Disinformation, deepfakes, and conspiracy theories are increasingly weaponized in conflicts across Europe. While Nordic countries are often seen as resilient to false narratives due to high social and political trust, they remain vulnerable. A new Nordic initiative assesses community preparedness for disinformation threats.
The Nordic Disinformation Resilience Network, a research initiative funded by NordForsk, has been established to examine how Nordic societies plan for, detect, respond to, recover from, and mitigate the risks posed by disinformation.
– Before Brexit and Trump’s presidency, most literature framed disinformation and conspiracy theories as tools of the uneducated and marginalized. Today, we must recognize that politicians in the Nordics also use disinformation strategically to gain power, notes Elzbieta Drazkiewicz from Lund University, Sweden, who leds the project.
The Network is focused on assessing the resilience and preparedness of Nordic communities in response to disinformation.
– We seek to understand the historical, social, and regional factors that contribute to resilience in the Nordic region and how they can inform adaptive governance for preparedness and crisis mitigation, says Drazkiewicz. By examining past and present approaches to combating disinformation in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden, this network provides a forum for identifying best practices, addressing challenges, and strengthening efforts to counter disinformation while upholding democratic values and social cohesion, she adds.
A Collaborative Effort Across the Nordic Region
The network brings together leading researchers from multiple institutions across the Nordic countries, including:
- Gunhild Hoogensen Gjørv – UiT The Arctic University of Norway
- Gudrun Rudningen – OsloMet
- Hulda Þórisdóttir – University of Iceland
- Eiríkur Bergmann – Bifröst University
- Kasper Grotle Rasmussen – University of Southern Denmark
- Annastiina Kallius – University of Helsinki (currently on leave)
- Olof Sundin – Lund University
- Lisa Engström – Lund University
- Sebastian Larsson – Swedish Defence University (FHS)
You can read more about the project here.