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Short abstract:

This paper presents empirical evidence collected, case studies and interviews, on the impact of disinformation, misinformation and foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI) on democratic processes. The empirical evidence will be used to create a disinformation framework of analysis.

Long abstract:

Contemporary democratic processes are heavily mediated in the digital space and it very often becomes vulnerable to threats like disinformation, misinformation and foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI). Research currently states that there is a lack of empirical evidence on digital disinformation as a threat to democracy and it is instead, at best, a moral panic (Jungherr & Schroeder 2021). However, the European Commission funded project ATHENA states that several countries have exploited the Internet to wage campaigns of disinformation and interference in Europe to disrupt democratic processes for their perceived political and economic benefit. As a result, disinformation poses an imminent our infrastructures, economies, values and democracies. The present paper will present 30 manifestations of FIMI in hate speech, espionage, elite capture, LGBTIQ+ issues. The paper will provide interview data with relevant stakeholders such as journalists, politicians, election bodies and fact checkers. The paper will demonstrate how disinformation threatens the fundamentals of our democratic processes namely, fundamental freedoms, electoral equity, institutional independence and stability, further erosion of public trust and citizens’ participation in governance processes.