ABC News: Voter registration data for 113K Alaskans exposed in breach. “The breach affected about 113,000 Alaskans who had used the online voter registration system within the past five years to change some detail, such as an address or party affiliation, he said. That system went online in 2015.”
ProPublica: Misinformation Image on WeChat Attempts to Frighten Chinese Americans Out of Voting. “At least two dozen groups on the Chinese-owned social media app WeChat have been circulating misinformation that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is ‘preparing to mobilize’ the National Guard and ‘dispatch’ the military to quell impending riots, apparently in an attempt to frighten Chinese Americans into staying home on Election Day.”
Inside Edition: How Musicians Are Doing Things Differently to Encourage People to Vote Amid COVID-19. “As the clock ticks down closer to Election Day, more and more musicians are encouraging their fans to get out and vote. While musicians encouraging fans to vote is nothing new, this year, due to the coronavirus pandemic, things will have to be done differently. Artists have always influenced and commented on the culture around them. Yet, moreso in America since the Vietnam War, musicians have encouraged their fans to vote and push for change. ”
BNN Bloomberg: Most U.S. Voters See Misinformation Online and Many Believe It. “The SurveyUSA poll of more than 3,000 registered voters found that 65% reported seeing political disinformation in their Facebook feeds. A quarter of them reported believing the claims. Conducted between Oct. 14-19, the survey revealed that 85% of registered voters read that mail-in voting will lead to voter fraud, with 35% believing it.”
New-to-me, from Fast Company: How many people have voted so far in 2020? This live map and state database will tell you . “In the interest of cutting to the chase, your suspicions are correct: A record number of people are voting before Election Day this year, and, yes, a lot of them are Democrats. That’s according to the latest data from the U.S. Elections Project, a website and portal that tracks early voting numbers.”
WSAV: How to turn off Facebook voter registration prompts. “Whether you’re already tired of election season, or you’ve already voted early, you may be sick of seeing the prompts on Facebook to register to vote. Here’s your hack to make them go away.”
Mashable: Facebook removes 120,000 posts for trying to ‘obstruct voting’ in U.S. election. “With the U.S. presidential election just weeks away, voter suppression efforts are in full-swing on social media. Among the prime targets for voter suppression attempts: The world’s largest social network, Facebook, and its sister platform, Instagram.”
Associated Press: Black churches mobilizing voters despite virus challenges. “In recent election cycles, Black church congregations across the country have launched get-out-the-vote campaigns commonly referred to as ‘souls to the polls.’ To counteract racist voter suppression tactics that date back to the Jim Crow era, early voting in the Black community is stressed from pulpits nearly as much as it is by the candidates seeking their support. But voter mobilization in Black church communities will look much different in 2020, due in large part to the coronavirus pandemic that has infected millions across the U.S. and has taken a disproportionate toll on Black America.”
CBS News: Black scholars band together to fight “cultural disinformation” on social media. “The National Black Cultural Information Trust seeks to counter trolls on Twitter and other social media platforms that attempt to discourage Black voters from participating in elections or seek to turn Black voters against other communities of color, such as Hispanics or Asian Americans. Teach-ins, webinars, workshops and town hall discussions will be hosted by the NBCIT to strengthen public awareness, according to the release.”
Reuters: Google launches new features to help locate nearest voting locations. “Alphabet Inc’s Google said on Friday it was introducing new features across its search engine, Maps and voice assistant to help voters in the United States find their nearest voting locations.”
ZDNet: Vote safely: How to find a trustworthy election ballot drop-off location. “President Donald Trump claims mail carriers in West Virginia are ‘selling the ballots’ and that the postal service ‘s losing 30 and 40 percent [of mailed-in ballots].’ These are lies. It’s all part of an attempt to cast fear, uncertainty, and doubt around the election. Meanwhile, the California GOP has installed unofficial ballot drop-off boxes that state officials say are illegal. Think your vote will be counted if you were to drop your ballot off in one of these? I doubt it.”
ABC News: COVID-19 pandemic amplifying voter disenfranchisement. “As COVID-19 continues to disproportionately impact minorities, some experts warn the pandemic may make it even harder for certain groups to vote in the upcoming election.”
CNET: Snapchat says it’s helped over 1 million people register to vote. “The popular app, known for its disappearing messages and face filters, estimates 56% of the people it helped register this year are first-time voters and nearly 65% are between 18 and 24. For the 2020 election, Snapchat parent company Snap said it’s created tools to help people register to vote, learn about voting options and make a plan to cast their ballot.”
CNET: TikTok launches US elections guide to combat misinformation. “TikTok said Tuesday that it’s rolling out a guide within the short-form video app that will show users trustworthy information about the upcoming US elections. The release of TikTok’s US elections guide is in line with how other social networks are trying to combat political misinformation ahead of the US elections in November. Other social networks, including Facebook and Twitter, also created an online hub for election content to direct people to authoritative sources.”
Washington Post: College students upended by the pandemic wrestle with yet another challenge: How to vote this fall?. “When students at the University of Texas at Austin were sent home this spring as the coronavirus pandemic shut down college campuses, Janae Steggall and other campus organizers scrambled to help students make sure they could still vote in the primaries. But despite blasting out social media graphics, hotline numbers and digital care packages to help students figure out where they were eligible to vote, some students never got their ballots after they returned home — including Steggall, who leads a civic engagement group on campus.”
