Introduction
Expert Trainer: Quentin Palfrey
Quentin Palfrey is a leader in consumer privacy protection efforts while supporting innovation economies and job creation. Palfrey has also led several nonprofit organizations, including J-PAL North America (MIT's poverty lab), where he worked to improve the efficacy of social services in the areas of health care, economic mobility, housing, and education; Global Access in Action, a project of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet Society at Harvard University that seeks to improve access to lifesaving medicines for the world's poorest populations; and the Voter Protection Corps, which seeks to overcome obstacles voters face to registering, voting, and having their votes count. Quentin was the 2018 Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor of Massachusetts.
KEY IDEAS
Dirty tricks aren’t new.
Disinformation has been a key component of voter suppression tactics throughout American history, and has often targeted minority groups.
However, the threat has outpaced voter protection volunteers’ capacity.
Generative AI, access to big data, and limited platform governance has allowed this problem to explode, and the voter protection field has not been able to keep up.
We’re seeing AI-generated disinformation play out in real time.
In 2024, foreign and domestic bad actors have spread lies as part of efforts to discredit our election process and prevent eligible voters from casting their ballots.
That’s why the Voter Protection Corps is partnering with organizations in several key states, including Michigan, to provide a primer for volunteers on how to identify disinformation and employ effective rapid response strategies.