The recording of the panel discussion titled “Combating Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference in the Digital Age: The Role of the EU” organized on March 25, 2025, is now available on AUTHLIB’s YouTube channel.
Foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI) is a growing threat to democracies worldwide, with social media platforms as prime battlegrounds. In Europe, domestic and foreign malign actors engage in information operations aimed at undermining trust in institutions, influencing elections, and polarizing societies. The rapid spread of manipulated content, AI-generated fake news, and state-sponsored propaganda has been exacerbated by the digital ecosystem’s algorithms, which prioritize engagement over accuracy.
In this rapidly changing environment, what is the role of the EU? How can it increase transparency, accountability, and resilience against information manipulation? How can the Digital Services Act, which is designed to hold platforms accountable for illegal and harmful content, and the European Media Freedom Act, which seeks to safeguard media independence and pluralism, effectively curb FIMI without infringing on freedom of speech? What mechanisms are there to ensure compliance by major social media platforms and how can enforcement be strengthened? Can regulatory efforts keep up with evolving disinformation tactics, including AI-generated content?
Research conducted in the framework of the AUTHLIB (Neo-authoritarianisms in Europe and the Liberal Democratic Response) project provides an important contribution to understanding these dynamics and thus to forging the path forward in safeguarding democratic integrity in the digital era. The panel will discuss some of our findings published in the AUTHLIB working paper titled “Brainwashing of the People, by the People, with the People: Mass Persuasion and Systemic Disinformation in Democratic and non-Democratic contexts” by Péter Krekó (The German Marshall Fund of the United States).
Speakers:
Péter Krekó, Visiting Fellow, Engaging Central Europe, The German Marshall Fund of the United States; Director, Political Capital
Nad’a Kovalčíková, Senior Analyst, EU Institute for Security Studies
Chair:
Vassilis Ntousas, Senior Manager for Europe and Fellow, Alliance for Securing Democracy, The German Marshall Fund of the United States
