According to a study by the Mozilla Foundation, social media behemoths Facebook, TikTok, and Twitter have evolved into sources of false information and misinformation that have undermined Kenya's most recent elections.
Kenya's Problem with Social Media Misinformation
Days after the election, the foundation noted a large amount of false information circulating online. The organization is criticizing the three large social media platforms that had promised to uphold the integrity of the election.
The report has highlighted how Kenyans were inundated with false information online during the August 2022 federal election, including false claims of victory, allegations of political kidnapping, conspiracy theories, targeted attacks, and more.
This is a frustrating reality for truth watchers because the aforementioned platforms made commitments to uphold Kenya's democratic processes. The report claims that some of these pledges were merely empty gestures to help boost their brand, with no real intention of aiding in election security.
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But these platforms are not solely to blame for the observed misinformation dystopia. The Conversation tells us that political parties in Africa are also spending a lot of money to hire consultants with experience in social media content manipulation and digital campaigning.
It is clear that those with financial and political clout can easily employ automated programs, such as bots, to sway the distribution of political content on social media. Information can also be distorted by them.
To back up this claim, fact-checking organization AFP reports that the relentless and dangerous flow of disinformation continued online and did not stop even when the election campaign period officially ended. So-called "keyboard warriors" weaponized fake news and information to discredit rivals.
Reports also indicate that Deputy President William Ruto's and veteran politician Raila Odinga's camps are circulating a number of posts claiming that their opponent is involved in vote-rigging ploys. A number of bloggers who shared links to scandalous videos also helped fuel this propaganda war.
Facebook, TikTok, and Twitter
Going back to the Mozilla Foundation report, the study discovered that labeling on Twitter and Tiktok was inconsistent and did not halt the spread of fake news. It claims that some parties were more negatively impacted than others by the sporadic labeling of posts announcing the elections ahead of the official announcement, which gave the platforms a partisan appearance.
Political advertising is categorically prohibited on Twitter and TikTok. However, Facebook does permit political advertising.
In addition to the flagrant labeling errors, the report also says there was a glaring mismatch between the election misinformation policies they established and how they were carried out.
Additionally, the study discovered that Facebook had violated Kenyan law by allowing political campaigns to start 48 hours prior to election day. It was discovered that consumers could still buy advertisements and that Meta applied less strict regulations in Kenya than in markets like the United States.
Call to Action
According to TechCrunch, Mozilla is urging platforms to be open about the actions they take on their platforms so they can design solutions to stop disinformation and misinformation. They are also urging platforms to start interventions early enough and to continue the efforts once the results have been announced.
