Disinformation in the City Brief #2: Thematic Areas and Impact

This brief is part of a series of three published as part of the Disinformation in the City project, led by the Melbourne Centre for Cities at the University of Melbourne in partnership with the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF). 

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Disinformation impacts cities. In extraordinary times of rapid information-sharing, distrust, and disruption, cities are on the front line. Local authorities are the level of government most accessible to the people, and are tasked with leading communities through ever more complex societal and global challenges.

Disinformation campaigns in public policy are mobilized to elicit a desired outcome, whether it be in healthcare, climate change, immigration, attitudes toward gender diversity, or another policy area. In this context, “campaigns” refer to organized efforts to spread false information deliberately created to harm, mislead, or evoke an emotional response in a target audience. Such an effort may be limited to a single element, such as a manufactured photo, or it may include a variety of mechanisms used over an extended period.

Responding to a disinformation campaign must be considered in relation to the broader theme or subject it addresses. “Medical disinformation” concerns false or misleading information specifically related to, for example, medicine, vaccinations, or health care. Similarly, “climate disinformation” relates to false or misleading information about climate science, climate change policy, and sustainability planning. And “political disinformation” refers to false or misleading information intended to undermine the integrity of government, governance systems, and/or policies.

Such overarching topics can be labeled a disinformation campaign’s “impact area”, the governance and public policy domain that a campaign is designed to influence. One disinformation campaign, however, often has multiple impact areas. Disinformation aimed at disrupting climate change action may also seek to undermine a political party, government, or policy agenda.