An umbrella does not shield against flooding. For the European Democracy Shield to do what it says, it must encompass the full spectrum of hybrid threats, not only foreign disinformation. Like any shield, it is only as strong as its bearer. If it is to be more than a fig leaf, our work to defend…
In her bid for a second mandate as President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen vows to ‘defend democracy from those who seek to destroy it’. This is music to Defend Democracy‘s ears. Assuming Von der Leyen is not making an empty election promise, we have some concrete suggestions for how her next…
“As a Ukrainian person looking at everything that’s been happening in the world lately, here’s what I really, REALLY need people living in liberal democracies to understand as soon as possible. This isn’t a pleasant conversation. You can’t afford to take democracy for granted. It may feel like your countries’ democratic institutions have been there…
Foreign interference in democratic processes is part of a much larger toolbox used by authoritarian state actors, whether you call that toolbox political warfare, active measures or hybrid threats. Therefore, rather than taking a narrow view of foreign interference limited to elections, disinformation, political advertising, and funding of political parties, Defend Democracy urges the European…
Russia’s Great Information War on the West started in 2014. How does this impact Putin’s war against Ukraine — and our response? Press ‘play’ to learn this and more in Defend Democracy‘s second Twitter Space, hosted on Friday 11 March 2022. With speakers from: Ukraine StratCom Centre, EUvsDisinfo, Atlantic Council, American Enterprise Institute, and the…
In Russia’s hybrid war against Ukraine and the West, how to share information responsibly? Press ‘play’ to learn this and more in Defend Democracy‘s first Twitter Space, hosted on Friday 25 February 2022. With speakers from: NATO, EUvsDisinfo, DFRLab, Human Rights Watch, Cognitive Security. Moderator: Alice Stollmeyer, Defend Democracy Find the do’s and don’ts on…
History is back. For freedom and democracy’s sake we’d better make sure to be ready, and to act together. When preparing this talk* I realised that, in a way, the year 2021 is kind of an anniversary, though not a happy one. But I will aim to end my talk on an optimistic note. In…
Experts expected domestic and foreign disinformation campaigns would try to disrupt the integrity of the elections in the Netherlands. Our social media watchdog Kieskijker observed many inauthentic online activities around the general elections on 17 March 2021. Through a real-time campaign Kieskijker exposed disinformation and manipulation, thereby decreasing harmful effects and increasing digital literacy. When…
Experts expect that domestic and foreign disinformation campaigns will try to disrupt the integrity of the elections in the Netherlands. Our social media watchdog Kieskijker observes online activities that build up to the general elections on 17 March 2021 and sees fake polls, fake political profiles and fake chat groups. Through a campaign, Kieskijker exposes…
Outraged by the never-ending blatant lies by the likes of Putin, Xi, Orban and Trump? Then make sure you don’t inadvertently help spread their propaganda. Because that’s what it is: their ‘firehose of falsehood‘ is a propaganda technique bombarding us with a large number of messages that are broadcast rapidly, repetitively, and continuously over multiple…
