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Rise of right-wing apps seen worsening midterm disinformation | Roll Call

The new apps and sites present a new information landscape for voters as November’s midterm elections approach and Democrats seek to defend their slim majorities in Congress. After being routinely bombarded with discredited claims about fraudulent and destroyed ballots, voting machine malfunctions and other unproven conspiracy theories, nearly 80 percent of Republicans continue to believe that President Joe Biden did not win legitimately in 2020.

The picture is about to get much worse, as the new apps promising to be anti-Big Tech, anti-censorship and pro-free speech are attracting “die-hards,” said Angelo Carusone, president of Media Matters, a nonprofit group that monitors conservative media outlets.

By promising users unfettered platforms to say and promote whatever they please, these right-leaning apps and sites will likely become places to start, nurture and promote disinformation about the midterm elections that may even lead to violence, Carusone said.

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Source: Rise of right-wing apps seen worsening midterm disinformation – Roll Call