No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the author.
Fake News and the Europeanization of Cyberspace
Abstract
As both the European Union and its member states acknowledge that the proliferation of fake news threatens their political stability and – consequently – the general idea of European integration – they have undertaken many steps to confront that problem. Them, the article examines how EU institutions, together with the member states, have tackled the spread of disinformation within the common policy of cybersecurity. The novelty of this study is that it does so concerning the ongoing process of Europeanization of cyberspace, combining the field of information technology with European studies.
ResearchGate has not been able to resolve any citations for this publication.
Fake news" has emerged as a global buzzword. While prominent media outlets, such as The New York Times, CNN, and Buzzfeed News, have used the term to designate misleading information spread online, President Donald Trump has used the term as a negative designation of these very "mainstream media." In this article, we argue that the concept of "fake news" has become an important component in contemporary political struggles. We show-case how the term is utilised by different positions within the social space as means of discrediting , attacking and delegitimising political opponents. Excavating three central moments within the construction of "fake news," we argue that the term has increasingly become a "floating signifier": a signifier lodged in-between different hegemonic projects seeking to provide an image of how society is and ought to be structured. By approaching "fake news" from the viewpoint of discourse theory, the paper reframes the current stakes of the debate and contributes with new insights into the function and consequences of "fake news" as a novel political category.
Europeizacja ad extra jest rodzajem oddziaływania Unii Europejskiej na jej otoczenie międzynarodowe, które jest oddzielone nie tylko zewnętrznymi granicami schengeńskimi, ale także innymi typami granic, które odróżniają system Unii Europejskiej od jej otoczenia, wśród których są: granice prawno-instytucjonalne, transakcjonalne, kulturowe, aksjologiczne.
UE oddziałuje na otoczenie międzynarodowe poprzez kompleks działań i instrumentów ukierunkowanych na zewnątrz, które można określić wspólnym mianem jako „zarządzanie zewnętrzne” (external governance - EG).
Celem opracowania jest próba identyfikacji oddziaływania Unii Europejskiej na jej otoczenie międzynarodowe (państwa trzecie, organizacje międzynarodowe, regiony itd.) poprzez zarządzanie zewnętrzne przy założeniu, że istotną cechą charakterystyczną europeizacji ad extra jest ograniczony charakter przymusu prawnego.
p>This inquiry analyzes the concept of ‘European public sphere’ within the European public discourse. In particular, it explores the European Communication Strategy for creating active European citizenship and European public sphere. The European Commission’ s Plan D for Democracy, Dialogue and Debate failed, because it employed homogeneous and static concepts of public sphere and European values. In this way it reduced deliberation to a mere debate. The European Year of Citizens was not sufficiently successful for the same reason. It involved citizens debated about EU rights, but it did not produce deliberation. The purpose of this inquiry is to show the dialectical relation between ideas of European values, European identity and European public sphere. This paper emphasizes performative nature of European public sphere, European identity and European values. These concepts may be perceived as grand narratives which aim at producing universal truths.
Article first published online: 16 OCT 2017 </p
This paper is based on a review of how previous studies have defined and operationalized the term “fake news.” An examination of 34 academic articles that used the term “fake news” between 2003 and 2017 resulted in a typology of types of fake news: news satire, news parody, fabrication, manipulation, advertising, and propaganda. These definitions are based on two dimensions: levels of facticity and deception. Such a typology is offered to clarify what we mean by fake news and to guide future studies.
This paper examines the 2016 US presidential election campaign to identify problems with, causes of and solutions to the contemporary fake news phenomenon. To achieve this, we employ textual analysis and feedback from engagement, meetings and panels with technologists, journalists, editors, non-profits, public relations firms, analytics firms and academics during the globally leading technology conference, South-by-South West, in March 2017. We further argue that what is most significant about the contemporary fake news furore is what it portends: the use of personally and emotionally targeted news produced by algo-journalism and what we term “empathic media”. In assessing solutions to this democratically problematic situation, we recommend that greater attention is paid to the role of digital advertising in causing, and combating, both the contemporary fake news phenomenon, and the near-horizon variant of empathically optimised automated fake news.
