💥My report out now💥 📗 *VLOPs - how big is your Polarization Footprint? Towards a metric to give EU citizens transparency about an online systemic risk driving conflict in our societies* Connecting #polarizationfootprint concept to systemic risk framework of Digital Services Act (#DSA)

"The #EU is built on democratic #values. What we value most requires our highest protection. Without #prevention and #preparedness, and without real funding, those protections are hollow." 🗞️ Read today's reflections on the #EUDS by @goripaula.bsky.social @eui-stg.bsky.social ⤵️

Democracy can’t survive on resilience alone, writes Paula Gori of the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO), arguing that researchers and fact-checkers need funding to play their role.

An Irish official’s view of efforts to tackle illegal online scams (10% of Facebook revenue) = lack of regulation is “greatly valued by tech firms due to the regulatory certainty it provides…[and is] an important part of the value Ireland offers when attracting foreign direct investment” Telling

❗️D'aquí una setmana inaugurem la #BuildPeace2025 a Santa Coloma de Gramenet! Un repte acollir participants d'arreu del món per reflexionar sobre com construir pau en el context actual marcat per l'auge de discursos d'odi, la polarització i el rearmament. icip.cat/ca/tot-a-pun...

A rich discussion at Thursday’s event, Peace After Tomorrow: The Future of Conflict Prevention, in Brussels, hosted by @crisisgroup.org. A strong group of experts and policymakers to talk about big themes: longer, more complex conflicts shaped by tech, hybrid threats and proxy actors.

Nice piece, and consistent with our findings that misinformation exploits outrage to spread online www.science.org/doi/full/10....

The most transparent, de-gamified way to do social media would be a “more like this / less like this” interface that nobody else sees. The “like” is pointless here anyway, while sharing is everything.

🇪🇺💻 Can Europe ever achieve digital sovereignty? Journalist Alexander Fanta breaks down why the EU still depends on American tech – from cloud servers to major apps – using cases like the Zivver data breach and AWS outage to show how fragile Europe’s digital independence is.

The #DSA was expected to get #socialmedia giants like #Facebook, #TikTok to make the online space safer. Yet an experiment reveals that #platforms often treat user complaints about illegal content as a formality. In the #Baltics, they respond almost exclusively to #regulators’ requests, if at all. 👇

📣 Online platforms shape what we know, how we connect, and who gets heard, yet researcher access to public platform data is shrinking, while platforms monetize this data. Our new report "Better Access" offers a framework for accessing this critical data: kgi.georgetown.edu/research-and...

Why did free speech vanguards change their tune following the murder of Charlie Kirk? Is it possible to leave the low hanging fruit of content moderation alone and reach a little higher up the tree? My initial thoughts here: howtobuildup.medium.com/moderate-the...

Polarisation intensifies antagonist feelings in democratic societies 👉 In our latest #TEPSAExplainer, #ActEU Researcher Pelin Musil talks about the consequences of political #polarisation 🎞️ Watch it on YouTube ➡️ youtu.be/WRDouV438zc @iirprague.bsky.social

According to documents reviewed by Reuters, Meta considered focusing its scam reduction efforts “on countries where it feared near-term regulatory action”—suggesting self-interest may be a stronger motivator than concern for its users.

What are the psychological and behavioural dynamics that come to play at the negotiation table? At our #EUCoP2025 side event on integrating psychology in peacemaking with Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we asked experts in both fields how this collaboration can benefit #mediation processes.

The annual Mediation Support Network meeting co-hosted with the Center for Security Studies (CSS), the Folke Bernadotte Academy & the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue took place last month: lnkd.in/dQ2YpntC. Grateful for this opportunity to address mediation in complex contexts 🙏

🇪🇺EU Peace Mediation Guidelines🕊️ 🪄 mediators to take into account the ability to influence perspectives and mobilise citizens through social media 🪄 the spread of disinformation threatens to polarise societies and fuel tensions that lead to conflict 🪄 digital tech & AI are used as tools to wage war

At this week's EU Community of Practice on Peace Mediation the Institute hosted the panel “Bringing Business in: The Case for Corporate Engagement in Peacemaking” to discuss how businesses can contribute to peacemaking through job creation, ethical investment, & community engagement: bit.ly/3JpW9Mw

Final plenary: Designing the Brussels Effect 2.0. How can Europe lead in tech not just by regulation, but by example? #ThinkAndDo2025

At @cfg-thinktank.bsky.social annual flagship event we are debating how & whether Europe can become a champion of safe, human centred AI as a global public good. Perhaps "European sovereignty" is not the right policy goal. Wonder what you think @mariafarrell.bsky.social #ctrl#alt#lead 👇👇👇

📅 Mark your calendar for 13 November: #ESPAS Annual Conference 2025 Join us for the biggest foresight event of the year on how Europe can chart a course to be 'match fit' for the world of 2040 and navigate the challenges ahead. 📌 Full programme & list of speakers: www.espas.eu/programme202...

Next up: breakout sessions, starting with AGI and geopolitics. The sense is clear: AI is already reshaping defence and strategy. One question is around how Europe prepares for the next leap without fuelling an arms race. #ThinkAndDo2025

Kicking off the day, Anu Bradford reminds us that waiting isn’t an option for Europe. "The EU has to be a tech actor in its own right, not just just a regulator. Build as well as govern. Aim for technological independence and real autonomy." 🧵 #ThinkAndDo2025

💬 On 22 September, CDT Europe and @opengovpartnership.org brought together around 50 representatives from civil society, European institutions, Member States and regulatory authorities to discuss the implementation status of the #AIAct. 👇🏻 Here is what came out of the discussion:

Big Tech lobby budgets hit record levels: market power and lobby power go hand in hand, as tech monopolies defend their business models.

