Dana Spinant, a former journalist from Romania, has been Director General of Communications at the European Commission, the executive body of the European Union, since 1 December 2023. Trained as a journalist in Bucharest, then in international relations in Nice and in European political and administrative studies at the College of Europe in Bruges (Belgium), she worked for a dozen years as a correspondent in Brussels for various media before joining the EU institution in 2009.
For IHEDN, this multilingual (Romanian, English, French, German and Italian) talks about the various disinformation and foreign interference campaigns that the EU has been subjected to in recent times, and the strategy already in place to counter these phenomena while respecting freedom of expression.
HOW DOES MISINFORMATION AFFECT EUROPEAN DEMOCRACIES, THEIR SOCIETIES AND THEIR INSTITUTIONS?
Misinformation, as well as the manipulation of information and foreign interference, are serious threats to European societies and their institutions.
One of their major objectives is to polarise and divide our democratic societies in order to weaken them in the interests of hostile actors. To this end, they exploit and amplify uncertainty, discontent or legitimate fears - whether about the cost of living, identity issues or war - with consequences that can range from resentment to acts of violence, as we saw last summer with the demonstrations in the UK that were amplified by appeals on social networks.
Disinformation and interference can also undermine democratic institutions and processes, such as elections. They prevent citizens from making informed decisions or can dissuade them from voting, as we have seen recently.
ARE YOU SEEING AN INCREASE IN THIS PHENOMENON? CAN YOU GIVE SOME RECENT EXAMPLES?
We have seen an increase in this phenomenon in recent years. This is partly due to the increasingly tense geopolitical situation following the COVID crisis, Russia's war against Ukraine and the conflict in the Near and Middle East, but also to the profound transformation of the information space in general.
Disinformation and interference are now part of a toolbox of hostile actors that includes various hybrid threats - including cyber attacks, the instrumentalisation of migrants and threats or attacks against election candidates.
For example, we had a clear demonstration of their methods during the presidential election in Moldova last year.
WERE THE LAST EUROPEAN ELECTIONS IN JUNE 2024 AFFECTED BY MISINFORMATION?
The European elections were a test of the response mechanisms we have established over the last few years.
We have witnessed widespread campaigns of manipulation and interference in European elections and policies, cyber attacks and electoral manipulation both in the run-up to and during the European elections in June 2024.
The French authorities have uncovered and exposed large-scale manipulation operations such as Doppelgängerwhich imitates the websites of reputable organisations. The Czech authorities have also uncovered interference by Voice of Europe, a news website financed by Russia.
Thanks to the support of Member States and our response mechanisms, we were able to exercise increased vigilance, detect threats and respond to them in an agile manner. As a result, the integrity of the elections was not affected.
WHAT IS THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION'S RESPONSE TO MISINFORMATION?
The manipulation of information and interference is a complex challenge that requires a multi-dimensional approach at national and European level. Over the past few years, we have taken resolute action to counter these threats while respecting freedom of expression and information, which are cardinal virtues for us. Our work has focused on five pillars.
The first pillar concerns the protection of journalists and media pluralism, because quality traditional media play an essential role in the fight against disinformation and interference. This is why the European Union has adopted the legislation to protect journalists from abusive prosecutionthe European law on media freedomand rules on the transparency of political advertising.
The second pillar aims to make digital platforms more accountable. We have introduced the digital services actThe DSA is the first law of its kind in the world. When it came into force in February 2024, it changed the face of the fight against manipulation and interference by defining, among other things, what constitutes illegal content, rules for identifying political advertising, and the role of platforms in managing such content. The measures put forward by the law are carefully proportionate, to ensure that freedom of expression is respected.
The third pillar provides for the strengthening of societal resilience by helping media education organisations and information verifiers, the 'fact-checkersand promoting critical thinking. For example, we support the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO) which has regional offices across Europe. We also run joint campaigns with national broadcasting regulators to raise public awareness of the risks of disinformation and interference.
The fourth pillar concerns the ability to monitor, analyse and unmask manipulative operations, and the shared analysis of the situation (situational awareness). The European External Action Service has been deploying capabilities in this area for around ten years; many Member States have followed suit. The Commission is also in the process of setting up a monitoring system focusing on the manipulation of information targeting European policies (e.g. climate action or migration). A rapid alert system has been set up to facilitate exchanges between the European and national levels. We have also developed a toolbox for the EU on information manipulation and interference activities carried out from abroad. ('FIMI Toolbox').
The fifth and final pillar is cooperation with regional and global partners, which is essential to address the cross-border nature of the challenge. We are exchanging with NATO, G7 partners, and other countries and actors with relevant experience.
WHAT ARE THE PRIORITIES OF THE NEW COMMISSION SET UP AT THE END OF 2024?
We are at the start of a new political cycle with a new College at the head of the Commission. President von der Leyen has presented her policy guidelines for the 2024-2029 mandate in July 2024.
The fight against the manipulation of information is one of the priorities on the agenda. Without prejudging the specific actions of the new team, information manipulation and the necessary responses will be addressed within the broader framework of resilience and crisis preparedness.
In fact, at the request of President von der Leyen, former Finnish President Niinistö presented in September 2024 a report on strengthening crisis preparedness which will serve as a source of inspiration for the Union's future strategy on the subject.
The report presents a company-wide approach ('whole-of-society) and considers that citizens play an essential role in societal resilience and preparedness. In this context, the report stresses the importance of improving public education on the risks associated with cybersecurity and disinformation.
The political guidelines also provide for the creation of a European Democracy Shield. This will represent a new stage in the fight against the manipulation of information and foreign interference.
