Users spreading US election misinformation, AI images being paid by X: report

With US presidential election just around the corner, a BBC report stated that the X, owned by tech billionaire Elon Musk, was paying “thousands of dollars” to some users who are regularly posting content that includes election misinformation, AI-generated images and conspiracy theories.

The US election will be held on November 5, 2024, (Tuesday) — which will be closely closely watched around the world. The winner will serve four years in the White House, starting in January 2025.

Republican former president Donald Trump will face Democratic nominee Kamala Harris in the US presidential election after President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid.

In its report, the British media outlet said it has identified networks of X handles that are engaged in spreading “a mix of true, unfounded, false and faked material” regarding US elections to boost their reach and revenue on the site.

Several users alleged that earnings from their own and other accounts range from a couple of hundred to thousands of dollars.

Such users also share each other’s posts on forums and group chats, with one of then saying: “It’s a way of trying to help each other out.”

Some of these networks — identified by the British media outlet — support Trump and others Kamala Harris while some even back independents.

The report also claimed that US politicians, including congressional candidates, have contacted some of these profiles — which claimed not to be connected to official campaigns — for supportive posts.

Earlier this month, the Musk-owned X updated its creator payments policy with payments made to eligible accounts will be calculated as per the engagement from premium users rather than the number of ads under their posts.

Although X’s user base is smaller compared to platforms like Facebook or TikTok, it has a significant impact on political discourse — which raises questions whether the site incentivising users to post provocative claims.

According to the report, the misleading posts include claims about election fraud and extreme, unfounded allegations of paedophilia and sexual abuse against the presidential and vice-presidential candidates.

Some of these misleading posts — originated on X — were shared onto other platforms, potentially reaching a much wider audience.

Speaking to BBC, one user claimed he created a doctored image purporting to show Kamala Harris working at McDonald’s in her youth. After being shared widely, the image fuelled claims that the Democratic Party was manipulating images of its candidate.

‘A lot easier to earn money’

Another user, while speaking to the British media outlet, said he can spend up to 16 hours a day in his lair posting on X, interacting with the network of dozens of content creators he’s a part of, and sharing AI-generated pictures.

The user — who goes by the name ‘Freedom Uncut’ — told BBC that he gained 11 million views over the past few months since he began posting regularly about the US election.

Some are obviously satire — Trump looking like a character in The Matrix or President Joe Biden as a dictator. He said he sees his images as “art” that sparks a conversation.

Since his profile was monetised, he said he can make in the “low thousands” monthly from X: “I think it’s become a lot easier for people to make money.”

He noted that some users he knows make over five figures, which, he claimed, is evident by looking at their posts’ reach. “It’s at that point it really does become a job,” he added.

Dismissing concerns regarding the false information influencing the US elections, he argued that the government itself “spreads more misinformation than the rest of the internet combined.”

The user further said it was “widespread” for local politicians to reach out to accounts like his on X for support. He claimed some of them have chatted to him about appearing on his live streams and spoken to him about creating and sharing memes, AI images and artwork for them.

When asked about the possible influence of these posts on elections, he remarked, “I think that you’re seeing that currently. I think that a lot of the Trump support comes from that.”