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The International Discourses and Governance of Fake News

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  • Ric Neo

Abstract

Since the 2016 US presidential elections, fake news and misinformation have been recognised as a major problem of the modern, connected world. However, this increased salience has been accompanied by an expansion in voices articulating different approaches towards the issue. This article presents an examination of the range of societal discourses of fake news advanced by four types of hegemonic societal actors: international organisations, states, civil society and large business interests, focusing on the following. First, how do existing discourses conceive of the nature of fake news and the societal objects it threatens? Next, what are the solutions proposed? Through an analysis of policy interventions and texts, this article presents a taxonomy of the current most salient understandings of fake news, showing that present conceptualisations of the issue can be categorised into three competing discourses: discourses constructing fake news as an existential threat, a political problem or a minor issue. The analysis highlights important variations in how different regimes conceptualise fake news, revealing how authoritarian governments have sought to construct fake news as a security threat in order to justify constraints on free speech. On the flipside, leaving fake news completely unregulated leads to conflict‐of‐interest issues and an accountability gulf implicating ‘Big Tech’. This article calls for more analytical focus on the discourses of fake news, which constitutes a significant but under‐examined factor in comprehending the long‐term consequences of the problem of fake news.

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  • Ric Neo, 2021. "The International Discourses and Governance of Fake News," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 12(2), pages 214-228, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:glopol:v:12:y:2021:i:2:p:214-228
    DOI: 10.1111/1758-5899.12958
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Alemanno, Alberto, 2018. "How to Counter Fake News? A Taxonomy of Anti-Fake News Approaches," HEC Research Papers Series 1257, HEC Paris, revised 20 Apr 2018.
    2. Susan Morgan, 2018. "Fake news, disinformation, manipulation and online tactics to undermine democracy," Journal of Cyber Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 3(1), pages 39-43, January.
    3. Anthony Perl & Michael Howlett & M. Ramesh, 2018. "Policy-making and truthiness: Can existing policy models cope with politicized evidence and willful ignorance in a “post-fact” world?," Policy Sciences, Springer;Society of Policy Sciences, vol. 51(4), pages 581-600, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Iglesias Keller, Clara, 2021. "Don’t Shoot the Message: Regulating Disinformation Beyond Content," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 18(99), pages 486-515.

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