“As the European Union begins a new political cycle, the fight against disinformation demands a strategic shift to focus on the highly polarising narratives that dominate the public sphere. Fact-checking, media literacy and regulation of social media platforms are not enough anymore. Unlocking resilience in Europe’s democracy will require mastering the narratives that shape our collective reality, and this is something that we should address urgently”, said Erika Staël von Holstein, co-founder and Chief Executive of Re-Imagine Europa, during the presentation of the White Paper The Power of Narratives A Strategic Approach to Combatting Disinformation in Europe – Key Findings from the First European Narratives Observatory (NODES).
Harnessing the latest advances in psychology, neuroscience, and behavioral science, the European Narrative Observatory has analysed dominant narratives on climate, migration, and COVID-19 across four languages. According to Staël von Holstein, “narrative communities interpret the world through similar frameworks, sharing fundamental thinking patterns, heroes and villains, and a common narrative language. Understanding this diversity is crucial as disinformation exploits diverse narrative languages in very sophisticated ways, by targeting audiences with codes that are often misinterpreted by other communities”. The European Narrative Observatory “alerts us of the dangers of a growing dissemination of polarised narratives that is deepening societal division across Europe and weakening the foundations of the democratic dialogue”, she added.
“Fact checking and regulation of social media platforms are no longer enough to combat disinformation”, alerted Erika Staël von Holstein
The White Paper was presented at an expert roundtable hosted by Brando Benifei MEP, at the European Parliament, featuring contributions from prominent European figures and experts, including Ivo Belet, Deputy Head of Cabinet of European Commission Vice President Dubravka Šuica, Klára Dobrev MEP, Alexandra Geese MEP, Krisztina Stump, Head of Unit Media Convergence and Social Media at DG CNECT, Paolo Cesarini, Chair of the Executive Board of the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO), Jacob Tamm, Deputy Head of Information Integrity at the European External Action Service (EEAS), Juliette Montesse, Head of Digital Investigations for Europe at Agence France Presse (AFP).
“The eruption of generative AI and it’s combination with digital platforms is impacting negatively our democracy”, warned Brando Benifei
In representation of European Commission Vice President Dubravka Šuica, Ivo Belet highlighted that “during this mandate, the Commission has come forward with a wide range of tools to improve our democratic ecosystem. A key achievement has been to put citizens at the centre of the discussions on the future of the European Union. President-elect von der Leyen has called for ‘a new era of dialogue with citizens and stakeholders’. Looking to the future, the Democracy Shield will be a key priority in the next mandate. The NODES White Paper can certainly inspire that work. Projects like NODES contribute greatly to our shared endeavour of fighting disinformation and building democratic resilience”.
Staël von Holstein presented a concrete set of policy recommendations developed through the European Narratives Observatory to effectively combat disinformation campaigns that thrive on emotional resonance and deep-seated psychological biases, exploiting the narratives that define our worldviews. Key recommendations include:
- Establishing an Expert Group onNarratives to support the European Commission with evidence-based guidance on how narrative structures could be used to foster a more cooperative and constructive public discourse.
- Supporting the Development of European Narratives Observatories, to effectively tackle disinformation and its role in polarising public discourse. Employing advanced data analysis techniques, including AI and big data, these observatories can map out the diverse and evolving narratives across the EU, providing crucial insights to policymakers.
- Ensuring Access to Data on Public Discourse for European Researchers/ Enhancing Data Access for Researchers. To fully realise the potential of thes Digital Services Act (DSA), the European Commission must ensure that researchers across Europe can effectively access and analyse this data, while adhering to GDPR and other European data protection regulations.
- Integrating Citizen Dialogues and Deliberative Democracy with Narrative Analysis. Citizen dialogues present a powerful avenue for democratic renewal. By integrating narrative analysis methodologies, these initiatives can move beyond binary “either/or” debates and explore more inclusive framings. With public engagement platforms like the European-funded ORBIS project, there is potential to scale these dialogues across Europe.
- Fostering International Collaboration on Narrative Analysis. Disinformation networks do not respect national borders, and combatting them effectively requires a coordinated effort to share best practices, research, and insights on how narratives shape public discourse. Europe can play a critical role in uniting global efforts to combat disinformation and strengthen the resilience of democratic societies worldwide.
The White Paper “The Power of Narratives: A Strategic Approach to Combatting Disinformation in Europe – Key Findings from the First European Narrative Observatory” is available here.