In her article “Disinformation, Democracy and the Digital Sphere”, Tanja Wirz sheds light on how the state should deal with disinformation in digital media and what measures are needed to protect democracy. UZH researchers Mark Eisenegger and Florent Thouvenin present proposals on this topic in an interdisciplinary study.
The study shows that the Swiss population continues to trust traditional media and official communications and feels able to recognize false information. Nevertheless, around half of those surveyed expressed concerns about “fake news” and its potential damage to direct democracy. Communications scientist Mark Eisenegger emphasizes: “Disinformation could potentially wreak great havoc in Switzerland.”
Legal scholar Florent Thouvenin emphasizes the importance of freedom of expression and warns against government overregulation: “A democratic society must be able to tolerate misguided opinions to a certain degree.” The researchers recommend a governance mix of legal requirements, co-regulation with digital platforms and the promotion of media literacy in order to effectively counter disinformation.