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Governing Misinformation in Everyday Knowledge Commons

Madelyn Sanfilippo, Melissa G. Ocepek (eds.)

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (2025), xiv, 278 pp.

"Governing Misinformation in Everyday Knowledge Commons delves into the complex issue of misinformation in our daily lives. The book synthesizes three scholarly traditions - everyday life, misinformation, and governing knowledge commons - to present 10 case studies of online and offline communities ... more

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Digital occupation: Pro-Russian bot networks target Ukraine’s occupied territories on Telegram

Yuliia Dukach, Iryna Adam, Meredith Furbish

Atlantic Council, July 16 (2025)

"This joint report from OpenMinds and the Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab) analyzes the activity of a network of 3,634 automated accounts that posted pro-Russian comments on Telegram channels between January 2024 and April 2025 targeting Ukrainian populations inside Russian-occupied territorie ... more

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Disarming Disinformation: Brazil
Deep Insights

Julie Posetti, Nabeelah Shabbir, Kaylee Williams (eds.)

International Center for Journalists (ICFJ); University of London, City St George's (2025), 35 pp.

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AI-Generated Disinformation in Europe and Africa: Use Cases, Solutions and Transnational Learning

Karen Allen, Christopher Nehring

Johannesburg: Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS), Media Programme Sub-Sahara Africa (2025), xii, 158 pp.

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Studying visual disinformation: A computational literature review of current issues, trends and research methods of a growing field

Xénia Farkas, Moa Eriksson Krutrök

Journal of Visual Political Communication, volume 12, issue 2 (2025), pp. 167-191

"The rise of visual mis/disinformation presents a significant challenge to democratic societies, as misleading visual content increasingly influences public opinion and decision-making. This study aims to comprehensively map the current state of research on visual mis/disinformation, providing insig ... more

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Defending the Truth

D+C: Development and Cooperation, issue 6 (2025), pp. 22-50

"People of all ages and from all societies must be empowered to understand the information they are dealing with. Autocratic regimes around the world owe their rise in part to the deliberate use of all kinds of misinformation. They have an interest in ensuring that truths are distorted or remain unr ... more

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Understanding Mis- and Disinformation in Nepal

BBC Media Action (2025), 10 pp.

"Social media dominates daily internet use, while use of traditional media is declining: overall, 7 in 10 Nepalis use the internet daily, with Facebook and YouTube being the most used platforms (63% daily usage for both). Among those with internet access, 80% are heavy users of social media, i.e., ... they go on social media platforms at least once a day. Only 40% use the internet for purposes beyond social media, such as online search and emails. Internet users are using TV and radio less. Only 24% watch TV daily and 19% listen to the radio daily. Sharing information is an emotionally driven and socially performative behaviour: content is often shared not for its accuracy, but for its emotional impact, shock value, or social appeal. People are motivated by a desire to entertain, impress, provoke, or find hope, making them less likely to question the credibility of what they share. Drawing on qualitative data, we identified segments of the Nepali population who differ by how they share information: • Exaggeration Sharers: This group will often amplify exaggerated claims in order to gain visibility. They will often share contents that may elicit emotional responses, such as crime and violence. When sharing it, they may add their own take on the issue to exaggerate it further. • Show-off Enthusiasts: Similar to Exaggeration Sharers, they choose to share content that makes them look important, ‘wanting to impress others’ and ‘seek praise’. This is particularly true when sharing may reach people they respect. • Controversy Seekers: This group seeks out explicit content such as the commonly highlighted Bhojpuri songs (typically mentioned in Madhesh), as well as celebrity scandals. Contents often shared by this group tend to have a negative tonality, including topics like ethnic and religious scuffles. • Bystanders: This group tends to use social media by watching and listening without interacting or sharing. However, they enjoy novel content (particularly religious and political content) that may become a topic of discussion within their social network. • Naïve Consumers: This group focuses their attention on content that seeks to give hope in the face of challenges such as unemployment and economic difficulties. However, they tend to be less aware of, or concerned with, implications of online sharing and privacy issues, indicating lower digital and media literacy." (Pages 3-4) more

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Tackling Disinformation, Information Manipulation and Interference in Four African Elections
Deep Insights

Dani Madrid-Morales, Herman Wasserman, Nicola Davies-Laubscher, Fatoumata Sow

Mapping Electoral Disinformation inAfrica (MEDiA); Centre for Information Integrity in Africa (CIIA); Stellenbosch University (2025), 58 pp.

