Influencer paid by 'shadowy group' to post pro-Ken Paxton tweets speaks out

A Texas group that supports Ken Paxton is paying influencers to write social media posts supporting the embattled state attorney general amid his impeachment trial, Texas Monthly reports.

Russell Gold writes for Texas Monthly that he himself cashed in on the $50-per post initiative and was paid for two posts. He was specifically asked to post in favor of Paxton beating back the impeachment efforts.

Paxton was impeached earlier this year on allegations of bribery and abuse of office. If convicted in the impeachment trial that began this week, he could be removed and potentially barred from office.

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Gold said he was paid by Candice Parscale and Influenceable LLC, noting that Candice is the spouse of Brad Parscale, who led Donald Trump’s 2016 digital operations.

Gold writes that: “This whole area is new and emerging. Perhaps we need guidance from the attorney general’s office. Or, on second thought, perhaps not just yet.”

He adds: “The use of social media influencers to promote political candidates—or any product—is becoming more common. A decade ago, we saw the rise of bot armies, computers programmed to flood social media. But the platforms got wise to this and, under pressure from regulators and others, clamped down.”

Read the full article here.