In view of next year’s federal election, EU Commission Vice-President Věra Jourová has warned of possible manipulation attempts by Russia. “We are living in a new era of hostile influence,” the EU commissioner for transparency and the protection of values and democracy told the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”. “I fear that the Voice of Europe is a blueprint for further operations – including the federal election next year. This fake medium is probably just the tip of the iceberg.” It could be copied as a method.
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The EU in May banned Voice of Europe and three other Russian media organisations from broadcasting within the EU. According to the EU, all were controlled by the Russian government and targeted parties in Europe, “particularly during election periods.” The Prague-based Voice of Europe is suspected of spreading pro-Russian propaganda in the EU and paying money to European politicians. AfD politician Petr Bystron is suspected of receiving money in connection with the portal to act in Russia’s interests in the Bundestag. He has rejected the allegations.
“Germany, France and Poland are under tremendous pressure in terms of misinformation,” Jourova added. Russian President Vladimir Putin is especially trying to invest in these Central European countries “because he hopes he will have a big profit if opinion changes.” Jourova called for more resistance in the EU. “Because the threats are getting even bigger,” the Czech woman said.
Survey on the threat of disinformation campaigns
At the same time, dpa reports on a survey asking how great citizens assess the threat of attempts to influence through disinformation campaigns. Almost three quarters (73 percent) of German citizens consider disinformation campaigns controlled from abroad a great or very great threat to democracy in Europe. Only 24 percent of those surveyed by the opinion research institute Forsa for the magazine “Internationalpolitik” see a less serious or no threat at all.
The threat appears to be slightly less great for those surveyed in eastern Germany than in the west of the country: In the east, 67 percent believe such campaigns are a big or very big threat, compared with 75 percent in the west. On the other hand, 30 percent of those surveyed in the east consider the threat to be less serious or non-existent, compared with 24 percent in the west.
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Looking at party supporters, it is noticeable that voters of the ruling parties consider the threat to democracy from such campaigns to be above average: 90 percent of SPD and Green supporters consider them great or very great, FDP voters 88 percent. The figure among supporters of the Union parties is also clearly above average at 80 percent. The opposite is true for AfD voters: among them, only a minority of 42 percent consider disinformation campaigns dangerous, while one in two considers them to be low or not dangerous at all.
According to the survey, younger respondents between the ages of 18 and 29 are significantly less likely to believe that disinformation campaigns are a big or very big threat: 66 percent think so. In contrast, people aged 45 to 59 are the most concerned (83 percent).
(EMW)