"In recent years, electoral disinformation has followed several recurring patterns globally, many of which were observed in the case studies analysed in this report. One prominent tactic is attacks on electoral integrity, where political actors spread false claims about voter registration, election ... rigging, or external interference to delegitimise outcomes. As we show in this report, in the DRC, for example, rumours circulated that biometric voter registration was designed to expose individuals’ HIV status, discouraging participation. In South Africa, disinformation networks falsely claimed that the Electoral Commission (IEC) was manipulating results to favour the ruling party, fueling distrust in the electoral process. Another trend is the weaponisation of ethnic and gendered disinformation. In Kenya, misleading narratives framed certain candidates as “foreign-sponsored outsiders” to undermine their legitimacy, while in Senegal, false claims about morality were used to discredit opposition figures. Meanwhile, gendered disinformation—targeting women candidates with sexist tropes and false accusations—was a recurring feature in all four countries, reflecting a broader global pattern in which women in politics are disproportionately subjected to online abuse and misinformation. Social media platforms have been central to the spread of electoral disinformation. Across Africa, as in much of the world, platforms such as Facebook, TikTok, and X (formerly Twitter) have served as primary vehicles for the rapid dissemination of falsehoods, often facilitated by coordinated inauthentic behaviour. Data that we present in the report shows that, in South Africa, paid “nano-influencers”—individuals with small but loyal online followings—were mobilised to amplify misleading narratives in favour of specific political actors, demonstrating how disinformation strategies are evolving in response to changing digital landscapes. [...] In response to these findings, the report makes several key recommendations. First, it calls for greater cross-platform coordination among CSOs, fact-checking groups, and election monitors to ensure realtime responses to emerging disinformation threats. Second, it highlights the importance of media and digital literacy programmes among all age groups, including young voters, some of whom are often the most active on social media but may lack the skills to critically assess the credibility of information they encounter. Third, it urges greater transparency and accountability from technology platforms, which remain the primary distribution channels for electoral disinformation but have done little to curb its spread in African electoral contexts. Ultimately, electoral disinformation is not simply a digital challenge—it is a fundamental governance issue that shapes public perceptions of legitimacy and democratic participation. Evidence from the four elections in Africa that we examine in this report demonstrates that countering disinformation requires a multi-stakeholder approach that includes journalists, civil society actors, election commissions, and policymakers working collaboratively to strengthen information integrity and electoral transparency. The findings in this report offer both a diagnosis of the current disinformation landscape and a framework for more effective, evidence-based responses that can help safeguard future elections from manipulation." (Pages 9-10) more

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The Alternative Truth Kept Hidden From Us: The Effects of Multimodal Disinformation Disseminated by Ordinary Citizens and Alternative Hyper-Partisan Media. Evidence From the US and India

Michael Hameleers, Darian Harff, Désirée Schmuck

Digital Journalism, volume 13, issue 8 (2025), pp. 1351-1372

"The affordances of social media potentially amplify the effects of disinformation by offering the possibility to present deceptive content and sources in credible and native ways. We investigate the effects of two aspects related to the dissemination and modality of digital disinformation: (In)auth ... more

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Empowering Youth to Combat Malicious Deepfakes and Disinformation: An Experiential and Reflective Learning Experience Informed by Personal Construct Theory

Nadia Naffi, Mélodie Charest, Sarah Danis et al.

Journal of Constructivist Psychology, volume 38, issue 1 (2025), 22 pp.

"The potential to weaponize deepfakes is growing at an alarming rate. The study aimed to explore how education can help youth develop resilience to malicious deepfakes and the ability to counter disinformation, regardless of context. Sixteen youth between the ages of 18 and 24 participated in a 9-h, ... more

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El derecho a la no desinformación: Un nuevo derecho en Bolivia

Erick R. Torrico Villanueva

La Paz: Universidad Mayor de San Andrés (UMSA); Instituto de Investigación, Posgrado e Interacción Social en Comunicación (IpiCOM) (2025), 148 pp.

"Asumiendo a la democracia como un sistema fundado en la vigencia de derechos y leyes, este libro aborda el tema de la desinformación desde la perspectiva de los derechos humanos y, dentro de ella, de los que competen a la información y la comunicación, para bosquejar una estrategia inédita de e ... more

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Mapping the information integrity landscape in West Africa: An annotated bibliography

Zara Schoeder, Liz Orembo, Marie Batista

Cape Town: Research ICT Africa (2025), 26 pp.

"This annotated bibliography is organised into four sections. Section 1 demonstrates how disinformation emerges as the most prominent topic in the literature on information integrity. Several different kinds of agents of disinformation operate within West Africaʼs information sphere. These range fr ... om political actors and interest groups to foreign entities and social media influencers. Each exploits social fault lines to sway public opinion, particularly in the lead-up to elections and during conflicts. An organised network of influence narratives – which can sometimes be complex and include both local and foreign disinformation-for-hire merchants complemented by a network of informed but polarised citizens – forms part of the machinery of political campaigns. This machinery transcends elections to become a way of governance as governments continue to rely on it to deflect accountability and manipulate public discourse. Section 2 describes the events around which information disorders are promoted. During periods of political instability, elections, or armed conflicts, information disorders often emerge as key drivers of mass action. In these contexts, disinformation and hate speech are weaponised to incite violence, manipulate public sentiment, and deepen ethnic and religious divisions. Ethnicity and religion frequently become fault lines that disinformation campaigns exploit to divide communities and trigger mass actions such as violent protests, or for widespread voter manipulation. In the case of elections, disinformation is used to sway voter opinions by distorting candidatesʼ positions or spreading fabricated narratives about political opponents. Likewise, in conflict situations, armed groups and militant organisations may use information disorders to recruit new members by promoting extremist ideologies, spreading fear, or creating a sense of urgency. Politicians and conflict groups alike have learned to manipulate these divisions for their agendas, making information integrity a critical issue for social cohesion, democratic stability, and peacebuilding in the region. Section 3 covers literature on fact-checking as one of the measures to mitigate information disorders. Artificial Intelligence (AI) can scale up fact-checking efforts by detecting and scaling up the distribution of correct information. However, even using AI for fact-checking experiences significant limitations. For example, local languages make it hard for AI to detect disinformation and hate speech in all instances. When misinformation is shared on instant messaging platforms like Telegram channels it is also difficult for an ordinary user to detect. Section 4 covers media literacy as an antidote to information disorders, especially disinformation. UNESCO has been at the forefront of addressing information integrity issues in West Africa through its research and media literacy programmes. Recognising the role of accurate and reliable information in fostering peace, democracy, and development, UNESCO has sought to promote the importance of information integrity by partnering with governments, civil society organisations, and media outlets to combat disinformation. Additionally, UNESCOʼs media literacy programmes aim to empower citizens with the skills to critically evaluate and engage with information, fostering a more informed and resilient public.8 These initiatives are particularly important in an era where digital media plays such a significant role in shaping opinions and driving political discourse." (Introduction, pages 3-4) more

