WHAT WE DID
- Coordinated response to sexist disinformation campaigns
- Developed plans of action at weekly table meetings
OVERVIEW
UltraViolet is a rapidly growing community of more than 1.2 million members who are dedicated to fighting sexism and gender discrimination. Their objectives are wide-ranging: from empowering young girls to working to end sexual assault, to combating anti-abortion legislation.
CHALLENGE
In the social media age in which we live, disinformation often spreads unopposed. A large part of UltraViolet’s work involves identifying disinformation against prominent woman public figures and public officials. Not only can it damage the public images of these womens, but the attacks are often sexist in nature and targeted at women of color.
SOLUTION
We started by having weekly table meetings with UltraViolet and partner organizations which developed into the Womens Disinfo Defense Project (WDDP). The strategy for countering both racist and sexist information was two-pronged:
- Disproving the disinformation through fact-checking and providing accurate information to counter false narratives
- Holding accountable the social media platforms that allow this disinformation to spread unchecked
RESULTS
15%
~15 organizations, which allowed us to spread our organic and paid inoculation content quickly and effectively.
The WDDP was able to compile a list of actions that individuals can take against racist and sexist disinformation including talking to family about why it’s inaccurate, and reporting this type of content when it appears on their feeds. We used the strategies developed by the WDDP to defend then-Vice Presidential candidate, Kamala Harris, then-Supreme Court Pick, Ketanji Brown-Jackson, and women of color across the country running for office in 2020.
“The 2020 WDDP groups were successful in our goal of pushing back on dangerous narratives that impacted BIPOC women candidates and voters. In a very short period of time, we developed a set of processes and procedures that allowed a deep level of coordination across creative, comms, and campaigning capacities across ~15 organizations, which allowed us to spread our organic and paid inoculation content quickly and effectively.” Thank you so much.