The last three decades have seen the development of the European Union (EU) as a security actor. The transnational character of the security threats and the challenges identified by the EU have led to progressive integration between internal and external security concerns. These concerns have often led to calls for greater coherence within EU security policies. The literature, however, indicates that this need for coherence has, so far, not been systematically operationalized, leading to a fragmented security field. This article has two main aims: To devise a framework for the analysis of the EU's coherence as a security actor, and to apply it to the cybersecurity field. By focusing on EU cybersecurity policy, this article will explore whether the EU can be considered a coherent actor in this field or whether this policy is being implemented according to different and unco-ordinated rationales. © 2017 The Authors. JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies published by University Association for Contemporary European Studies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Media and communications policy across the European Union (EU) has been conducted at national level, with each member state developing a specific regulatory regime to oversee communication issues in its territory. While the print media in Europe have traditionally enjoyed a great degree of autonomy and self-regulation (Hutchison, 2007), broadcasting has attracted state intervention because of technical matters (spectrum limitation1) but also because of its capacity to influence listeners and viewers in their choices. However, the organization and functioning of the media systems are not the same across Europe, for they vary in the way they are funded and structured, their political independence, and so on (Humphreys, 1996; Iosifidis, 2007). The large variations among the media systems stem from the different traditions and political cultures as well as regulatory systems that exist across Europe.
European integration as a (potential) force of change in domestic polities and politics is attracting growing scholarly attention. European integration comprises two interrelated processes: the delegation of policy competences and the establishment of a new set of political institutions. Most existing studies of how these processes affect domestic institutional and political orders approach the subject from an institutionalist perspective. While such an approach helps to clarify the links between pressures for change and patterns Of national adaptation, European integration as a source of change cannot be considered in isolation from other (potential) sources of domestic institutional and political change.
This paper examines the Convention on the Future of Europe in terms of whether its work bears the imprint of a constitutional treaty or a constitution proper. Two constitutional visions for the EU are presented - deep diversity and constitutional patriotism - and assessed in relation to the existing structure of the EU and the Convention's work and results. It is found that the result is more than mere consolidation. It reflects a further step in the process of forging a viable political entity in Europe. The Convention has taken a number of decisions that appear to weaken the multiple constitutional demoi doctrine associated with constitutional treaty, and to move the EU closer to one based on constitutional patriotism. The Convention's very use of the terminology of constitution could be potentially significant as a rallying call to bring institutional reality in line with constitutional aspirations, although the result is still ambiguous enough as to require a decision on which constitutional aspirations should serve as the 'leitmotif'.
Over the recent years, the growth of online social media has greatly facilitated the way people communicate with each other. Users of online social media share information, connect with other people and stay informed about trending events. However, much recent information appearing on social media is dubious and, in some cases, intended to mislead. Such content is often called fake news. Large amounts of online fake news has the potential to cause serious problems in society. Many point to the 2016 U.S. presidential election campaign as having been influenced by fake news. Subsequent to this election, the term has entered the mainstream vernacular. Moreover it has drawn the attention of industry and academia, seeking to understand its origins, distribution and effects.
Of critical interest is the ability to detect when online content is untrue and intended to mislead. This is technically challenging for several reasons. Using social media tools, content is easily generated and quickly spread, leading to a large volume of content to analyse. Online information is very diverse, covering a large number of subjects, which contributes complexity to this task. The truth and intent of any statement often cannot be assessed by computers alone, so efforts must depend on collaboration between humans and technology. For instance, some content that is deemed by experts of being false and intended to mislead are available. While these sources are in limited supply, they can form a basis for such a shared effort.
In this survey, we present a comprehensive overview of the finding to date relating to fake news. We characterize the negative impact of online fake news, and the state-of-the-art in detection methods. Many of these rely on identifying features of the users, content, and context that indicate misinformation. We also study existing datasets that have been used for classifying fake news. Finally, we propose promising research directions for online fake news analysis.
Following the 2016 US presidential election, many have expressed concern about the effects of false stories ("fake news"), circulated largely through social media. We discuss the economics of fake news and present new data on its consumption prior to the election. Drawing on web browsing data, archives of fact-checking websites, and results from a new online survey, we find: 1) social media was an important but not dominant source of election news, with 14 percent of Americans calling social media their "most important" source; 2) of the known false news stories that appeared in the three months before the election, those favoring Trump were shared a total of 30 million times on Facebook, while those favoring Clinton were shared 8 million times; 3) the average American adult saw on the order of one or perhaps several fake news stories in the months around the election, with just over half of those who recalled seeing them believing them; and 4) people are much more likely to believe stories that favor their preferred candidate, especially if they have ideologically segregated social media networks.
