“The EU prides itself as an innovative regulatory power that has established reliable frameworks for consultations with civil society, academia, and industry players. Its regulatory measures often include test and trial periods for specific mandates, such as the obligation of very large online platforms to mitigate systemic risks. These get clarified, evaluated, and redefined through guidelines and reporting mechanisms. However, when EU regulation spills over to other countries, this usually only happens based on the initial regulation, not the continuous improvement. This creates a Counter-Brussels effect in countries outside the EU, where redress, consultation, and evaluation mechanisms are missing or underdeveloped.”

▶ This concept of a Counter-Brussels effect was one of the key arguments, I put forward in an expert workshop in Brussels recently. The session brought together some 40 people from all sectors to reflect on the EU’s preparedness to counter disinformation ahead of the elections in June. My colleague Charlotte Freihse and I used the opportunity to share preliminary results from our international research into counter-disinformation practices to be published in June 2024.

Thanks to the wonderful colleagues at GLOBSEC for all the support and insights! Summary report available on Upgrade Democracy.