Elections

Democrats Posed as Prohibitionists on Facebook to Turn Republicans Against Roy Moore: NYT

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In attempt to sway moderate Republicans toward Roy Moore’s opponent, Doug Jones.

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Carlo Allegri/Reuters

A group of progressive Democrats allegedly pretended to be pro-Roy Moore teetotalers on Facebook and Twitter in the weeks before Alabama’s special Senate election in an effort to sway moderate Republicans toward Moore’s Democratic opponent Doug Jones, The New York Times reports. The group reportedly started a Facebook page called “Dry Alabama,” which featured grotesque photos of car-crash victims alongside a call for a statewide ban on alcohol. They then attempted to link that group with Republican candidate Roy Moore in an attempt to ward off moderate Republicans who wouldn’t support an alcohol ban. The page was reportedly viewed approximately 4.6 million times, but it’s unclear if it had any significant effect on the election. This is the second alleged disinformation campaign against Moore, who lost narrowly to Jones in December 2017. Another campaign, Project Birmingham, allegedly attempted to plant fake evidence that Russian bots backed Moore’s candidacy.

Read it at The New York Times

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