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Dramatic rise in fake political content on social media as Canada prepares to vote

Report finds over a quarter of Canadians exposed to ‘more sophisticated and more politically polarizing’ fake content

More than a quarter of Canadians have been exposed to fake political content on social media that is “more sophisticated and more politically polarizing” as the country prepares to vote in a federal election, researchers have found, warning that platforms must increase protections amid a “dramatic acceleration” of online disinformation in the final weeks of the campaign.

In a new report released on Friday, Canada’s Media Ecosystem Observatory found a growing number of Facebook ads impersonating legitimate news sources were instead promoting fraudulent investment schemes, often involving cryptocurrency.

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Media researchers found more than half of Canadians still say they get political news from Facebook, despite the platform’s ban on news articles from reputable outlets.

Dramatic rise in fake political content on social media as Canada prepares to votehttps://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/apr/18/canada-fake-political-content-social-mediaOpen linkView original on lemmy.world
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Comments7
JasonDJreply
lemmy.zip

Yeah and it's being funded by Musk and Thiel.

If somebody told me, 27 years ago, that paying for eBay auctions would be the first link in a chain of events that would lead to the downfall of US, I've thought you were crazy.

I apologize, everyone. This is entirely because of my teenage photography hobby. I should've kept on just mailing money orders.

31
Optionalreply
lemmy.world

Yes, and It's This.

One of several relevant points:

Cambridge Analytica worked on campaigns in several key states for a Republican political action committee. Its key objective, according to a memo the Observer has seen, was “voter disengagement” and “to persuade Democrat voters to stay at home”: a profoundly disquieting tactic. It has previously been claimed that suppression tactics were used in the campaign, but this document provides the first actual evidence.

8
Asafum
feddit.nl

Media researchers found more than half of Canadians still say they get political news from Facebook,

🤮 🤮 🤮 🤮 🤮

59
Apricotreply
lemm.ee

Dear god, that's like saying "I get my prescriptions filled by my pharmacist in that dark alley down the street, just behind the dumpster."

27
BurgerBaronreply
sh.itjust.works

I'm sure that won't bite us in the ass in 4 years, right Carney? I'm sure the enemy owning the narrative in Canada won't be a problem.

3
Lady Butterfly
lazysoci.al

Extremist groups run really sophisticated, targeted social media campaigns. It's not just foreign interference, it's fucking terrorism

15

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