Ruth Santana | Staff Writer
Election day is approaching and the dangers of misinformation and censorship are spreading like wildfire.
It makes sense that politicians want to win and ensure their opponents are left in the dust. But how far will they go to secure a vote?
Politicians spread misinformation through campaign ads, live debates and election tours.
This can be seen during Rick Scott’s campaign ad against socialism and the live debate between Biden and Trump. Both of the presidential candidates embellished and dramatized their claims and we’ve already seen what that can do.
Trump diminished the attack on the capitol as a “small number of people who were ushered in by police”. When in reality it was an attack designed to impede the democratic election process and harm those who were inside the building.
He also bragged about his environmental record, when in reality he pulled the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Agreement, dismissed claims made by scientists when it came to climate change and eased coal, oil and gas regulations.
Many already have a deep-rooted distrust towards news outlets to provide accurate and unbiased data. With 53% of Americans concerned with news organizations inaccurate reports during the election, it leaves us wondering who can we trust?
Instagram, Facebook and X have seriously cut back on their fact-checking departments. This along with funding for college research centers on misinformation has dried up after a parade of right-wing politicians and activists created a legal campaign that accused them of censoring right-wing views.
That being said I believe everyone has to research the information they receive, instead of blindly believing what is on social media.
We’ve already seen what misinformation can do and it’ll only get worse unless we know how to tell myth from reality.
This can do damage to those living in news deserts, minorities and older generations who may not know how to tell facts from fiction online.
Some political parties are using this to their advantage. During this election, Latinos are being targeted with politically misleading information.
Social media policies that safeguard against election misinformation usually do not include other languages such as Spanish. Free Press polling showed that Spanish speakers feel they do not have enough reliable news sources to make informed voting choices.
Due to the dense population of Spanish speakers in Miami, I feel there are more news outlets for them compared to other parts of the county. The spread of misinformation and false narratives is more prevalent on social media.
There is a difference between fact-checking and censorship.
I am against censorship but I do feel that fact-checking is an important part of stopping the spread of misinformation, especially during election years
The deepening of political divides, public distrust, the politicization of issues and extremism have all been used to bolster political campaigns and ridicule others instead of finding real bipartisan solutions.
The fight for power, greed and personal beliefs keep politicians from seeing the big picture. They are public servants and need to find solutions that help the American people.
The lack of transparency among social media sites, conspiracy theories that cater to people’s beliefs instead of the facts and the slow death of journalism will progress the spread of censorship and misinformation. Making informed decisions on who to elect is imperative to our future and this country.
DISCLAIMER:
The opinions presented on this page do not represent the views of the PantherNOW Editorial Board. These views are separate from editorials and reflect individual perspectives of contributing writers and/or members of the University community.
About Post Author
