How Disinformation And Distortions On Social Media Affected Elections Worldwide

Internet freedom is on the decline for the seventh consecutive year as governments around the world take to distorting information on social media in order to influence elections, a new report says.

The nongovernmental organization Freedom House released its annual Freedom on the Net report this week, which found that online "manipulation and disinformation tactics played an important role" in elections in 18 countries, including the U.S.

The report noted Russia's influence campaign on the U.S. election, but governments often used these tactics internally.

The group described the workings of a paid "keyboard army" that supported the Philippines' Rodrigo Duterte's 2016 election; "government agents" in Venezuela propagating "lies about opposition protesters" before elections there; fake news articles shared on social media before Kenya's election in August;