In this historically divisive time, there’s agreement on one thing: Political texting is completely out of control.
That ping on your phone, once welcomed, is delivering a textapocalypse of doomsday scenarios, false claims and desperate pleas to INVEST $20, $10 OR EVEN $5 IN THE NEXT GENERATION OF LEADERS! DEADLINE TONIGHT!
Political campaigns are increasingly turning to text messaging for communication, surpassing the more traditional yard signs, phone calls or flyers. Texts are cheap, costing just pennies per message. They grab our attention. They can be personalized, tailored to a voter’s interests. And they can be effective, helping with voter turnout, volunteerism and sometimes fundraising. Republicans and Democrats are equal offenders.
Yet there is little federal oversight or scrutiny of political texts. And it’s tough to detect a scam.
“Texts are the most intimate platform there is. We want to hear from family and friends, not politicians’ thoughts about how America is ‘on the precipice,’ ” said Scott Wallsten, president of the Technology Policy Institute in Washington, D.C., which studies innovation and regulation.
Laws or regulations governing political speech move into tricky territory, he said. It’s important that candidates have ways to reach citizens to explain positions and encourage them to vote.
But texts feel invasive — and, as Election Day approaches, they seem increasingly unhinged.
“There isn’t much time left. This may be my last text to you,” reads one. OMG — is the candidate trapped in quicksand? Is his plane going down?
Some are elegiac. “Our hearts sank … We prayed we were wrong, Patriot. But if you don’t already know, here’s what happened,” said another. To learn more — who died? Why am I a Patriot? — you must click on a link.
Others are just pathetic. “Look, these texts are really expensive to send. Can you please just read what I wrote?” pleads a message seeking campaign donations.
That old world of campaigning doesn’t exist anymore. So we asked experts to answer questions about this newest, and most annoying, form of campaign communication.
Q: Seems like a waste. Why do they even bother?
A: Research shows that text messaging is good for turnout. “Can we count on your vote?” That kind of thing can get people to say that they’re going to vote. It’s definitely good as a fundraising tool.
I think the rise of text messaging has a lot to do with people stopping reading emails. And it’s cheaper. You can send out a text to every voter in your district three times before the election and spend less money than you would on half of a mailer.
— Paul Mitchell, Political Data Inc., specializing in California voter data and software tools.
We open about 98% of all texts we receive. That’s an irresistible target.
— Scott Wallsten
Q: How did they get my cell number?
A: Your voter registration. Even if you update your registration with a landline number, there is still a “field” in the record that might contain your cell number.
— Paul Mitchell
Campaigns also buy and sell data from other political campaigns, or a PAC, or an agency that sells consumer data. For instance, they may buy your email address, then use a data broker to fill in missing data points, like the phone number that’s on your supermarket rewards card.
— Lloyd Kotler, founder of Banter Messaging, a San Francisco-based company that creates text campaigns
Q: Why do I only hear from one party?
A: Targeting is based on party registration. Your number is pulled from the voter file, or bought from a past campaign. But if an organization is nonpartisan — say, a Home Builders PAC — it may text voters from both parties.
— Lloyd Kotler
Q: If I register as an “independent,” am I shielded? Does it help if I use my landline phone number on voter registration forms?
A: Yes, you might get fewer texts.
But even if you’re “independent,” there is other information in your voter file. Campaigns will try to figure you out.
A landline creates a hurdle, but it’s not a firewall. When campaigns go to a data broker, they say “I’m looking for cell phone numbers for this audience.”
— Lloyd Kotler
Q: Who writes this stuff? Do people actually believe it?
A: There’s a whole culture among these (texting) firms that seems to take you on an emotional roller coaster … saying, “Donate early,” then, “We have a matching donation!” and then, “Oh my gosh, I just got horrible news. Send me money!”
They probably are testing all these messages to see which ones work and which kinds of voters they work with.
— Paul Mitchell
There’s not one person sitting there and writing each message. Through a platform, they’re loading up a message and then pressing one button and sending it to everybody. It’s cheap, compared to phone calls or direct mail.
— Lloyd Kotler
Q: How do I know it’s not a scam, pretending to be a candidate or campaign?
A: Look to see if they actually identify themselves. If I’m Planned Parenthood or the NRA, I want you to know that. If you just see an acronym that you don’t recognize, they’re trying to hide who they are.
If you see promises of an “800% match” or a “12,000 times match,” that’s not real. If they imply a celebrity is matching your gift, that’s a big red flag, because the celebrity would quickly run up against campaign contribution limits. They can’t possibly match everybody’s gift.
If the link is not clear where it’s going, if it just a jumbled mess of letters and numbers, that’s a huge flag. Don’t click on it.
— Lloyd Kotler
Q: I never “opted in.” How do I get them to stop?
A: Texts are considered to be illegal spam if sent by a commercial entity using an autodialer, without your consent. But political texts are different. They’re governed by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), which does not require consumers to “opt in,” if sent manually.
But having a human press “send” as the trigger to release thousands of texts into the ether obviously violates the spirit of the TCPA.
— Scott Wallsten
If a campaign texts you and you’re not interested, reply with STOP. You can also report the sender by forwarding texts to 7726 (or “SPAM”). If they persist, or you think they’ve violated federal rules, you can file an informal complaint with the Federal Communications Commission at fcc.gov/complaints.
Make sure you’re on the national Do Not Call Registry. Political texts are exempt, so that won’t stop them, but it does give you standing to file a TCPA “demand letter” to the campaign, notifying them of the alleged violation.
— Lloyd Kotler
Vote. We flag, every day, everyone who has returned a ballot. That also means we know the millions of voters who still have a ballot in their hands. And so as it gets closer to Election Day, you’re going to have a lot of campaigns texting the bejesus out of voters who still haven’t returned their ballots.
— Paul Mitchell
Q: What’s the best way to donate?
A: Go to the candidate’s website and directly donate there. That helps the candidate because, the way the laws are written, they can spend the money more efficiently than an independent expenditure committee can.
— Paul Mitchell
I write checks. I don’t have to give my phone number. There’s no form to fill out. So I don’t get inundated with text appeals.
— Lloyd Kotler