Advertising
Online Ad Spending in 2024 Election Totaled at Least $1.9 Billion
Brennan Center for Justice
"While both sides of the aisle spent on efforts to persuade voters, spending in favor of Democrats was more likely to have fundraising as a goal, and spending in favor of Republicans was more likely to include get-out-the-vote efforts. Additionally, pro-Democratic spenders put a somewhat greater portion of ad money toward contrasting their party’s candidates with their opponents compared with pro-Republican spenders, who spent more on simply promoting their own candidates."
Social media can support or undermine democracy — it comes down to how it’s designed
Nieman Lab
"This ad-based business model demands designs that encourage endless scrolling, social comparison and emotional engagement. Platforms routinely claim they merely reflect user behavior, yet internal documents and whistleblower accounts have shown that toxic content often gets a boost because it captures people’s attention."
Cybersecurity
A Marco Rubio impostor is using AI voice to call high-level officials
Washington Post
"U.S. authorities do not know who is behind the string of impersonation attempts but they believe the culprit was probably attempting to manipulate powerful government officials 'with the goal of gaining access to information or accounts,' according to a cable sent by Rubio’s office to State Department employees."
Fundraising
ActBlue brings in nearly $400 million more for Democrats despite Trump’s pressure on the fundraising platform
CNN
"GoodChange has signed up about 300 clients, ranging from campaigns to civic nonprofits, since its inception, according to its co-founder Becky Pittman. In recent months, GoodChange has signed deals with seven state parties...GoodChange offers a feature that allows donors to direct extra change from their everyday purchases to the party’s coffers."
Social Media
TikTok prepares US app with its own algorithm and user data
Reuters
"The new U.S.-only app is designed to function independently, similar to Douyin — the version of TikTok available exclusively in mainland China. Users from outside the U.S. will not find the American version in their app store, sources said."
What Campaigners Should Do Now That Social Media Algorithms Penalize Posts With Links
Campaign Trend
"This spring, Meta warned Page managers to leave links out of organic posts if they want maximum reach. Internal data shows that fewer than 8 percent of U.S. Feed views now go to posts with any external link—half the share from two years ago."
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