Cybercrime affects over 1 million people worldwide a day, and cyber attacks on public institutions and businesses are increasing. This book interrogates the European Union's evolving cybersecurity policies and strategy and argues that while progress is being made, much remains to be done to ensure a secure and resilient cyberspace in the future.
Some years ago, Simon Hix and Klaus Goetz (2001, 15) observed that ‘Europeanisation has all the hallmarks of an emergent field of inquiry’. The field has now come of age. It is now time to take stock of what has been done so far.1
This book examines the relationship between the European Union (EU) and its member states by analysing how the process of integration in the field of foreign policy is shaping member states' identities. Focusing on the mutually constitutive aspects of the relationship between the EU and its member states, Jokela argues that we need discourse analytic and comparative tools for analysing foreign policy in the EU context and draws on the contributions of poststructural international relations. Providing empirically rich and comparative case studies that explore the impact of europeanization of foreign and security policy on Finnish and British foreign policy discourses as well as these states' identities, Jokela generates detailed knowledge about the interplay of national and supranational foreign policy discourses. Making an important contribution to europeanization studies, foreign policy analysis and discourse analysis, this book will be of strong interest to students and scholars of European politics, comparative politics, foreign policy and interntional relations.
The abstract for this document is available on CSA Illumina.To view the Abstract, click the Abstract button above the document title.
One of the challenges of Europeanization as an innovative research agenda is the identification of mechanisms through which domestic public policy is Europeanized. In Chapter 2, Radaelli identified two types of mechanisms, vertical (these include European Commission (EC) directives, European Court of Justice (ECJ) decisions, and EC competition decisions) and horizontal (suggestion of best practice through European level policy forums). This chapter elaborates on these mechanisms by considering the case of media market regulation in the European Union (EU), arguing that Europeanization of this policy area can be understood by looking at the interplay between the two mechanisms. An examination is made of vertical mechanisms in the section 'The Impact of ECJ Decisions on National Regulation', and of horizontal mechanisms in the section 'Vertical Europeanization via EC Merger Policy'; together these sections provide an overview of ECJ and competition decisions. The section on 'The Commission and New Modes ofGovernance' overviews how policy ideas travel through European-level forums; last, the 'Conclusion' looks at how Europeanization has driven the convergence of national media policies.
This chapter deals with the Europeanization of public policy, with emphasis on the problems that researchers encounter when they try to get to grips with the concept of Europeanization, the issue of explanation, the measurement of effects and the control of alternative rival hypotheses. It covers the domestic impact of the public policy of the European Union (EU), for which the term 'EU-ization' could be used. Featherstone has shown in the introductory chapter that the scope of Europeanization can go beyond EUization, for example, it can include the transfer of policy from one European country to several other countries, but this chapter if primarily concerned with how the EU impacts on the domestic policy systems of member states. The first section of the chapter, 'The Concept', looks at the implications of the conceptual analysis of Europeanization and suggests ideas in the direction of conceptual precision; the next section 'What is Europeanized and to What Extent?' 'unpacks' the concept of Europeanization by using a simple taxonomy; the section 'Vertical and Horizontal Mechanisms' illustrates the main mechanisms involved in Europeanization of public policy, before the key explanatory variables are discussed in the section 'Towards Explanation?'. The concluding section presents suggestions for future research, the key argument throughout the chapter having been that research on Europeanization presents an opportunity to bring EU scholars closer to 'normal' political science.
The developing 'global' network of computers, popularly referred to as the net, has sparked enthusiastic claims that this new medium holds the potential to revolutionise democracy. Central to this rhetoric is the concept of cyberspace. This virtual meeting place, created by computer networks, enables public interaction and information sharing. It is seen as providing the basis for the revitalisation of the public sphere and democracy. This article explores this prospect in relation to the political economy of the medium's ownership and control. I argue that the net's democratic potential is being limited by the rapid colonisation of cyberspace by capital. As a result, more than universal access to the net will be required to fulfil its democratic promise. Spaces for deliberative interaction in cyberspace also need to be protected and enhanced. Yet, democratisation beyond cyberspace may not automatically follow. Researchers and policy makers must pay greater attention to the systemic impediments involved. This, I conclude, is prerequisite to realising the democratic potential of the net.
