They warn about the impact of disinformation campaigns on electoral processes.

Experts on the expanded freedom of expression agenda focused their debate on what society's response should be to disinformation campaigns seeking to falsify election results.

They cited as an example the fake video of former President Mauricio Macri, created using Artificial Intelligence and released just hours before the last Buenos Aires elections, in which the PRO leader urged people to vote for candidate Manuel Adorni of La Libertad Avanza.

"The video in which Macri promoted voting for a different candidate generated enormous debate about the legal response that should be given," Claudio Laplacette, legal advisor to ADEPA, stated at the beginning of the talk. He clarified that the Superior Court of Justice of the city of Buenos Aires investigated the case as "fake news that affected democratic life and the purity of elections."

For this reason, the highest judicial authority in Buenos Aires "ordered the removal of the video from the social network X (formerly Twitter) and to investigate this as a crime of inducing another to vote in a certain direction through deception," Laplacette explained.

The lawyer presented his position during the seminar titled "Truth at Stake: Disinformation, Fake News, and Their Impact on Democracy and Freedom of Expression," organized by the Association of Argentine Journalistic Entities (ADEPA).

Also speaking were Pablo Secchi , executive director of Poder Ciudadano, and Catalina Botero , former OAS special rapporteur on freedom of expression, moderated by Daniel Dessein , president of the ADEPA Committee on Freedom of the Press and Information.

"What happened in Buenos Aires, just hours before the vote, was a campaign strategy that also occurred in the United States, Brazil, and Hungary , where populist governments employ disinformation strategies, especially in electoral matters," said Pablo Secchi.

And he added: "We are faced with operators who seek informational chaos as a tool of power , who seek to confuse the electorate. But they don't just seek electoral advantages; they also seek to sow doubt about the information and discredit their opponents, so as to prevent debate or trust in anything. But that erodes democracy."

The director of Poder Ciudadano asserted that there is a "worrying" trend toward delegitimizing the role of journalism . "There are attempts to replace the role of journalism with influencers or harassers who engage in partisan and personal political propaganda."

Catalina Botero expressed similar sentiment: "I am also concerned about the widespread production of false information intended to mislead people about matters of public interest ," said the Colombian specialist, who also served on META's content advisory board.

"We must address the phenomenon of content accompanied by a strategy that uses elements to amplify it, using personal data with microselective identification. This can cause confusion, lead to a change of vote, or stop participating in the debate. This is amplified by bots, trolls, and harassers, who are often paid with ads, official advertising, or with non-transparent resources in electoral contexts. All of this is irregular and should be made transparent," Botero advised.

The specialist highlighted the need to "strengthen the media" and discuss "transparency in platforms and Artificial Intelligence," in line with the European Union's Digital Services Act, Botero said.