Anticipating Election Lies Before & After Election Day

As we rapidly approach Election Day, electoral deceit and manipulation are only getting worse, with grave consequences for our society and democracy. Newsrooms have a powerful role to play and must be prepared to combat disinformation for audiences. This is especially important because it will take time to determine the election outcome — and lies will proliferate during this period of uncertainty.

We need newsrooms and journalists that are equipped and willing to accurately and unapologetically report on U.S. elections and the state of our democracy. Traditional media are uniquely positioned to provide context and expose threats, yet they often lack the tools to do so.

This is exactly what Free Press’ Democracy Is … initiative was designed for.

An antidote to disinformation

On Oct. 22, Free Press’ very own Nora Benavidez and Vanessa Maria Graber hosted a live training geared toward reporters, editors and other media professionals on anticipating election lies and threats to the rule of law. While the training focused on helping newsroom staff step up and provide adequate coverage that doesn’t just chase clicks or profits, the takeaways from our two experts are applicable to everyday life as well.

The dynamic conversation explored voter trust, the potential for violence and the media’s role in keeping communities stay engaged and informed.

“We believe that journalism is actually an antidote to disinformation, along with things like media literacy and digital literacy,” said Graber. “We believe that journalists, especially local journalists, have a really important role to play in providing truthful, verified information to their audiences. I might debunk something for a friend, but they might trust a local journalist or a news site more.”

Community members need these trusted sources to help debunk lies, particularly at a time when extremists are inflaming anti-immigrant sentiment to sow doubt in the integrity of our elections.

“I think one of the most dangerous lies that we are already seeing being laid down is that immigrants … in our communities are being sent to the polls to vote illegally. That is false,” said Benavidez. “There are statistically irrelevant examples of any kind of voter fraud, corruption, people engaging in voting twice in different states. And there's a really rich body of resources … that can help you debunk that.”

During the final stretch of the 2024 election, we encourage you to prepare as much as possible before full-throated election denialism takes center stage. Watch our training and read our resource so you can do your part to counter these lies and safeguard our democracy:

Help Free Press keep fighting election disinformation: Donate today.