Various types of information disorders, led by disinformation, are becoming a major risk factor for society as a whole in the 21st century. This phenomenon is often linked not only to the tendency of part of the European population to vote for extremist candidates but also to a decline in trust in public institutions, the media, and elections. This development may undermine the ability of states and their citizens to respond to crises such as pandemics, economic crises, or global climate change.
Social media platforms, which until recently were not responsible for the content disseminated on them, including disinformation, now play a major role in shaping public debate. In recent years, however, some European countries, as well as the European Commission itself, have been paying attention to similar information threats.
This study examines how individual European Union countries are addressing the issue of information manipulation. A total of 27 case studies compile the findings of researchers from individual EDMO regional hubs, with researchers Jana Soukupová from the Center for Law, Technology, and Digitalization at Charles University’s Faculty of Law and Beáta Gavurová from Charles University’s First Faculty of Medicine contributing their findings on behalf of CEDMO. So, how does the Central European region view disinformation?
Czech Republic
A significant part of the disinformation narratives spread in the Czech Republic is based on the rhetoric of the Russian Federation, especially on the issue of Russian aggression against Ukraine. Political figures such as former President Miloš Zeman are often involved in amplifying these narratives.
Nevertheless, Czech society is relatively resilient. This is helped by the existence of fact-checking activities and organizations, including the Czech Radio project Ověřovna, the outputs of Demagog.cz, and the AFP news agency.
Under Czech law, government action against information manipulation is limited. The Czech normative system does not have a specific definition of disinformation, and the criminal code only addresses this concept indirectly, for example, in the context of spreading alarmist news. In 2023, the Czech Ministry of the Interior drafted a bill restricting similar content that could pose a threat to national security, but the first draft was rejected after strong public criticism.
Poland
Poland is characterized by a high degree of political polarization, which contributes to the spread of various types of information manipulation. This trend is reinforced by mistrust of the news media, for example, when the former ruling party, Law and Justice (PiS), utilized public media to attack the opposition in the past.
Due to Russia’s war against Ukraine, the country also has a large Ukrainian minority, which is the target of a significant amount of disinformation narratives. In the EEAS report on foreign information manipulation, Poland ranked first in terms of the number of such foreign operations.
Poland lacks a general regulation of disinformation. Currently, there are no regulations or guidelines for institutions on how to respond to such situations. Although some laws could theoretically be used to combat disinformation, none of them specifically address it.
Slovakia
In Slovakia, information manipulation is highly prevalent in the public sphere. The country’s political leaders themselves are often the primary source of disinformation, and the Slovak public is more susceptible to conspiracy theories, disinformation, and misinformation. Slovakia is an example of a country where the state’s efforts in this area changed after the new leadership took office.
There are legal safeguards in place to prevent the spread of the most serious forms of information manipulation, such as the Media Services Act (No. 264/2022). In practice, this law ensures that analytical reports are produced by the Media Services Council. Apart from this, criminal law is not used to combat disinformation in Slovakia.
If you found this brief overview interesting and would like to find out how other European countries are doing, read the full study in English.
*This article has received funding from the European Union under the call: DIGITAL-2023-DEPLOY-04, project 101158609.