This article reviews recent contributions to International Relations (IR) that engage the substantive concerns of historical institutionalism and explicitly and implicitly employ that tradition's analytical features to address fundamental questions in the study of international affairs. It explores the promise of this tradition for new research agendas in the study of international political development, including the origin of state preferences, the nature of governance gaps, and the nature of change and continuity in the international system. The article concludes that the analytical and substantive profiles of historical institutionalism can further disciplinary maturation in IR, and it proposes that the field be more open to the tripartite division of institutional theories found in other subfields of Political Science.
What is the content of Europeanization? Which causal relationships should be explained? Which theory should be used? In answering these questions, the article forwards a conceptualization of Europeanization based on Historical Sociology and Social Constructivism, which implies a departure from the practice in the current Europeanization literature to concentrate on the contemporary with a narrow focus (EU-ization) at the expense of the historical with a broad focus (Europeanization). It is suggested that the causal relationships to be explained are the transfer of European ideas across time and space using a 'present-as-reality' definition of the European idea set. In doing so, it becomes apparent that Europeanization cannot be accepted as either static or something that is solely connected to the EU, and that Europeanization has been characterized by diffusion patterns going both into and out of Europe and sociological processes involving subtle shifts in process, structure, agents and conceptions of 'Other' and 'Significant We'. Copyright (c) 2010 The Author(s). Journal compilation (c) 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
UK Brexit turmoil changes the tone of other EU opponents
- A Barker
Barker, A. (2019, January 23). UK Brexit turmoil changes the tone of other EU opponents. Financial Times.
https://www.ft.com/content/e13c5c3e-ffc1-11e8-b03f-bc62050f3c4e
Social media is rotting democracy from within
- Z Beauchamp
Beauchamp, Z. (2019). Social media is rotting democracy from within. https://www.vox.com/policyand-politics/2019/1/22/18177076/social-media-facebook-far-right-authoritarian-populism
Policy Transfer in the European Union
- S Bulmer
- S Padgett
Bulmer, S., & Padgett, S. (2004). Policy Transfer in the European Union. An Institutionalist Perspective.
British Journal of Political Science, 35(1), 103-126. DOI: 10.1017/S0007123405000050
Europeizacja zewnętrzna: mechanizmy, uwarunkowania, rezultaty
- A Cianciara
Cianciara, A. (2015). Europeizacja zewnętrzna: mechanizmy, uwarunkowania, rezultaty. In A. Cianciara,
A. Burakowski, P. Olszewski, & J. Wódka (Eds.), Europeizacja partii politycznych i grup interesu.
Instytut Studiów Politycznych PAN.
Coming Together to Fight Fake News
- A Claesson
Claesson, A. (2019). Coming Together to Fight Fake News. New Perspectives in Foreign Policy, 17, 13-19.
Union competences in respect of media pluralism and media freedom
- Cmpf
- European
CMPF. European Union competences in respect of media pluralism and media freedom. European
Union Publication Office.
Pluralism and Media Concentration in the Internal Market
- C Colomina
Colomina, C. (2019). Real and virtual threats. Europe's vulnerability to disinformation. Opinión, 5.
https://www.cidob.org/en/publications/publication_series/opinion/europa/real_and_virtual_threats_
europe_s_vulnerability_to_disinformation
Commission of the European Communities. (1992). Pluralism and Media Concentration in the Internal Market. https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/be71ea95-61ab-44d3-9b14-2d7cb82d8d81/language-en
Do These European Parliament Elections Matter?
- J Dempsey
Dempsey, J. (2019). Do These European Parliament Elections Matter? https://carnegieeurope.eu/
strategiceurope/79185
The (Geo)political Meaning of Europe's Cybersecurity Act
- S Dominioni
Dominioni, S. (2019). The (Geo)political Meaning of Europe's Cybersecurity Act. https://www.ispionline.
it/en/pubblicazione/geopolitical-meaning-europes-cybersecurity-act-22870
Strengthening Network & Information Security & Protecting Against Online Disinformation
- Enisa
ENISA. (2018). Strengthening Network & Information Security & Protecting Against Online Disinformation ("Fake News"). ENISA.
Election Cybersecurity: Challenges and Opportunities
- Enisa
ENISA. (2019). Election Cybersecurity: Challenges and Opportunities. ENISA.
