When Agents Persuade: Rhetoric Generation and Mitigation in LLMs
Abstrak
Despite their wide-ranging benefits, LLM-based agents deployed in open environments can be exploited to produce manipulative material. In this study, we task LLMs with propaganda objectives and analyze their outputs using two domain-specific models: one that classifies text as propaganda or non-propaganda, and another that detects rhetorical techniques of propaganda (e.g., loaded language, appeals to fear, flag-waving, name-calling). Our findings show that, when prompted, LLMs exhibit propagandistic behaviors and use a variety of rhetorical techniques in doing so. We also explore mitigation via Supervised Fine-Tuning (SFT), Direct Preference Optimization (DPO), and ORPO (Odds Ratio Preference Optimization). We find that fine-tuning significantly reduces their tendency to generate such content, with ORPO proving most effective.
Topik & Kata Kunci
Penulis (3)
Julia Jose
Ritik Roongta
Rachel Greenstadt
Akses Cepat
- Tahun Terbit
- 2026
- Bahasa
- en
- Sumber Database
- arXiv
- Akses
- Open Access ✓