San Francisco (AFP)

With the approach of a US presidential election under high tension, Facebook has embarked on a difficult crusade to prove that it is now a major and responsible player, and no longer a vehicle of massive disinformation.

On Thursday, the social network giant presented a new centerpiece of its chessboard: an information center on the ballot, a kind of one-stop shop on the model of the one created on the coronavirus, to dispense official recommendations.

Facebook faces all kinds of voter manipulation campaigns, driven abroad or by American groups, to discourage certain groups of people from voting or to influence their choice.

The Californian group must show that it has learned the lessons of the 2016 polls, including the presidential election in the United States and the Brexit referendum in the United Kingdom, marked by disguised influence campaigns, mainly orchestrated from Russia.

The platform thus dismantles network after network of fake accounts that spread false information, conspiracy theories, hate speeches and hijacked videos.

It also expects hack-and-leak tactics, where state-linked entities give pirated information to the media and use networks to spread it.

This is what happened with emails from Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential candidate in 2016.

- Know your power -

Google has also just banned YouTube videos containing information obtained through hacking that could disrupt democratic processes.

“We know this is an effective technique,” ​​Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook's director of cybersecurity regulations, remarked at a press conference Thursday.

He welcomed the fact that cooperation between social networks and with government agencies makes it possible to intercept malicious operations earlier than before.

But to fight against these interferences, it is not enough to thwart them, it is also necessary "to ensure that people have access to reliable and authentic information during major events", such as the presidential election or the pandemic, detailed M Gleicher.

Because "disinformation campaigns are the most virulent when they occur in an information vacuum".

Hence the interest of the special election information center, with the modalities of voting in each state, in person or by correspondence, a tool for recruiting assessors and an alert function, allowing the authorities to quickly contact voters. in the event of a last minute change.

“What a difference in 4 years!” Comments Adam Chiara, professor of communication at the University of Hartford. "In 2016, Mark Zuckerberg (the boss of Facebook) downplayed the platform's influence on the election and advocated laissez-faire. Now Facebook recognizes its power and acts to fight disinformation and promote participation."

- Disaster scenarios -

Users will be able to check via the ticket office if they are registered to vote, and will be referred to the correct website if not.

"In 2016, 92 million eligible Americans did not vote," recalls Facebook.

Mark Zuckerberg set himself an ambitious goal in June to help put four million more Americans on the electoral roll.

Participation will be all the more important in November because of the uncertainties associated with the pandemic.

Postal voting appears to be the ideal way to respect social distancing, but Facebook must simultaneously manage Donald Trump's outbursts of anger against this method.

The network has already had to crack down by pinning an information note to a post by the president who accused postal voting of promoting fraud, without the slightest proof.

The American billionaire, in difficulty in the polls, even recently mentioned a possible postponement of the election because of this alleged risk.

In this tense context, Facebook is preparing for different scenarios for election day, and those that will follow, if the results take a long time to come out, or if they are contested.

For example, the company expects groups to encourage violence during the count.

“Some of the actions they take need to be fine-tuned, and they are no doubt making mistakes,” noted Adam Chiara. "But I prefer a platform that tries to work in a positive way to a network that denies the role it plays in our democracy."

© 2020 AFP