Apps to Identify Who Backs Political Ads

Two new mobile apps launching later this year will help voters find more information about the political ads they see.

The apps will use audio-fingerprinting technology to identify political advertisements and then provide users with more information about them, such as who paid for the ad. It’s a legal requirement that political advertisements provide information on who paid for the ad, but such information is often too cryptic to be useful. One of the apps, called Ad Hawk, is being developed by software developer Bob Lannon and the Sunlight Foundation. The other app is called the Super PAC App and is being developed by two MIT graduate students.