Misinformation

Did you just get catfished by a political ad? If you have been scrolling on Facebook or Instagram lately, maybe.



A group called "Progress 2028" has paid for Facebook and Instagram ads that give the impression that they’re promoting Vice President Kamala Harris’ agenda on polarizing issues, including immigration, gun control and hydraulic fracturing aka fracking. But the Harris campaign isn’t behind the ads, and they distort her platform.

Republicans representing states hit by hurricanes Helene and Milton are grappling with the spread of storm misinformation, much of which has stemmed from prominent figures in their own party — including sitting lawmakers and former President Trump.

The false claims have run rampant on social media since the deadly pair of storms made their way through parts of the Southeast — most notably Florida and North Carolina — with Republicans floating inaccurate allegations about the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), disaster relief and the weather.

Republican Al Schmidt, Pennsylvania's top election official, has crisscrossed his state in a campaign to spread the gospel of election security, four years after former President Donald Trump disputed the ballot count.

False claims suggesting that Hurricane Milton was “engineered” and that the weather in Florida is being “manipulated” have been spreading on social media.

There is no technology that allows humans to create and control hurricanes.

But on platforms like X and TikTok, posts alleging - without evidence - that the US government is secretly controlling the weather have been viewed millions of times.

Baseless conspiracy theories about weather modification and false claims about disaster relief efforts have continued to spread on X in recent days, with misinformation about Hurricane Milton adding to a mountain of false rumors about Hurricane Helene and its aftermath.

The spread has sparked a push from local and federal officials, along with some politicians, who have decried the spread of misinformation and outlandish claims about the origins of the storms.

As southern cities clean up the remnants of Hurricane Helene, several Republican lawmakers have also been tasked with cleaning up misinformation spread by some of their fellow GOP colleagues.

Shortly after Helene made landfall last month, inaccurate claims began to spread online about how the storm originated and whether it could target certain communities. Among those spreading the unsubstantiated claims was Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), who suggested the hurricane was targeting areas with predominantly Republican populations.

As U.S. officials struggle to push back against misinformation about natural disasters hitting the country, at least three congressional Republicans condemned conspiracy theories repeated by fellow members of their party.

Representative Chuck Edwards, who represents a North Carolina district hit hard by flooding caused by Hurricane Helene in late September, called out the "outrageous rumors" spread by "untrustworthy sources trying to spark chaos."

Misinformation has become a hurdle on the path to recovery as locals work to rebuild the communities devastated by Hurricane Helene.

Some Republicans, including former President Trump, are spreading false claims Washington is intentionally withholding aid to people in Republican areas.

Meanwhile, many cities and towns across North Carolina remain cut off from help and supplies after the hurricane. That includes no power or cell service more than a week after the storm tore through the region.

Cleanup across the state could take years.

In Latino exile communities across the country, a question is being asked: is Kamala Harris really a communist?

The vice-president has been the subject of numerous misleading claims that she is a socialist or communist since becoming the Democratic candidate for president, according to the US’s largest Spanish-language fact-checker Factchequeado.

Experts say these claims capitalise on genuine fears held by some voters who fled repression in countries like Cuba and Venezuela.