‘Perils Your Platforms Present…’: US Lawmaker Inquiries About Social Media Companies’ Poll Readiness in India and Other Countries
A well-known US congressman has questioned American social media firms about their election preparations in India, where social media sites have a track record of disseminating inaccurate and misleading information. This occurs during the 2024 elections in over 70 nations, which are expected to be the “Year of Democracy,” with over two billion voters.
Major election fights are anticipated in Australia, Belgium, Croatia, the EU, Finland, Ghana, Iceland, India, Lithuania, Namibia, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Panama, Romania, Senegal, South Africa, the UK, and the US this year. Sen. Michael Bennet, a member of the Senate Intelligence and Rules Committees, which is in charge of overseeing US elections, sent a letter to the CEOs of X, Alphabet, Meta, and TikTok asking for details regarding these businesses’ readiness.
“THREATENS OF DEEPERFAKES”
“Electoral hazards are not new on your platforms; in past elections, people have used deepfakes and digitally modified material. However, artificial intelligence (AI) models have the potential to increase threats to political stability and the democratic process. Since practically anybody can now create frighteningly lifelike pictures, videos, and music, the prior hurdles to entry have been lowered by the widespread availability of advanced AI technologies, according to Bennet.
Bennet asked for information on the platforms’ election-related policies, content moderation teams—including the languages covered and the number of moderators on full- or part-time contracts—and the tools used to identify AI-generated content in a letter addressed to Elon Musk of X, Mark Zuckerberg of Meta, Shou Zi Chew of Tik Tok, and Sundar Pichai of Alphabet. Bennet went on, “People ruling themselves is a promise of democracy, but it’s fragile.” “Misinformation and disinformation blur the lines between reality and fantasy, contaminating democratic debate. “Your platforms ought to bolster democracy rather than weaken it,” the author stated.
“LARGEST DEMOCRACY IN THE WORLD”
“The biggest social media platforms in India, the largest democracy in the world, notably WhatsApp, which is owned by Meta, have a history of spreading incorrect and deceptive news. The Senator added, “Political actors who exploit ethnic resentment for their own gain have easy access to disinformation networks on your platforms.”
Bennet then inquired about the specifics of their new programs and the candidates standing for election in India. What new policies have you implemented, if any, in anticipation of the Indian election of 2024? In Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Bodo, Santhali, Maithili, and Dogri, he inquired as to how many content moderators are now employed. Bennet said, “Of these, could you please provide a breakdown between full-time employees and contractors?”
“ACTORS LINKED TO CHINA”
The Senator informed the CEOs of social media platforms that, in addition to their incapacity to properly filter deceptive material created by artificial intelligence, their systems are still unable to prevent more conventional types of incorrect information. Malicious information operations were used by groups with ties to China to sabotage Taiwan’s elections in January. TikTok allowed coordinated Chinese-language content critical of President-elect William Lai’s Democratic Progressive Party to proliferate across its platform, while Facebook allowed the spread of misinformation campaigns accusing Taiwan and the US of working together to develop bioweapons,” it said.
The Senator claims to have heard from the chiefs of the US Intelligence Community that attempts to tamper with US elections may be made by the governments of China, Iran, and Russia. He said, “Your platforms continue to allow users to distribute fabricated content, discredit electoral integrity, and deepen social distrust as these and other actors threaten people’s right to exercise popular sovereignty.” Bennet asked for details on the platforms’ election-related rules, content moderation teams (including the languages they cover and the number of full- or part-time moderators employed), and the techniques they use to recognize material created by artificial intelligence.
