Where wit and wisdom disarm disinformation
As part of its war in Ukraine, Russia is intensifying deceptive social media campaigns in Europe. France and the EU are countering with a society-wide approach that combines online vigilance with transparency, truth, and critical thinking.
Paris illuminates the Eiffel Tower in blue and yellow every Feb. 24, to show France's solidarity with Ukraine on the anniversary of that country鈥檚 2022 invasion by Russia.
Christophe Ena/AP/Feb. 2025
Even as the European Union works to bolster economic and defense support for Ukraine, the continent is confronting increasing Russian aggression on a different battlefield: the online frontier. Over the past year, the Kremlin has intensified its disinformation campaigns in an attempt to weaken Europe鈥檚 democratic pillars of truth and civic trust.
As the main target of these intensified attacks, France is at the forefront of efforts to document and debunk these claims. 鈥淭he more outspoken France has become about Russia, the more it is targeted,鈥� The Economist reported April 8. It documented multiple instances in which false claims on social media were launched almost immediately after French President Emmanuel Macron expressed support for Ukraine or European rearmament.
Working closely with European partners on the digital 鈥渄emocracy shield鈥� initiative announced last November, France is combining cutting-edge technology and communication tactics to promote transparency among its citizens. And it鈥檚 doing so with the occasional touch of Gallic flair.
Since 2021, France has had a dedicated national department, Viginum, to combat foreign digital interference, which tracks and publicizes false and unfounded claims, most of them Russia-linked. Just six months ago, the government launched French Response, an English-language social media account on X to, as The Wall Street Journal put it, 鈥渂etter defend the country in a multifront meme war.鈥�
Sharing news and views 鈥渨ith a frank posture, tinged with humor ... sometimes self-deprecation,鈥� Foreign Minister Jean-No毛l Barrot told fellow diplomats in January, leverages social media 鈥渁nd increases the impact of our message.鈥� The account reportedly logs 35 million views each month.
But there is more to this approach than just online irreverence or virality 鈥� a more that recognizes the need to cultivate civic trust alongside modern media literacy.
鈥淭he European fight against Russian interference has undergone a strategic shift,鈥� Le Monde wrote in March. 鈥淏oth Brussels and Paris now advocate a society-wide approach. ... The new consensus is to involve citizens in the solution.鈥� A February conference of disinformation researchers, diplomats, and nongovernmental organizations, the paper reported, agreed on the importance of equipping civil society with strong associations, fact-checking skills, and media literacy education.
A special commission, established a few years earlier, offers an even broader view, outlined in its report 鈥淓nlightenment in the Digital Age.鈥�
鈥淭he bond of trust between citizens and the media and institutions ... needs to be reforged,鈥� concluded the 13-member group of historians, teachers, and civil society representatives 鈥� as do the skills of discernment and critical thinking.
鈥淲e ... define critical thinking as the ability to trust intelligently, after considering the quality of the information, opinions and knowledge at our disposal,鈥� the report stated. And, it added with hope and confidence, 鈥淚t so happens that human beings are predisposed to possess this ability.鈥