Local Government Is Key to the Fight Against Disinformation

State governments, it is sometimes said, are the laboratories of democracy. If so, the rest of the world should make use of the new discoveries that are occurring there in the fight against election disinformation. 

2024 is a pivotal year for democracies around the globe with more than half the world’s population going to the polls. However, the unprecedented threat of election-related disinformation looms large, particularly in the United States.

Authoritarian countries like Russia, China, and Iran are leading disinformation campaigns, enhanced by artificial intelligence, to push narratives that undermine democratic governance, exacerbate political divisions, and support strongman and populist leaders. It is also increasingly apparent that foreign actors are poised to ramp up influence operations as Americans head to the polls. While it’s not the only threat in the disinformation landscape, they are certainly ones to be taken seriously, especially as the U.S. prepares for a polarized and divisive presidential election.

With Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump locked in a competitive race for the White House, the contest to determine who will secure the presidency is likely be decided by a thin margin of voters in a handful of states. And any widespread disinformation campaign targeting battleground states has the potential to tip the scales or delegitimize election results. Down-ballot races are also at risk.

Read more: AI Isn’t Our Election Safety Problem, Disinformation Is

This comes at a time when the U.S. has also been experiencing a steady decline in local news sources since 2005. Instead, social media has become a crucial aspect of news consumption, and one that amplifies misinformation, leading to increased division, polarization on partisan grounds, and a loss of confidence in our institutions.

The terrain is becoming more treacherous as technology rapidly advances. From AI-generated robocalls that impersonated President Biden to discourage votes in New Hampshire to a manipulated campaign ad shared by Elon Musk on X which used AI to mimic Vice-President Harris.

So, what should we do to protect ourselves from falling victim to disinformation?

The most robust solutions may lie in the hands of states and local governments.

Traditionally, federal agencies take the lead, given their national security mandates, on countering foreign disinformation threats. However, states should not cede the battle on disinformation to federal agencies, but instead take a central role creating a great opportunity to inoculate individuals from falling victim to mistruths and conspiracy theories set loose online.

States and municipalities can complement and bolster national efforts to combat the spread of disinformation through the following measures:

Invest in local media

A number of state governments are taking measures to support local news outlets. Local news is essential to combatting disinformation because in the absence of community centered journalism, many seek information from social media, which has become a well-known vector for the spread of false claims and conspiracy theories. States such as New York have used tax incentives while others, like California, New Mexico, and Washington have established publicly funded fellowship programs for young and aspiring journalists. Illinois is one of the first states in the nation to mandate state agency spend on local news advertisement. While these are a great start, local news outlets are woefully underprepared for an information ecosystem where disinformation can so easily stifle and muddle the truth.

States should prioritize resources for local news organizations so that they can build the capacity to pre-bunk and de-bunk information that floods the online environment, especially when it comes to elections. Debunking claims takes a significant amount of time and resources, one even nationally syndicated news outlets have difficulty in keeping up with.

States can compensate for the stagnating momentum in the global fact-checking ecosystem. By building the capacity for de-bunking at the local level, this can begin to build a network of professionalized journalists dedicated to inundating their communities from being overwhelmed with fake news.

News literacy

Several states have implemented media literacy programs at the middle and high school levels. California, Delaware, and New Jersey have recently passed laws requiring K-12 students to learn media literacy skills— such as recognizing fake news and thinking critically about information they encounter online.

These steps can help prepare younger generations for a media environment where disinformation is constant. However, the same resources need to be made available to adults too, particularly those susceptible to fake news. As technology advances, even those with higher media literacy may even have difficulty distinguishing fact from fiction.

Election security response units

States should develop rapid response election security units within the state executive branch, that work with counties, in coordination with federal authorities, to monitor and detect state-sponsored disinformation campaigns leading up to the election, particularly those which violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. This strategy should include the creation of units that counter misinformation campaigns with facts. States could rely on the example set by New York City during the COVID-19 pandemic, for instance. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene established a dedicated Misinformation Response Unit to focus on monitoring misinformation, rapidly responding by disseminating accurate information related to vaccine safety.

With the accelerated spread of disinformation supercharged by sophisticated artificial intelligence tools, the federal government is simply far too ill-equipped to tackle this challenge alone. Politics aside, it should be in every leader’s interest at the state and local level to ensure that our democratic process is decided by an informed electorate—free from the influence of foreign powers who wish us harm or to sow chaos and division. Nationwide efforts adopted by states can reduce the spread of misinformation and strengthen our democracy for the better

States have an opportunity to experiment with solutions. We should encourage them to use it.