Source: Voto Latino
WASHINGTON /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — In response to the threat to democracy and public health posed by misinformation and disinformation, Voto Latino, the largest Latinx voter registration organization in the U.S., and Media Matters for America, the nation’s leading media watchdog organization, announced the launch of the Laboratory against disinformation directed at Latinos. This collaborative effort seeks a better understanding and a strategic fight against disinformation at all levels and in all media, which seeks, in the first instance, to influence Latinx individuals.
The Lab against Disinformation Targeting Latinos will have on its board of directors Maria Teresa Kumar, co-founder, president and CEO of Voto Latino, Angelo Carusone, president and CEO of Media Matters for America, and Tom Perez, former director of the National Democratic Committee. For the first time, it will establish the communication systems and network needed to help combat misinformation and misinformation that increases polarization and isolation of Latinx voters.
The need for this initiative is clear. In the months leading up to the 2020 general election, voters were subject to much higher levels of misinformation and misinformation than ever before. In the media and on social platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Whatsapp, YouTube and other online communities, misinformation was presented about voter fraud, fear-sowing tactics and misinformation about COVID-19 in both English and Spanish. This included a noticeable increase in false information targeting communities of color, which disproportionately impacted the audience of Spanish speakers over the age of 40.
“For decades, disinformation has been a weapon used by corrupt governments in failed states against their own people,” said Maria Teresa Kumar of Voto Latino. “But now, this same weapon targets the most vulnerable in the United States, as it exploits the moral weakness of some officials and the deliberate lack of social media rules to sow a distrust in our fundamental institutions that surpasses all that is known. Spreading lies about COVID vaccines is proof enough that misinformation becomes a matter of life and death if it is not addressed and limited.”
The Latino-Directed Anti-Disinformation Lab is the largest investment to date to combat disinformation in Latinx communities. It will combine Media Matters’ intelligence and disinformation expertise with Voto Latino’s in-depth knowledge of Latin communities and digital prowess to give its anti-disinformation message to impacted audiences across the media spectrum. As part of this effort, Media Matters will expand its surveillance of Spanish-language online media and communities, with a team dedicated to advancing analytics that will catalyze strategic communication actions for Voto Latino. Voto Latino will make significant investments in the information and infrastructure necessary to identify at-risk Latinx voters and communicate with them effectively.
“Whether it’s public health, political campaigns or debates about laws, how the media approach the issue will have a big influence on its outcome,” said Angelo Carusone, president of Media Matters. “The conservative right has spent years building a disinformation machine aimed at the Latinx community, which has resulted in a rising tide of disinformation. Although it may seem like an inexhaustible task, it is not only possible, it is absolutely necessary to confront disinformation with energy. This partnership will provide essential control over that rising tide of misinformation.”
Alongside the work of Media Matters and Voto Latino, former DNC director Tom Perez, the son of first-generation Dominican immigrants, will lend his voice and support to the effort to combat misinformation directed at the Latinx community.
“Misinformation targeting the Latino community is a real and growing threat. We must confront this threat with a substantial, focused and synchronized effort. That’s why I’m excited to be part of this partnership between Voto Latino and Media Matters. Media Matters’ unique capabilities and expertise for media surveillance and research are in place with Voto Latino’s extraordinary organizational and strategic communication skills,” added Tom Perez. “This is the kind of lasting investment in communications infrastructure that is needed in the Latino community, to respond to the threat of disinformation while achieving long-term political and civic power.”
Voto Latino : It is a political organization of popular origin focused on the education and empowerment of a new generation of Latinx voters, in addition to the creation of a more robust and inclusive democracy.
Media Matters for America : It is a media watchdog organization dedicated to investigating and exposing misinformation of conservative origin. Through its real-time surveillance, its comprehensive research and analysis, and its rapid response actions,
