The situation exemplifies two challenges that some experts are warning about ahead of the presidential election in November: The use of generative AI to create fake images and videos, and the emergence of China as an adversary that stands ready and willing to target the United States with disinformation. Academics are also voicing concerns about a proliferation of alternative news platforms, government inaction on the spread of disinformation, worsening social media moderation and increased instances of public figures inciting violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An environment rife for disinformation is coinciding with a year during which more than 50 countries are holding high-stakes elections. Simply put, it\u2019s a \u201cvery precarious year for democracy,\u201d warned Mollie Saltskog, a research fellow at The Soufan Center, a nonprofit that analyzes global security challenges. Some of the messaging meant to sow division is reaching veterans by preying on their sense of duty to the U.S., some experts warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cConspiracy theories are a threat to vulnerable veterans, and they could drag your loved ones into really dark and dangerous places,\u201d said Jacob Ware, a research fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations who published a book this year about domestic terrorism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe seeds are there for this kind of activity again, and we need to make the argument that protecting people from conspiracy theories is in their best interest, not just in the country\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The threat of state-backed disinformation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
China kept to the sidelines during the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections, watching as Russia targeted the U.S. with chaos-inducing disinformation, according to the U.S. Intelligence community. But Beijing\u2019s disinformation capabilities have increased in recent years, and the country has proven a willingness to get involved, Saltskog said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a report published in April, Microsoft warned that China was preparing to sow division during the presidential campaign by using fake social media accounts to discover what issues divide Americans most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The accounts claimed that a train derailment in Kentucky was deliberately caused by the U.S. government, and they polled Americans about issues like climate change, border policies and racial tensions. China uses the information gathered to \u201cunderstand better which U.S. voter demographic supports what issue or position and which topics are the most divisive, ahead of the main phase of the U.S. presidential election,\u201d the technology behemoth warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe primary concern today, in our assessment, is Russia, China and Iran, in that order,\u201d Saltskog said. \u201cSpecifically, when we talk about China \u2026 we\u2019ve seen with the Hawaii wildfire example that they have AI-powered capabilities to produce disinformation campaigns targeting the U.S. It\u2019s certainly very concerning.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Envoys from China and the U.S. are set to meet this week to discuss the risks of artificial intelligence and how the countries could manage the technology. A senior official in President Joe Biden\u2019s administration told reporters Friday that the agenda does not include election interference, but noted the topic might come up in discussion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn previous engagements, we have expressed clear concerns and warnings about any [Peoples Republic of China] activity in this space,\u201d a senior administration official said. \u201cIf the conversation goes in a particular direction, then we will certainly continue to express those concerns and warnings about activity in that space.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Logically, a British tech company that uses artificial intelligence to monitor disinformation around the world, has been tracking Russian-sponsored disinformation for years. Kyle Walter, the company\u2019s head of research, believes Russia is positioned to increase its spread of falsehoods during the run-up to the November election, likely focusing on divisive issues, such as immigration and the U.S. economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Russia isn\u2019t seeking to help one candidate over another, Walter added. Rather, it\u2019s trying to sow chaos and encourage Americans to question the validity and integrity of their voting process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Microsoft\u2019s threat analysis center published another report at the end of April, saying that Russian influence operations to target the November election have already begun<\/a>. The propaganda and disinformation campaigns are starting at a slower tempo than in 2016 and 2020, but they\u2019re more centralized under the Russian Presidential Administration than in the past, Microsoft officials said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So far, Russia-affiliated accounts have been focusing on undermining U.S. support for Ukraine, pushing disinformation meant to portray Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as unethical and incompetent, and arguing that any American aid to Ukraine was directly supporting a corrupt and conspiratorial regime, the report states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n State-backed disinformation campaigns like these have used images of U.S. service members and targeted troops and veterans during the previous two presidential elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A study from Oxford University in 2017 found Russian operatives disseminated \u201cjunk news\u201d to veterans and service members<\/a> during the 2016 election. In 2020, Vietnam Veterans of America warned that foreign adversaries were aiming disinformation at veterans and service members at a massive scale<\/a>, posing a national security threat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s certainly happened historically, and it\u2019s certainly a threat to be aware of now,\u201d Saltskog said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In March, the pause in public sightings of Kate Middleton, along with the lack of updates regarding her health following abdominal surgery, created a breeding ground for conspiracy theories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Scores of memes and rumors spread in an online fervor until Middleton posted a video March 20, in which the Princess of Wales shared the news that she had been diagnosed with an undisclosed type of cancer. Some who shared conspiracies responded with regret.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The situation offered a public example of how conspiracy thinking snowballs on social media platforms, as well as the real harm it can cause, said AJ Bauer, an assistant professor at the University of Alabama, where he studies partisan media and political communications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt does reinforce the fact that social media gives us an opportunity to crowdsource and spin conspiracy theories and conspiracy thinking,\u201d Bauer said. \u201cIt can be done for a kind of whimsy, or it can be done for harm, and the line between whimsy and harm is a fine one. It can tip from one to the other pretty quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Social media platforms were blamed during the presidential election seasons in 2016 and 2020 for the influential campaigns that gained traction on their sites. Since then, the situation has only worsened, several experts argued.<\/p>\n\n\n\t![\"\"](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Microsoft-screenshot.png.png\")
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A social media \u2018hellscape\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n