTORS to interfere in the U.S. election by injecting misinformation and disinformation into public discourse on social media. False events and personas added to the polarization and manipulation of voters.

The 2020 election is marked by similar efforts, though this time the actors are domestic as well as foreign. What do we do know about people with deceptive or malicious agendas trying to influence citizens ahead of elections, to degrade democracy and sow distrust in the election results, or to spread confusion about science and facts more generally through our information systems?