As the U.S. midterm elections draw near, fake local news websites are increasing in number, aiming to influence voters with false or misleading information. According to **NewsGuard**, a non-partisan group that evaluates the credibility of online content, The North Carolinian is one of many sites that pretend to be legitimate local media. These sites often target contested states and spread content designed to sway public opinion. The Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), a political action committee focused on maintaining and growing the Republican majority in the Senate, launched The North Carolinian in July. While the site openly states it was "funded by SLF," it claims it "was not authorized by any candidate or campaign team." The content focuses on criticizing Roy Cooper, the Democratic Senate candidate in North Carolina, and promoting Michael Whatley, the Republican candidate. Articles published on the site include "Roy Cooper's catastrophic record on crime" and "Whatley highlights the dangerous laxity toward crime by Democrat Cooper." According to **NewsGuard**, SLF reportedly spent between $34,700 and $46,715 to promote the site on Meta platforms (Facebook, Instagram) in August, which earned it 3.6 million views. SLF did not respond to requests for comment from AFP. Another group linked to SLF, the independent newsletter Popular Information, launched six websites that appear to be independent media sources in key states for the midterm elections: Georgia, Alaska, Maine, Iowa, Ohio, and New Hampshire. Popular Information describes these sites as producing "propaganda that passes as journalism." A study supported by the Yale University Institute for Social and Political Studies warned of the growing impact of such sites, noting that many users now prefer them over traditional news outlets. "These sites often receive funding from political campaigns or actors and publish biased or slanted articles under the guise of legitimate journalism," said Kevin DeLuca, an assistant professor of political science at Yale. He added, "Such sites have the potential to make people believe things that are not true without them understanding where the information comes from." With the increasing availability of artificial intelligence tools, creating and spreading this kind of content has become easier than ever. **NewsGuard** has identified 21 such sites launched this year, bringing the total number of similar sites to 1,179. By comparison, only 937 daily newspapers are still in operation, according to the Northwestern University project on local information initiatives. As "pink slime" media—low-quality or misleading content—grows, local newspapers are declining, with many forced to close or undergo mass layoffs due to economic challenges. In 2025, out of more than 3,000 counties in the United States, Northwestern University counted 212 as "media deserts," meaning areas with little or no access to local news coverage. This decline in traditional media raises concerns about the spread of misinformation and the lack of reliable local sources for the public.