AI is rewriting the rules — and we are keeping democracy in the loop at DisinfoCon 2025! 🚀We are back! This year’s edition explores the uncharted territories at the intersection of technology and democracy and we are bringing together civil society, policymakers, journalists and AI innovators ⬇️

Preliminary findings: 🚫TikTok & Meta failed to grant researchers adequate access to public data. 🚫Meta failed to provide simple ways to notify illegal content and to allow users to challenge moderation decisions. This is a duty, not a choice. link.europa.eu/JYQrBX

To begin reclaiming control of its future, Europe must chart a path toward digital sovereignty, argues Johnny Ryan (@johnnyryan.bsky.social), Director of Enforcement at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties. He says there are three key levers to achieve this: politics, policing, and procurement.

📢Only one month left for #BuildPeace2025! This year's conference, co-organized by Build Up and ICIP, will take place in #Barcelona and host 300 people! 📅November 21st-23rd 🔎Check out the full program icip.cat/en/event/bui...

How can Europe move from reacting to shaping the global tech landscape? Join us at Think & Do 2025 to grapple with defining questions of emerging technologies. Explore strange futures and connect with a community of decisionmakers, builders, and thinkers. Agenda & registration below!

💬 "Any Response to #Disinformation Needs to Respect #FreedomofExpression" Read the interview of EDMO Secretary-General @goripaula.bsky.social with meetingmediagroup.com 👇🏼

La conferència internacional #BuildPeace2025 aplegarà 300 persones a Santa Coloma de Gramenet. Seran tres dies de debat sobre la construcció de pau en el context de militarització i d'auge dels discursos d'odi i la polarització. 🔎Consulta el programa: icip.cat/ca/tot-a-pun...

This report on platform transparency under the DSA in the Global South is excellent – both as a nuanced explanation of the DSA and for the significant, detailed considerations it adds from other regions. drive.google.com/file/d/1fpKY...

There already are European alternatives in the digital domain, soon another one 👉https://monnett.social/ bsky.app/profile/monn... A healthy information and media environment does not just "emerge" - it requires rules of the game with competent/legitimate authorities to uphold and enforce

And revisit our Secretary-General's publication, where he argues for the creation of trusted European social platforms ⬇️ tepsa.eu/analysis/how...

Currently reading the recently released biography of the UN's third secretary general, the Burmese U Thant and reflecting on the dramatically & sadly diminished role of the UN (and specifically the UN SG) in mediating int'l conflicts. #cdnpoli

Wouldn’t it be nice if European #peacebuilding, human rights and #democracy academics and activists had something equivalent to the $53m big tech apparently has in its coffers for #DSA legal fees… @ilumium.eupolicy.social.ap.brid.gy @k1k1.bsky.social

Estivemos na Bélgica! Nossa diretora Paloma Rocillo participou do Internet Accountability Forum, em Bruxelas, debatendo no painel “Tornando a accountability uma meta para a cooperação digital global” os caminhos para uma internet mais democrática, justa e responsável.

The EU can play a crucial role in ensuring all phases of Trump's Gaza peace plan are implemented by both Israel & the Palestinians. But for the union to exert its influence, Germany must rethink its unwavering support for Israel, argues @rmomtaz.bsky.social. carnegieendowment.org/europe/strat...

🌐GNI welcomes the Zero Draft of the WSIS+20 Review - a positive step forward building on the Elements Paper. In our submission, we highlight several areas that we believe are critical to defend & provide recommendations to strengthen the text further: globalnetworkinitiative.org/gni-submissi...

Interesting long post from @techethicsltd.bsky.social on the challenges of misinformation “The Avalanche of Misinformation: Why Good Actors Must Do More” #TechEthics #PeaceTech

"what has the EU ever done for us..." 😉 ⚡73% in 🇪🇺 say membership has benefitted their country Facts to have in mind when your local populist commentator comes with "we all know citizens are fed up with the EU" narrative... (versus 11% in Best For 🇬🇧 survey saying "Brexit has been a success’) 👇

🤔 How does polarisation shape our societies? Any thoughts on the matter? Enter the ActEU video contest! You have until 9 November to tell us about your vision of democracy and maybe win an invitation to the high-level ActEU project conference in Brussels🇧🇪 More 👉 tinyurl.com/ActEUContest

New evidence shows AI’s promise for peace processes — but without steering, it could drive us toward peril. techandsocialcohesion.substack.com/p/ai-hope-or...

Insightful 3️⃣ year Digital Services Act anniversary analysis by @algorithmwatch.org The focus on data access is essential for science and (civil) society #DSA algorithmwatch.org/en/birthday-...

I think many of us felt that social media algorithms made things worse following the violence a couple weeks ago. Here's what I think went wrong and what to do about it. www.betterconflictbulletin.org/p/the-case-f...

Only a few seats left 📣 Join our crash course on Oct 17 to learn how social media is shaping democracy - and what you can do about it. Register here👇🏽 bit.ly/4koID8j

An intense week at #UNGA80. No doubt these are difficult times, but in spite of headwinds, multilateralism remains essential, and I am convinced of our capacity to reform and successfully overcome challenges together.

💡 How can we ensure that #AI strengthens rather than undermines our #democracies? Join ECNL & Make.org for a webinar on aligning AI with democratic values. 📅 Oct 14 | 14:00–15:30 CET ✏️ Secure your free spot today here: us02web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

📢 DSA, data access: What? When? How? A unique opportunity to hear directly from the European Commission on the new rules for data access... and clear your doubts! 2 October, 14:30–15:30 CEST with João Vinagre, JRC, European Commission. 🔗 us06web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...