BBCSome users of X, who spend their days sharing content that includes election misinformation, AI-generated images, unsubstantiated conspiracy theories, and more, are being compensated with “thousands of dollars” from the social media site. states that he has received.
The BBC operates a network of dozens of accounts that reshare each other’s content multiple times a day, including untrue, unsubstantiated, false, and fabricated content, in order to increase its reach and therefore the site’s revenue. I have identified it.
Some say their income from their own accounts and from other accounts ranges from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars.
They are also coordinating the sharing of each other’s posts on forums and group chats. “This is a way of trying to help each other,” said one user.
Some of these networks support Donald Trump, some support Kamala Harris, and some are independent networks. Some of these profiles claim to have no official campaign affiliation, but have been contacted by U.S. politicians, including congressional candidates, for supportive posts.
On October 9th, X changed its rules so that eligible accounts with high reach will now be paid based on the amount of engagement (likes, shares, comments) from premium users, rather than the number of ads under their posts. Calculated based on .
Many social media sites allow users to earn money from their posts or share sponsored content. However, there are often rules in place that allow you to demonetize or terminate profiles that post incorrect information. X similarly lacks guidelines regarding misinformation.
Although X’s user base is small compared to some sites, it has a large influence on political discussion. Questions have arisen about whether X is encouraging users to post provocative claims, whether they are true or not, at a very sensitive time for US politics.
The BBC compared the approximate incomes reported by some of these X users with the expected incomes based on their views, number of followers and interactions with other profiles, and found them to be reliable. .
Some of the misleading posts shared on some of these profile networks include claims about election fraud that have been refuted by authorities, as well as extreme and unsubstantiated claims about pedophilia and sexual abuse against presidential and vice presidential candidates. was included.
Some of the misleading and false posts originating from X spread to other social media sites with larger audiences, such as Facebook and TikTok.
As an example, an X user with a small following said he created a doctored image of Kamala Harris, who works at McDonald’s, purporting to be a young woman. Other users then pushed unsubstantiated claims that Democrats were manipulating images of candidates.
X’s baseless conspiracy theory about the July assassination attempt on Donald Trump was also picked up on other social media sites.
X did not respond to questions about whether the site encourages users to post such posts or to request an interview with owner Elon Musk.
“It’s now so much easier to make money.”
Freedom Uncut’s content creation retreat – where he streams and creates videos – is decorated with fairy lights in the shape of American flags. He said he is an independent but would rather see Donald Trump become president than Kamala Harris.
Free (as his friends call him) spends up to 16 hours a day from his hideout posting on X, interacting with his network of dozens of content creators, and creating AI-generated photos. It is said that you can share it. He has not revealed his full name or real identity because he says his family’s personal information has been published online, leading to threats.
He’s not one of the most extreme contributors, and he agreed to meet with me to explain how networking on X works.
It has been viewed 11 million times in the past few months since he started posting regularly about the U.S. presidential election. He brought a few things up on screen as we chatted at his home in Tampa, Florida.
Some are clearly satirical, such as President Donald Trump brushing off bullets and President Joe Biden being a dictator. Other AI images are less fantastic. It includes an image of someone on the roof of their flooded home as fighter jets fly by, and the comment: “Remember, politicians don’t care about you on November 5th.” .
The image echoes Trump’s claim that there were “no helicopters, no rescues” for people in North Carolina after Hurricane Helen. That claim has been disputed by the North Carolina National Guard, which says it has rescued hundreds of people in 146 flights.
Freedom Uncut says he considers his images to be “art” that sparks conversation. “I’m not trying to fool anyone,” he said, but “we can do a lot more with AI.”
Since his profile was monetized, he says he’s been able to earn “low thousands of dollars” each month from X. “I think it’s gotten a lot easier for people to make money.”
He adds that some of the users he knows are making five figures or more, and claims that this can be corroborated by looking at the reach of their posts, saying, “At that point, it’s really hard to work.” It will become,” he said.
He says it’s the “controversial” ones that tend to get the most views, and compares this to traditional media of “sensationalism.”
