#Expert Q and A: Disinformation and Elections

Augusta University's Lance Hunter, PhD, answers trending questions about the upcoming election

Sep 13, 2024

3 min

Question: Taylor Swift recently took to her Instagram page to “set the record straight”

about an AI version of her that had “endorsed” Former President Donald Trump. What

are some of the things people can look for to know if a celebrity has indeed endorsed a

candidate?

Answer: People can go to the celebrity’s social media page to see their recent social

media activity. On the page, people can search for information regarding political

endorsements. People should be aware that many fake and parody social media

accounts exist for celebrities, so people need to make sure they locate the real social

media accounts of the celebrity in question. Also, people can search reputable news

sources to see if there is any verifiable information (i.e., the information has been verified

by other reputable news sources) regarding celebrity endorsements.

Question: In an era where it is too easy for anyone to alter images or video, what are

some of the dangers that can be associated with these deep fakes? How can this negatively impact the election, and just life in general with having this kind of misinformation out there?

Answer: There can be multiple concerns regarding disinformation and elections. One, if

voters make decisions about whether to vote for a candidate based on disinformation/misinformation, this is a concern for elections because in a democracy the hope is that voters can make informed voting decisions based on accurate information.

Second, if millions of people are exposed to disinformation/misinformation and only a

small percentage of those are not aware that the disinformation/misinformation is false, this could have significant effects for elections. The reason is that in recent presidential elections, and likely in the upcoming election, the margin of victory in some swing states can be less than 1% of the total state vote in some cases. Thus, if only a small percentage of individuals who are exposed to disinformation/misinformation believe the information is true, and the disinformation/misinformation affects their voting decisions, that could have significant effects on the election outcome of a given swing state. Furthermore, we know that the election outcome of each swing state has important implications for the overall presidential election outcome.

Question: Do celebrity endorsements still help or hurt candidates?

Answer: The empirical evidence linking specific celebrity endorsements to election

outcomes is mixed. Based on existing research, we can’t say that a specific celebrity

endorsement led to an election victory or loss. However, there has been some

interesting research from Harvard (2024) that shows that celebrity endorsements do

matter for elections by potentially increasing voter interest, voter engagement and voter

registration. One example is in September of 2023 when Taylor Swift made an

Instagram post encouraging individuals to vote. Immediately afterward, 35,000 individuals registered to vote on the non-partisan voter registration website Vote.org . So, while we can’t say that a certain celebrity endorsement will directly affect an election outcome, celebrities can move the needle in terms of voter interest, voter registration, and potentially voter turnout, which can influence election outcomes.

Interested in learning more - let us help. Lance Hunter, PhD, is a professor of political science with a background in international relations. He is available to speak with media about this important topic - simply click on his icon to arrange an interview today.

Connect with:

Lance Hunter, PhD

Professor of Political Science

Dr. Lance Hunter studies the connection between terrorism and political stability in democracies.

PoliticsTerrorismInternational RelationsVotingCivil Liberties

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