Research Design in European Studies: The Case of Europeanization
- T Exadaktylos
- C M Radaelli
Exadaktylos, T., & Radaelli, C.M. (2009). Research Design in European Studies: The Case of Europeanization. Journal of Common Market Studies, 47(3), 507-530. DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-5965.2009.00820.x
European Commission. (2020). Tackling COVID-19 disinformation -Getting the facts right. Joint
communication to the European Parliament, the European Council, the Council, the European
Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. European Digital Media
Observatory Launched. https://www.eui.eu/STG/News/2020/European-Digital-Media-Observatorylaunched
Measuring the reach of "fake news" and online disinformation in Europe
- R Fletcher
- A Cornia
- L Graves
- R K Nielsen
Fletcher, R., Cornia, A., Graves, L., & Nielsen, R.K. (2018). Measuring the reach of "fake news" and online
disinformation in Europe. Digital News Publication. https://www.digitalnewsreport.org/publications/2018/measuring-reach-fake-news-online-disinformation-europe/
European Union and NATO: Global Cybersecurity Challenges: A Way Forward
- L K Ilves
- T J Evans
- F J Cilluffo
- A A Nadeau
Ilves, L.K., Evans T.J., Cilluffo F.J., & Nadeau, A.A. (2016). European Union and NATO: Global Cybersecurity
Challenges: A Way Forward. PRISM, 6(2), 126-141.
- Ipsos
Ipsos. (2019). Internet Security & Trust. Part 3: Social Media, Fake News & Algorithms. CIGI.
Europeizacja administracji publicznej
- I Lipowicz
Lipowicz, I. (2008). Europeizacja administracji publicznej. Ruch Prawniczy, Ekonomiczny i Socjologiczny,
70, 5-17.
Państwo w obliczu współczesnych wyzwań. O cyberbezpieczeństwie i innych zagrożeniach na przykładzie wybranych państw azjatyckich
- J Marszałek-Kawa
Marszałek-Kawa, J. (Ed.) (2019). Państwo w obliczu współczesnych wyzwań. O cyberbezpieczeństwie
i innych zagrożeniach na przykładzie wybranych państw azjatyckich. Wydawnictwo Adam
Marszałek.
Many Americans Say Made-Up News Is a Critical Problem That Needs To Be Fixed
- A Mitchell
- J Gottfried
- M Walker
- S Fedeli
- G Stocking
Mitchell, A., Gottfried, J., Walker, M., Fedeli, S., & Stocking, G. (2019). Many Americans Say Made-Up
News Is a Critical Problem That Needs To Be Fixed. https://www.journalism.org/2019/06/05/
many-americans-say-made-up-news-is-a-critical-problem-that-needs-to-be-fixed/
Ondarza von, N., & Schenuit, F. (2018). Brexit Tectonics. Berlin Policy Journal. https://berlinpolicyjournal.
com/brexit-tectonics/
Europeizacja polskich partii politycznych
- A Pacześniak
Pacześniak, A. (2014). Europeizacja polskich partii politycznych. Scholar.
EU Cyberdefence Strategy. European Union Military Committee
- G Rammuno
Rammuno, G. (2014). EU Cyberdefence Strategy. European Union Military Committee, 6, 1-2.
EU code of practice on fake news. Tech giants sign the dotted line
- S Stolton
Stolton, S. (2018). EU code of practice on fake news. Tech giants sign the dotted line. https://www.
euractiv.com/section/digital/news/eu-code-of-practice-on-fake-news-tech-giants-sign-the-dotted-line
The Sounding Board's Unanimous Final Opinion on the so-called
The Sounding Board's Unanimous Final Opinion on the so-called Code of Practice. (2018). https://www.
euractiv.com/wpcontent/uploads/sites/2/2018/10/3OpinionoftheSoundingboard-1.pdf
A free and pluralistic media to sustain European democracy
- V Vike-Freiberga
- H Daubler-Gmelin
- B Hammersley
- L M Maduro
Vike-Freiberga, V., Daubler-Gmelin, H., Hammersley, B., & Maduro, L.M. (2013). A free and pluralistic
media to sustain European democracy. Brussels.
Information Disorder. Toward an Interdisciplinary Framework for Research and Policymaking
- C Warde
- H Derakhshan
Warde, C., & Derakhshan, H. (2017). Information Disorder. Toward an Interdisciplinary Framework
for Research and Policymaking. Council of Europe.