Social Media Monitoring During the 2020-2021 Elections in Georgia

Specific objectives are:

To increase the understanding of the nature and the dynamics of information operations on social media during the upcoming elections; To ensure greater public awareness about the risks of malign use of social media to electoral and political processes in the country; To contribute to greater societal resilience against the disruptive effects of malign social media campaigns; and To ensure that relevant tools and mechanisms are in place for protecting the electoral processes against malign operations. Project Activities:

Documenting, analyzing and exposing malicious Facebook activity and information operations in the lead-up to the 2020 Parliamentary and 2021 Municipal elections in Georgia, including in the Armenian and Azeri-speaking segments of Facebook users in Georgia; Proactive reporting with social media companies, coupled with advocacy activities for removal of malicious networks and disinformation operations; Increasing public awareness on disinformation, divisive narratives and other information operations on social media; Outreach and advocacy with domestic stakeholders on safe use of social media in elections and political processes; and Using data analysis tools to identify trends in malign social media campaigns.