Mechanisms of disinformation

Reading Time: Minutes

At the beginning of 2023, there were 4.76 billion social media accounts worldwide: Disinformation spreads quickly and uncontrollably, especially through social media.

This high figure shows how many different ways there are to share and be confronted with disinformation. This makes it all the more important to recognize disinformation. Cognitive scientists have developed the PLURV model to help identify disinformation strategies.

Based on the FLICC model, the infographic shows excerpts that explain and exemplify how the mechanisms of disinformation work. It can be downloaded free of charge via the download icon.

Mechanisms of disinformation

Disinformation is deliberately disseminated false or misleading information with the aim of causing damage and spreading uncertainty. The terms misinformation and fake news are often used as synonyms for disinformation, although misinformation can also be "accidentally" false information.

There are many reasons for the spread of disinformation. It can be spread out of hatred, to harm others or to gain financial advantage. The aim of political disinformation is to influence political opinions. Freedom of expression and education is a cornerstone of democracy. It is therefore important to expose manipulative strategies in this area. When disinformation influences and changes political opinion, it can be dangerous for democracy.

Development in the group

Under the following link you can open the infographic in the Mural Board and use it for group discussions.

The Mural Board

The Mural Board is a digital whiteboard tool that is often used for collaborative work and brainstorming in teams. It allows users to create and share visual representations of ideas, concepts and projects. With Mural, teams can collaborate in real time by adding and editing notes, diagrams, images, links and other multimedia content on a shared workspace.

Mechanisms of disinformation (Mural Board Link)

Further information on the topic of disinformation can be found below under "Read more in the dossier". We also recommend our project idea entitled "Disinformation using the example of framing", which you can carry out with 12 to 16-year-olds.

Did you like this article?