Mediterranean Digital Media Observatory (MedDMO)

🇪🇺🗳️ 𝗝𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗱: our new cross-country analysis of #politicaladvertising during the 2024 #EUelections examines:

– 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 & 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗼𝗳 #Meta & #Google on #CoP / #CoC commitments
– 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 & 𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝘆 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 during the run up to the #elections

👉 loom.ly/i7JDYiY

False Narratives Analysis of Russian Drone Incidents in Romanian Airspace

🚨 Last Saturday, a Russian #drone violated Romanian airspace, prompting Romanian authorities to issue #ROAlert warnings and urging the local population to seek shelter.

👉 Funky.ong @brodhub.bsky.social examined four primary false #narratives that emerged following the incident: loom.ly/UU7700k

Trump’s Diplomacy and Summer Weather Catalyse Disinformation in August

⏳🪑🪑🪑 Have you seen the image of European leaders submissively waiting in a #WhiteHouse corridor for a meeting w/ #Trump? Chances are you have: according to data gathered by EDMO, the #AI generated #fake was the most viral piece of #disinformation detected in August.

👉 All insights: loom.ly/vg2qxfY

💬 @tommasocanetta.bsky.social notes that the #Palestinian side is also actively spreading #disinformation; however, "it's clear that right now we are seeing more disinformation coming from the pro #Israel side of things."

🗞️ Read the full DW report: www.dw.com/en/israel-pr...

EDMO’s July 2025 brief is out: migration is now the top disinfo theme in Europe (11%, record high).
Climate change misinformation also surged, while misinformation about Ukraine dropped.
🔗 meddmo.eu/eu-migration...

The Role Of The EDMO Hubs

The EDMO national and multinational hubs are crucial for making a practical difference in terms of media literacy in Europe. EDMOeu has built a trusted forum for knowledge exchange and networking among the media literacy experts in the national and multinational hubs.

New from @edmo-eu.bsky.social: “Platform Datasets: Challenges, Insights, and Examples for Researchers under Article 40 of the DSA.”
A must-read for researchers on what data VLOPSEs collect, how it’s structured, and its limits for studying harms.

New MedDMO report: Disinformation campaigns are pushing “miracle cures” like apple cider vinegar for weight loss, chlorine dioxide (toxic bleach) as medicine, and even celebrity-backed vet drugs for cancer. These false claims target vulnerable people + undermine real healthcare.
🔗 bit.ly/4fSHC7X

Read the 50th EDMO Fact-Checking Brief: From Spain to Poland, Disinformation on Migrants Overflows Europe in July

Our Monthly #FactChecking Brief Nr. 5️⃣0️⃣ is out! A sincere thank you to all members of the EDMO FC Network across #Europe: it is their commitment + crucial work that enables our team to monitor and analyse latest #disinformation dynamics in a cross-border, long-term perspective.

👉 loom.ly/Q97Xt9o

Deepfake scams are spreading fast on Facebook in Greece.
Scammers use AI to impersonate public figures and push fake investments or “miracle” cures.
Read the full report here:
meddmo.eu/greece-disin...

NEW: Our Media Plurality Report 2024 is out!
We take a close look at the state of news media in Greece, Cyprus & Malta.
🗞️ Main media market characteristics
🔒 How free is the press?
🎙️ Are all voices being heard?
👉 Full report here: meddmo.eu/meddmo-media...

Israel-Iran War: For the First Time AI-Generated Content Leads the Charge of False News

🚨 Published today, our 49th monthly brief shows an unprecedented use of #ArtificialIntelligence in the context of the 12-day #Israel-#Iran war, contributing to a record of #AI content registered by EDMO.

👉 All insights, based on 1.502 #factchecking articles produced in June: loom.ly/VjObSRg

In Malta, standing up for justice is being twisted into an act of extremism. When civil society protested against Bill 125, a reform restricting citizens’ access to justice, the government and its media responded by branding activists as partisan “extremists.”
meddmo.eu/malta-report...

MEP Feidias Panagiotou’s podcast has featured several misleading takes on the Russia-Ukraine war, including calling it a “civil war” rather than an international invasion. Our latest report examines some of the most troubling claims made on his show. 🔗 bit.ly/4kwv9HI

🇺🇳 Missed us at this year's #UN @intgovforum.bsky.social in Lillestrøm? Re-watch our session: loom.ly/kuB8TyY

#EU Rules on #Disinformation: Who Are Friends or Foes?
🎙️ @goripaula.bsky.social @mikkovsalo.bsky.social @nordishub.bsky.social @benmshultz.com + more. Thanks to everyone who joined us!

