If you’ve been paying attention to the news, you’ll know an election is coming soon – and if you’ve been on Facebook or Twitter, you’ll probably have noticed a lot of conspiratorial nonsense flying around.
Strident voices will tell you that the election will be “rigged” with Dominion voting machines, that the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is aligned with one party or the other, that the Government might delay the election into next year.
All of those – and a wealth of other breathless claims – are, of course, wrong; what’s more, spreading them can do real harm to people’s faith in the democratic process. That’s why the AEC has launched a disinformation register to counter the myths spreading on social media. According to Commissioner Tom Rogers, while scrutiny of elections is important, it must be well-informed.
“We’re not messing around. The Australian vote belongs to all Australians and there is freedom of political communication. However, if you spread incorrect information about the processes we run – deliberately or otherwise – we’ll correct you.
“False information about the free, fair and secure election process that has operated in Australia for many years can do significant damage to public trust,” he said.
The register – which adds to the work the AEC’s official Twitter account has been doing debunking wild stories as they’re spotted – is free, searchable, and will be updated right up to election day.
So, if you see one of your friends sharing something that sounds too unbelievable to be true about the election, check the register – because it probably is.
