TRUTH ON THE BALLOT Fraudulent News, the Midterm Elections, and Prospects for 2020 pen.org TRUTH ON THE BALLOT Fraudulent News, the Midterm Elections, and Prospects for 2020 March 13, 2019 ©2019 PEN America. All rights reserved. PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and hu- man rights to protect open expression in the United States and worldwide. We champion the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. Our mission is to unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. Founded in 1922, PEN America is the largest of more than 100 centers of PEN International. Our strength is in our membership—a nationwide community of more than 7,000 novelists, journalists, poets, es- sayists, playwrights, editors, publishers, translators, agents, and other writing professionals. For more information, visit pen.org. Design by Pettypiece + Co. Cover image: Ligorano/Reese's installation of a 2000 pound ice sculpture called "Truth Be Told" in front of the U.S. Capitol to protest "fake news" in the U.S. (September 21, 2018). Photograph by Sue Abramson. This report was generously funded by CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4 Efforts to Combat Fraudulent News 4 Fraudulent News in the 2018 Election Cycle 6 Conclusions and Recommendations 7 INTRODUCTION 8 Overview 9 Why Fraudulent News Is a Free Expression Issue 10 FIGHTING FRAUDULENT NEWS 11 Tech Companies 12 Facebook 13 Twitter 20 Google and YouTube 24 Making Political Ads More Transparent 26 Ad Archives 29 Tech Company Collaboration with U.S. Government Agencies 31 Government Response 33 Political Parties 36 Risks on the Horizon 37 FRAUDULENT NEWS IN THE 2018 MIDTERM ELECTIONS 38 Who Was Responsible: Foreign versus “Domesticated” Disinformation 38 Fraudulent News and Disinformation in the 2018 Election Cycle 41 Candidate Attacks 41 Blurred Boundaries: Disinformation, Satire, and Negative Ads 43 Political Moments and Fraudulent News 44 Voting and Election Day Disinformation 45 RECOMMENDATIONS 48 PEN AMERICA MODEL PLEDGE AGAINST FRAUDULENT NEWS 52 METHODOLOGY AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 53 ENDNOTES 54 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In this report, PEN America examines the steps taken pressures of removing fraudulent information while by technology companies, government actors, and po- also protecting free expression and avoiding the role litical parties to curb the influence of fraudulent news of unaccountable global censor. in the 2018 U.S. midterm elections; examines current Platforms have generally responded with actions in- legislative proposals to regulate political advertising cluding: revisions to their algorithms; partnerships with transparency online; parses the role fraudulent news third-party fact-checkers and other civic initiatives; in- played in the midterm election cycle; and concludes creased transparency regarding their advertisements with recommendations to stakeholders on steps to and advertising policies; new waves of account shut- combat fraudulent news while protecting free ex- downs for non-compliance with Terms and Conditions; pression rights ahead of the 2020 elections. and more active collaboration with political campaigns This report builds on PEN America’s October 2017 and the government to proactively combat fraudulent report, Faking News: Fraudulent News and the Fight news. The question of whether these new efforts have for Truth, which examined how fraudulent news is been successful in stemming the tide of fraudulent eroding truth-based civic discourse and constitutes a news remains unanswered. While several studies have threat to free expression. Then, as now, PEN America encouragingly indicated that these new tactics have defines fraudulent news asdemonstrably false infor- had some success, others argue any self-congratula- mation that is being presented as a factual news re- tion is premature. port with the intention to One key question involves when and how Facebook, Today, the danger is deceive the public. This Twitter, or Google chooses to shut down the account that fraudulent news and report focuses on exam- of a user disseminating fraudulent news or exhibiting disinformation will become ples that meet this defi- behavior indicating the account is ‘inauthentic’. Ac- normalized as unsavory nition and other forms of count shutdowns are widely seen as the most effec- but acceptable campaign disinformation that are tive and direct way to stop purveyors of fraudulent tactics—just another part of presented as truth with information, but as a tactic they also represent the the toolbox of hotly contested the intent to deceive. most significant risk to the free speech of a platform’s modern campaigns. For the average Amer- users. Given these dueling concerns, companies must