A new report from Fact Check Cyprus reveals how false claims about Ukraine are being used to spread disinformation and weaken Western support.
Read the full report here:
meddmo.eu/cyprus-disin...

Our hub supported two key reports by @edmo-eu.bsky.social, which drew insights from Malta, Cyprus, and Greece.
📘 Report 1: How EU countries tackle disinformation – legal, policy & media responses across 27 member states.
📗 Report 2: Who spreads disinformation?

meddmo.eu/meddmos-cont...

💵 Despite #Facebook's policies against #hatespeech and #Holocaust denial, the platfoms’ #monetization #algorithms promote deceptive #AI #Holocaust content by recommending it to users interested in historical topics: read the new investigation by @provereno.bsky.social at loom.ly/uJXLvN4.

"Don't believe everything you see online": a message you'd expect to hear from the community working to counter #disinformation – but also from those 𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 it? 1/6

🧵 Read the thread below or head straight to our latest #factchecking brief: loom.ly/J1RMb_c

Meta’s Failure to Curb Digital Scams: The Alarming Spread of Fraud on Facebook and Instagram in the EU

The widespread circulation of #scams on #Facebook and #Instagram highlights the limitations of #Meta's current #contentmoderation and #advertising review systems, write @thanossitistas.bsky.social & @cianellaaa.bsky.social in the latest EDMO investigation: loom.ly/nxDJeqs

Join MedDMO & the Broadcasting Authority of Malta on June 17 (13:00–14:00 MT) for a webinar on disinformation, media literacy & fact-checking in Malta, featuring insights from local experts.
🔗 Register here: meddmo.eu/webinar-disi...

Clickbait headlines and posts can be misleading. They’re often made to trigger strong emotions and get shared fast. But life is complex, and so is the news. A headline can’t tell the whole story. Share this postcard with someone you care about and learn more at: meddmo.eu/be-online-sm...

Disinformation often triggers strong emotions. It can spread quickly when people react with outrage, excitement, or shock. But just because something is viral doesn't mean it's true.
Share this postcard with someone you care about and learn more at: meddmo.eu/be-online-sm...

A new report by CERTH shows how disinformation shaped the 2024 EU elections in Greece, Cyprus & Malta — using fake news and AI-generated content to spread false claims on voting, LGBTQ+ rights, migration, and the Ukraine war.
🔗 meddmo.eu/greece-europ...

Our latest work dives deep into the real-world footprint of disinformation across Greece, Cyprus, and Malta, analyzing how false narratives circulated on social media, news websites, and mainstream outlets, and how platforms responded after fact-checking.
👉 meddmo.eu/mapping-disi...

Over 50 million Europeans will be asked to #vote this Sunday in #elections in #Poland, #Portugal & #Romania. What appeared on their screens recently?

🔍 Based on 1.551 articles by 33 orgs part of the EDMO #factchecking network, take a look at recent #disinformation dynamics in 🇵🇱🇵🇹🇷🇴&🇪🇺: loom.ly/fOQ68os

#BeOnlineSmart – a new #medialiteracy campaign by EDMO and its 14 EDMO Hubs was launched!
Check here👉 meddmo.eu/be-online-sm...

Since Donald Trump’s second inauguration in January 2025, a wave of false and misleading claims has spread across Greek social media — many amplified by Trump himself, Elon Musk, or U.S. officials.
Read the full report here:
meddmo.eu/greece-repor...

How the European far-right is using AI-generated content to engage voters

Far-right actors are increasingly using generative #AI: @cianellaaa.bsky.social w/ insights by @claesdevreese.bsky.social @jleadermaynard.bsky.social @salvatore-romano.bsky.social @demagog.org.pl @facta.news @newtral.es @pagellapolitica.it @aiforensics.org @thejournal.ie + others.

👉 loom.ly/ZujPo_8

In just 100 days, the Trump admin has gutted key U.S. defenses against disinfo—canceling 400+ NSF grants on misinformation & AI, and shutting down the State Dept’s main office tracking foreign influence. Russia, China & Iran now face fewer checks.
Read more here:
meddmo.eu/us-anti-disi...