In the occasion of the 70th ESOMAR Congress in Amsterdam, WIN and BVA, France had the chance to be on stage to present a case study on French elections, fake news and voting behavior. The presentation was also briefly introduced by president Vilma Scarpino who explained the present development of the network. The purpose of this joint research (conducted during the French presidential campaign, and part of it in conjunction with two behavioral science researchers at the Santa Fe Institute who had deciphered US elections beforehand) was to better understand the factors – particularly social bubbles – that influence voters as well as measure the impact of fake news on public opinion.
After the improbable happened, with both cases of Brexit and Donald Trump election, the industry was shaken and, with presidential elections approaching, the legitimacy of polls was questioned in France like never before. This case study also shows interesting aspects of the impact of fake news and the susceptibility to false information.
For more information, you can contact Richard Bordenave at BVA: richard.bordenave@bva-group.com