US Presidential Elections: USC drills journalists on safeguards installed in the U.S electoral system

A few weeks before the anticipated Presidential elections in the United States of America,
measures are put in place to ensure that the process goes on void of any hitches or glitches.
All efforts are put to ensure the protection of the election as it is “crucial for safeguarding
democratic integrity and ensuring that election outcomes truly reflect the will of the American
people”.
The University of Southern California’s (USC) non-partisan, independent Election Cyber
Security Initiative which helps to protect campaigns and elections by conducting cyber security
workshops in all 50 U.S states recently facilitated a session with journalists at the National Press
Building and via Zoom on October 3, 2024, to school them on the safeguards installed in the US
electoral system.
Adam Clayton Powel and Judy Kang facilitated the sessions. They also provided a summary of
action groups that monitor and report on election security in the United States.
The month of October it should be said is a key month for the United States election cycle.
Powell making reference to a clip from The New York Times demonstrated officials warning
against cyber-attacks, “officials are warning that cyber-attacks are going to speed up during this
month” he said, lamenting the fact that “the attackers are from different countries and with
different interests”.


“The United States has more than 8,000 election districts around the country, each with different
voting times, methods of voting” Powell highlighted.

He explained that it was therefore difficult to change an American election by hacking.
“But what you can do is sow doubt on the candidates and even more so on democracy” he added,
emphasizing that it was true in elections all over the world.
One of the tools mostly used this year according to Powell is disinformation, which focuses on
local races so that country clerks and secretaries of state around the country.
The 8,000 election districts are run by people with little or no computer science or technical
background making it look like an asymmetrical form of warfare.
“You have got experts attacking, and you have people without much training defending. We try
to show people without much training how they can defend themselves” Powell told journalists.
The advent of TikTok videos has made matters worse as videos can be created with artificial
intelligence in large numbers and realistic appearances, which USC believes is used by
adversaries.
“Using artificial intelligence, chatGPT to generate fake-looking news articles and large numbers
of fake-looking information- fake but realistic looking information” explained Powell.
Kang informed journalists that they publish weekly newsletters every Sunday that include all the
programs and partnered events, mostly hosted at the USC capital campus.
The newsletter also features selected articles on election cyber security, disinformation,
misinformation, and local election news.
About Facilitators
Adam Clayton Powell III is the Executive Director of the USC Election Cybersecurity
Initiative and Director of the USC Center on Communication Leadership and Policy’s
Washington Programs. 
He is also President Emeritus of the Public Diplomacy Council.  Powell is based in Washington,
DC, where he coordinates USC research projects with government agencies on topics ranging
from cell phones as platforms for public service to cultural diplomacy.  

Jung-hwa “Judy” Kang is a public diplomat, researcher, and art exhibit curator and is on the
board of the Public Diplomacy Council.  Kang, who graduated summa cum laude with a Master
of Public Diplomacy in 2018 from the USC’s Annenberg School, has worked with the Election
Cyber Security Initiative for five years.

*This article has been written as part of the Virtual Election Briefing Series for journalists organised by the Washington Foreign Press Center, which the author is a participant*

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