Research Topic Summary
This Research Topic explores the multifaceted impact of disinformation on European public institutions as well as local and regional media environments. The collection of articles examines the proliferation of false information, its effects on trust in democratic processes, and the challenges faced by both public bodies and news organizations in countering disinformation campaigns.
Many of the articles investigate case studies from across Europe, highlighting the varying strategies adopted at municipal, regional, and institutional levels to identify and mitigate the spread of false narratives. Efforts by local and regional media are scrutinized to reveal both the successes and limitations of newsroom fact-checking initiatives. Digital literacy and public communication strategies are recognized as key factors in bolstering societal resilience against informational manipulation.
The articles also assess the effectiveness of collaborative networks between fact-checkers, state institutions, and civil society organizations, emphasizing the need for consistent and coordinated responses. Attention is given to emerging technologies and data-driven approaches for enhancing verification processes, and to the importance of transparency in both institutional practices and media outputs.
Collectively, the articles published in this Research Topic offer a nuanced mapping of current fact-checking strategies and evaluate their impact on strengthening public trust and institutional credibility. They underscore the necessity for ongoing investment in media literacy, cross-sector collaboration, and innovative tools to safeguard the integrity of public discourse in the face of increasingly sophisticated disinformation tactics.
Research Topic Description
Online disinformation poses a grave challenge to modern democracies (Shao et al., 2018; Vázquez-Herrero et al., 2019): it damages institutional trust and, consequently, the quality of democracy itself. Recent years have witnessed a growing social, governmental, and academic concern over fake news and their impact on the shaping of public opinion. Scholarship has moved from the study of political knowledge to the analysis of disinformation (Anderson, 2021) and the theorizing of information verification strategies. An increasing number of local and regional European media have also developed fact-checking and media literacy projects to fight disinformation within their communities (Rúas-Araújo et al., 2022).
Extant academic literature has explored the influence of disinformation in the media landscape, including its effects on the audience, in countries such as Italy (Giglietto et al., 2020), Spain (Salaverría et al., 2020), Germany (Zimmermann & Kohring, 2020), and the United States (Bradshaw et al., 2020) extensively. At the same time, institutional responses to disinformation, especially at local and regional levels, have received very little attention.
This Research Topic aims to fill this gap by furthering our understanding of how public institutions manage disinformation. Scholars and practitioners are invited to explore new approaches to disinformation within different media systems and political cultures, analyzing the role that citizens, mass media, fact-checkers, political actors, and digital platforms play in the fight against the phenomenon.
Specific topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
• public measures against disinformation, including the adoption of innovative tools such as AI
• the identification of counteractive strategies within a comparative, cross-territory perspective
• agreements between institutions (whether European, national, regional, or local) and digital platforms to avoid the spread of fake news
• the role of fact-checkers in raising awareness about disinformation
• citizens’ reactions to the strategies implemented by institutions in the fight against misinformation, and how citizens’ feedback regarding such strategies is taken into account by the same institutions
• the relationship between citizen and institutional agendas concerning disinformation, and the extent to which such agendas interrelate.
Please note that this Research Topic accepts manuscripts submitted via Frontiers in Communication only.
Research Topic Summary
This Research Topic explores the multifaceted impact of disinformation on European public institutions as well as local and regional media environments. The collection of articles examines the proliferation of false information, its effects on trust in democratic processes, and the challenges faced by both public bodies and news organizations in countering disinformation campaigns.
Many of the articles investigate case studies from across Europe, highlighting the varying strategies adopted at municipal, regional, and institutional levels to identify and mitigate the spread of false narratives. Efforts by local and regional media are scrutinized to reveal both the successes and limitations of newsroom fact-checking initiatives. Digital literacy and public communication strategies are recognized as key factors in bolstering societal resilience against informational manipulation.
The articles also assess the effectiveness of collaborative networks between fact-checkers, state institutions, and civil society organizations, emphasizing the need for consistent and coordinated responses. Attention is given to emerging technologies and data-driven approaches for enhancing verification processes, and to the importance of transparency in both institutional practices and media outputs.
Collectively, the articles published in this Research Topic offer a nuanced mapping of current fact-checking strategies and evaluate their impact on strengthening public trust and institutional credibility. They underscore the necessity for ongoing investment in media literacy, cross-sector collaboration, and innovative tools to safeguard the integrity of public discourse in the face of increasingly sophisticated disinformation tactics.
Research Topic Description
Online disinformation poses a grave challenge to modern democracies (Shao et al., 2018; Vázquez-Herrero et al., 2019): it damages institutional trust and, consequently, the quality of democracy itself. Recent years have witnessed a growing social, governmental, and academic concern over fake news and their impact on the shaping of public opinion. Scholarship has moved from the study of political knowledge to the analysis of disinformation (Anderson, 2021) and the theorizing of information verification strategies. An increasing number of local and regional European media have also developed fact-checking and media literacy projects to fight disinformation within their communities (Rúas-Araújo et al., 2022).
Extant academic literature has explored the influence of disinformation in the media landscape, including its effects on the audience, in countries such as Italy (Giglietto et al., 2020), Spain (Salaverría et al., 2020), Germany (Zimmermann & Kohring, 2020), and the United States (Bradshaw et al., 2020) extensively. At the same time, institutional responses to disinformation, especially at local and regional levels, have received very little attention.
This Research Topic aims to fill this gap by furthering our understanding of how public institutions manage disinformation. Scholars and practitioners are invited to explore new approaches to disinformation within different media systems and political cultures, analyzing the role that citizens, mass media, fact-checkers, political actors, and digital platforms play in the fight against the phenomenon.
Specific topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
• public measures against disinformation, including the adoption of innovative tools such as AI
• the identification of counteractive strategies within a comparative, cross-territory perspective
• agreements between institutions (whether European, national, regional, or local) and digital platforms to avoid the spread of fake news
• the role of fact-checkers in raising awareness about disinformation
• citizens’ reactions to the strategies implemented by institutions in the fight against misinformation, and how citizens’ feedback regarding such strategies is taken into account by the same institutions
• the relationship between citizen and institutional agendas concerning disinformation, and the extent to which such agendas interrelate.
Please note that this Research Topic accepts manuscripts submitted via Frontiers in Communication only.