ican, the 2016 election exercise a remarkable amount of care and consistency cycle represented the frightening debut of fraudu- in both the formulation and the application of their lent news as a malicious contribution to our national criteria for shutting down accounts, and must ensure politics. Today, our society is still struggling with the appeal mechanisms are clear and accessible. implications and consequences of Russia’s 2016 disin- Additionally, tech company collaboration with gov- formation campaign, as well as the efforts of disinfor- ernment actors offers a proactive means for address- mation actors motivated by profit or ideology. Today, ing fraudulent news, but also carries risks to user the danger is that fraudulent news and disinformation privacy and free expression. At a minimum, increased will become normalized as unsavory but acceptable transparency around these initiatives is imperative, campaign tactics—just another part of the toolbox of and social media platforms must be as open as they hotly contested modern campaigns. Given this risk, can with users about what type of information they the threat that fraudulent news poses—not only to our might share with government bodies and how they political processes, but to our shared foundation of decide what to share and when. objective truth—has only grown since 2016, and must PEN America’s report examines the issue of ad be taken seriously as the 2020 election cycle begins. transparency in depth. Google, Twitter, and Facebook all sell political ads, and in 2016 foreign agents used Efforts to Combat Fraudulent News these platforms’ ad services to spread disinforma- Since the fallout from the 2016 elections, technology tion, sow dissension, and suppress voter turnout. In companies have taken a series of steps designed to response, all three companies have created their own blunt the impact of fraudulent news. PEN America’s searchable ad databases, a major effort at increasing report examines the actions of three major platforms: the transparency of advertising on their platforms. Facebook (which additionally owns Instagram), Twit- Even so, critics argue that this is no substitute for leg- ter, and Google (of which YouTube is a subsidiary). islative solutions like the Honest Ads Act or the For All the platforms face the seemingly contradictory the People Act. While PEN America views legislative 4 PEN AMERICA Key Conclusions • Russian disinformation continues to be a • While both human and automated content salient threat to our elections, and Russian review are subject to bias, some combina- agents of disinformation are playing a ‘long tion of the two is likely the most reasonable game’: their focus is not merely on influenc- approach. It is imperative that the platforms ing American electoral processes, but on that host such a vast portion of our political stoking political polarization and sowing discourse supplement their current tools distrust in democracy. with greater numbers of qualified, trained, and sufficiently supported personnel to • In the past two years, experts and observers evaluate content, exercise judgment, and have noted a worrying increase in instances adapt to fast-changing threats. of domestic disinformation, with American political actors utilizing fraudulent news and • Fraudulent news and disinformation in disinformation against political opponents. the 2018 midterm election cycle tended to have one of a few objectives: attacking • Today, perhaps the greatest threat that fraud- individual candidates, dampening turnout ulent news poses is the risk that it will become or stoking distrust in the voting process, a normalized part of U.S. political discourse. or amplifying a desired narrative about There is a real danger that fraudulent news a particular political event. Key exam- may become the new normal: a distasteful, ples of the latter included disinformation but not disqualifying political tactic. regarding the confirmation hearing of Su- preme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh • Technology companies have made signifi- and the contingent of Central American cant efforts to reduce the spread of fraud- migrants that moved towards the U.S. in ulent news, the results of which are mixed: the fall of 2018. while important advances have been made, many efforts remain insufficient, while -oth • During elections, individual candidates, ers have caused new problems. Voluntary political parties, and party committees efforts by technology companies to ensure have a critical and fundamental role in transparency regarding advertisements on protecting the integrity of our civic dis- their platforms have so far proven insuffi- course and the public’s ability to make cient to prevent their manipulation. informed decisions about who will rep-