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Recommendation of the Council on Information Integrity

Paris: Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (2025), 17 pp.

"The Recommendation on Information Integrity was adopted by the OECD Council on 17 December 2024 on the proposal of the Public Governance Committee (PGC). The Recommendation aims to establish a wide-ranging and applicable policy framework for Adherents to address threats posed by information manipul ... more

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Strengthening Soft Power of Cyber Resilience against State-Based Disinformation Attacks: Insights from South and Southeast Asia

Sangeeta Mahapatra

Hamburg: GIGA (2025), 29 pp.

"This paper proposes a cyber resilience strategy that integrates cognitive resilience – namely, the individual and collective capacity to withstand informational and psychological manipulation campaigns intended to destabilise social and political systems. This integrated approach addresses threat ... more

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Determinants of fake news diffusion on social media: A systematic literature review

Khurram Shahzad, Shakeel Ahmad Khan, Abid Iqbal, Omar Shabbir, Mujahid Latif

Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication (GKMC), volume 74, issue 7-8 (2025), pp. 2069-2092

"This paper aims to explore the determinants causing fake information proliferation on social media platforms and the challenges to control the diffusion of fake news phenomena. The authors applied the systematic review methodology to conduct a synthetic analysis of 37 articles published in peer-rev ... more

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State-Sponsored Disinformation Around the Globe: How Politicians Deceive their Citizens

Martin Echeverría Victoria, Sara Garcia Santamaria, Daniel C. Hallin (eds.)

Oxford: Routledge (2025), xiii, 336 pp.

"This book explores the pervasive and globalised trajectory of domestic disinformation. It describes specific operations and general apparatuses of disinformation that are sponsored by the State institutions in several countries around the world, such as governments, political parties, and politicia ... more

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Donetsk Don’t Tell: ‘Hybrid War’ in Ukraine and the Limits of Social Media Influence Operations

Lennart Maschmeyer, Alexei Abrahams, Peter Pomerantsev, Volodymyr Yermolenko

Journal of Information Technology & Politics, volume 22, issue 1 (2025), pp. 49-64

"Many fear that social media enable more potent influence operations than traditional mass media. This belief is widely shared yet rarely tested. We challenge this emerging wisdom by comparing social media and television as vectors for influence operations targeting Ukraine. This article develops a ... more

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Global Communication and Propaganda

Richard C. Vincent

In: Global Communication: A Multicultural Perspective

Yahya R. Kamalipour (ed.)

Lanham et al.: Rowman & Littlefield (2025), pp. 153-198

"Propaganda involves the persuasive communication process to influence and convert individuals and the public at large, directly or implicitly, through the use of purposively chosen and partial, or even fabricated, disinformation [...] Regarding the understanding of propaganda, the first mistake is ... more

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Destruktive Diskurse: Digitale Verbreitung von klimabezogener Mis- und Desinformation

Hanna Börgmann, Dominik Hammer, Jan Beyer, Jonas Ziock, Fiete Stegers, Philipp Keßling, Felix Münch

Berlin; Hamburg: Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD); Hans-Bredow-Institut (2025), 52 pp.

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Currents of Truth: A Journalist's Quest for Justice in the Age of AI

Ryan Pedro

Johannesburg: Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS), Media Programme Sub-Sahara Africa (2025), 51 pp.

"This is a story set in a fictional city in Africa, in the not-too-far future. It follows a young investigative journalist, her mentor and her friend, a computer genius, who work together to uncover and expose a complex disinformation campaign fuelled by artificial intelligence and save their people ... more

Disarming Disinformation: Brazil Deep Insights

Tackling Disinformation, Information Manipulation and Interference in Four African Elections Deep Insights

Disarming Disinformation: Brazil
Deep Insights

Tackling Disinformation, Information Manipulation and Interference in Four African Elections
Deep Insights