Although technology has become an important tool in campaigns and political communication in the past 15 years, and candidates and political parties have attempted to use big data to understand and influence voters, the past does not provide much guidance to the present. There is a very rapid change in the underlying dynamics of technology’s relationship to business, information, and media. Technology isn’t just limited to politics as platforms like grademiners writing service offer assignment help to students around the world.
For the first two decades, most platforms accepted their responsibility to democracy. They actively advertised ways in which they assisted people in getting news and information through partnerships with media organizations. They proudly declared that candidates could not do without their platforms to get their messages to the people. In the election, they moderated debates, provided information on the extent to which people discussed the candidates and issues, and were involved in voter mobilization. Here are a few ways tech is shaping politics in 2024.
- The Power of Generative AI
As might be expected, generative AI leads the list of our selected applications. Beyond doubt, any kind of AI that is capable of creating text or images will supercharge political disinformation. This involves events such as a video that was edited to depict Biden as a transphobe making some statements and a doctored picture of Trump embracing Fauci. It is not very difficult to think how such things could swing the voter’s vote or even deter a person from voting. Indeed, let us consider the example of the presidential candidates in Argentina in the context of the 2023 election.
AI in generative models will not only spread fake news during election campaigns; there might be new and surprising forms of AI, like hyperrealistic robocall programs. Last month, another congressional candidate from Pennsylvania, Shamaine Daniels, a Democrat, said her campaign would have an AI campaign volunteer named Ashley to talk to voters one-on-one.
- The Emergence of Political Micro-Influencers
The use of ‘micro-influencers’ β those with many followers, but not millions, who may be influential at the community level β is a relatively new element of political campaigns. These people are not affiliated with any political party, are vying for any post, and are not practicing journalism. They do not belong to the mainstream political players as defined by formal politics. But they have power and are active online β something that wouldn’t have been possible in the world before the advent of social media. More often than not, micro-influencers are people who have between 100,000 and 300,000 followers.
The thing is that all those people keep in touch with their followers and are not remote personalities. They have power but are also powerless because they know their public and their public likes them. This interaction is very much grounded in a real type of interaction. If a political party can reach out to these people, the credibility of the information being passed is boosted. Information received from someone people like and respect will be received better than a commercial or a billboard.
- Election Administration
The larger role of AI could be to support election officials and workers in their crucial work of running the polls, whether in the USA or any democracy. For instance, AI could redesign election administration procedures to enhance its effectiveness, credibility, and safety. If properly supervised, AI could alert authorities of suspicious patterns in the voter rolls and the voting machines so that they can prevent the discovery of fraud or voter suppression. In the case of paper ballots, the AI-powered tabulators could scan the ballots much faster than the poll workers, thus saving time for announcing the election results or conducting the recount. That quicker clip could help hush up allegations of vote-rigging in hotly contested elections such as the ones witnessed after the 2020 polls, where a surge in the number of mail-in ballots led to protracted vote counting in several battleground states.
- Data-Driven Messaging
It is quite an interesting idea because data-driven means you have to keep a vast online database that deeply understands your voters. It transcends the mere demographic characteristics of the customers; it explores their behaviors, tastes, temperaments, and psychological profiles. This methodology builds a very realistic and elaborate picture of your audience. This data is not gathered for its own sake; it forms the basis for decision-making about your political campaign. It applies to the messages’ content and the target audience, as well as the channels of communication to be used.
- Digital Censorship
It is not a new behavior of political actors to censor, but this activity is on the rise, and the growing precision and density of censorship can be explained by the surveillance, targeting, and state regulation of internet domains. While I was researching with the help of the current Freedom House Internet Freedom report, I read that generative AI is now helping with censorship, and authoritarian governments are taking control of the internet. Blackouts also are on the trend.
Bottom Line
AI technologies and their applications are evolving at a very high rate, and they can enhance the practice of democracy as well as the implementation processes. AI tools could help in the conduct of the elections, but the ability of AI to gather large chunks of information and share fake news and misinformation may also be a problem in the elections. AI has many chances to level the campaign playing field but can also amplify preexisting election interference techniques. It is, therefore, imperative that policymakers, advocates, and citizens continue to engage with continuing technological advancement to reduce the disruptive impacts of AI while at the same time expanding its positive impacts on democracy.