With the upcoming presidential election there's been plenty of talk about social media's potential impact. MIT professor Sinan Aral takes a look at some common myths swirling around social media and the upcoming election, and examines their validity. Can social media actually sway elections? Does fake news spread faster than real news? Are voting booths hack-proof?

Sinan Aral is the David Austin professor of management at MIT, Director of MIT's initiative on the digital economy and the author of the book "The Hype Machine."