Groups mask partisan attacks behind neutral-sounding names in Facebook ads

A campaign or outside group can set up many Facebook pages, each corresponding to a specific race or target demographics, and then put those pages' messages in front of voters with ads

Some political groups on the left are borrowing a tactic from disinformation campaigns, placing ads on Facebook that pretend to be impartial information or unbiased news sources, when in fact the ads spread misleading facts about candidates.

One ad, taken out by a group called “The Voter Awareness Project,” reopens old wounds between President Donald Trump and US Sen. Ted Cruz, implying that Trump is at odds with Cruz even as the president stumped for the senator last week near the end of Cruz’s surprisingly close re-election bid against Democrat Beto O’Rourke.

“Trump’s trying to drain