He posts “provocative stuff,” which he says is “usually based on some version of reality.” However, he suggests that other profiles he sees are willing to share posts that they know are not true. It’s an easy “money-maker,” he says.
Freedom Uncut claims the government “spreads more misinformation than the rest of the internet combined” and dismisses concerns that false claims will influence the election.
He also says it’s “very common” for local politicians to seek support from accounts like his on X. Some people have approached him about appearing on his livestreams, others have approached him about creating and sharing memes, AI images and artwork.
Could any of these posts, misleading or not, have a tangible impact on this election?
“I think you’re seeing that now, and I think that’s where a lot of Trump’s support comes from,” he says.
In Freedom Uncut’s view, “independent media,” including accounts that share AI-generated images and misinformation, are trusted more than “some traditional media companies.”
“There is no way to get to the truth.”
In direct conflict with the pro-Trump accounts that Freedom Uncut describes are profiles such as Brown Eyed Susan, which has more than 200,000 followers on X.
She is part of a network of “enthusiastic” accounts that post content supporting Democratic candidate Kamala Harris multiple times every hour. She uses her first name, but has not given her last name due to threats and abuse she has received online.
Speaking to me from Los Angeles, Susan said she had no intention of starting to make money with her posts, or that her account’s reach would “explode.” She sometimes posts and reshares more than 100 messages a day, and her individual posts can reach more than 2 million users each.
She says she only makes money from her posts. A blue check mark marked the site’s paid users and some prominent accounts. “I wasn’t looking for it. I can’t hide it and I can’t give it back. So I clicked monetize,” she told me, estimating that she could make a few hundred dollars a month.
Apart from policy posts, some of her most talked about posts, with more than 3 million views, suggest that the July assassination attempt was orchestrated by Donald Trump He was promoting baseless and false conspiracy theories.
She acknowledged that a member of the crowd and the gunman were killed, but said there were genuine questions about Donald Trump’s injuries, security failures, and whether the incident was properly investigated.
“There’s no way to get to the truth with this. And if they want to call it conspiratorial, they can do that,” she says.
Susan also shares memes, some of which feature AI aimed at Republican candidates. There are some more convincing examples where he looks older or in poor health. These “represent his current state,” she says.
Others indicate that he looks like a dictator. She claims all of her images are “obviously” fake.
Like Freedom Uncut, she says politicians, including candidates for Congress, have reached out to her for help, and she tries to “spread awareness” as much as she can on their behalf.
“They want it to be real.”
After a row over whether Kamala Harris ever worked at McDonald’s, a doctored image of her in the fast food chain’s uniform was shared on Facebook by her supporters and went viral.
When some pro-Trump accounts realized it was an edited photo of another woman in uniform, the image sparked unfounded accusations that it was from the Democratic Party itself.
X’s “The Infinite Dude” account appears to have been the first to share the image with the caption “This is fake.” The person behind the image said his name was Blake and that he shared the image as part of an experiment. His profile doesn’t have as many followers as the other accounts I’m talking about.
When I asked for evidence that the images had been manipulated, he said he had the “original file and timestamp of creation” but said the evidence wasn’t that important and wouldn’t share them with me. I didn’t.
“People share content not because it’s authentic, but because they want it to be authentic. Both sides are doing it equally, they’re just choosing different stories to believe. ” he says.
His political allegiances remain unclear, and he says this is “not about politics.”
Company X claims online that its priority is to protect and defend the voice of its users. The site adds manipulated media labels to some of the videos, audio, and images that are generated and manipulated by AI. There’s also a feature called “Community Notes,” which crowdsources fact-checks from users.
During the UK election, X operated through a network of accounts sharing fake clips that I investigated. However, during the US election campaign, my questions and requests for an interview with Elon Musk have gone unanswered.
That’s important because social media companies like his can influence how voters head to the polls.
Marianna Spring told this story using Undercover Voters, five fictional characters based on Pew Research Center data that allow her to interrogate what different users are recommending on social media. We investigated. Their social media accounts are private and they do not send messages to real people.
Learn more here – and further BBC Americast Podcast on BBC Sounds.
