Organizers are fighting disinformation and misinformation in Spanish

Factchequeado, the first U.S. organization dedicated to combating disinformation in Spanish, reached 3 million Latinos this year.

However, due to the nature of the challenges, it is not an easy fight.

Ruiz said Latino and/or Spanish-speaking voters tend to get more news through social media and other online platforms such as TikTok, Meta, WhatsApp and YouTube. These platforms do not monitor disinformation and misinformation in Spanish as closely as they monitor English-language content. Ruiz said the problem is compounded by the lack of Spanish-language media and Spanish-language translations from local and national media organizations.

The cost of a lack of reliable information in Spanish and reduced reach among Latinos is high, Ruiz said.

“It kind of sets them up to be … targets for misinformation and disinformation, which can then turn around and lead to some kind of lower voter turnout.” [and] a lot more anxiety, fear and hesitation about voting,” she said.

Add to that the reality that “Latinos, and Latino voters in particular, have historically been under-resourced, under-invested, and under-engaged as a community,” Ruiz said, creating “the perfect opportunity to have one.” A flood of misinformation and disinformation is coming their way.”

This lack of engagement is confirmed by a recent survey conducted by UnidosUS, Ruiz said. It found that nearly half of Latino voters this election cycle have not been contacted by a political candidate or party. But other polls show the trend could be changing, especially as the community has become the second-largest voting bloc in the country.

Ruiz said her organization uses “culturally competent messaging” to provide the community with facts.

“Another part of our work at Unidos is to … make sure that any kind of messaging actually helps Latinos and empowers them to vote, rather than allowing them to feel somehow isolated in the midst of the confusion, chaos and fear.” said Ruiz.

Many of these messages come in the form of what she called “truth sandwiches.”

The “Sandwich” begins with providing accurate information aligned with the values ​​and priorities of Latino voters. The middle of the sandwich explains how and why disinformation and misinformation around the topic at hand occurs — but the goal is not to repeat the inaccurate information itself, Ruiz said.

“What you want to do is stay on the trail of the disinformation, but never actually repeat it, otherwise you risk just cementing it further in other people's minds,” she said.

To round out the sandwich, the message then goes back to the facts shared at the beginning and reiterates why the information is important to voters.