From Online Battlefield to Loss of Trust?
The boundaries between the “online” and “offline” world have blurred. This is especially the case for today’s youth, for whom cell-phones, social media and digital technology have become an integral part of their daily lives.
From Online Battlefield to Loss of Trust? sheds further light on young people’s consumption of information and disinformation. The report is based on research conducted among 18-24 year olds residing in Central and Southeastern Europe for the purposes of Countering Disinformation in the V4 Region: Mapping Needs, Building Capacity and Generating Civic Activism, a project that’s financially supported by the US Department of State.
Having collected unique qualitative data from focus groups in eight European countries, the report also seeks to understand the complexities of the lives and thinking of today’s youth and its impact upon the political and social realities of our societies.
What are the key findings?
- A general distrust towards media has been expressed in all countries
- Domestic media are mostly perceived as biased and under political influence
- Young people are aware of disinformation but do not fully understand its scope
- Distrust in state institutions tends to lead to passivity
- Friends and family remain some of the strongest influencers and opinion-shapers
- The decline of Facebook is linked to annoyance by ads and parents’ presence
- In addition to chatting, Messenger is increasingly used for information sharing
- Instagram is perceived as private and intimate
- YouTube is mostly watched for entertainment and education purposes
Would you like to find out more? Read the publication below.
From Online Battlefield to Loss of Trust by GLOBSEC on Scribd
