Youth Civic Engagement in the Era of Disinformation. Fake News and Electoral Participation in Romania and the European Union
Cuvinte cheie:
youth, civic participation, fake news, disinformation, digital democracy, European Union, RomaniaRezumat
In an age defined by profound digital transformations, the civic and political engagement of young people has become an essential topic for the health of democracy. This paper explores the relationship between youth civic participation and the phenomenon of disinformation, focusing on both the Romanian and European contexts. As young people are the primary users of digital media, their exposure to fake news and manipulative content can significantly shape their perceptions of politics, institutions, and electoral participation.
The paper combines a theoretical analysis of civic engagement, media education, and disinformation with an assessment of public policies and recent data provided by Eurobarometer, the European Commission, and the National Institute of Statistics. The findings highlight the need for extended media literacy education and for strengthening the dialogue between young citizens and democratic institutions.
Referințe
ActiveWatch. (2023). Fără ură pe net – Program de educație media și civică. https://www.activewatch.ro
Bennett, W. L. (2012). The personalization of politics: Political identity, social media, and changing patterns of participation. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 644(1), 20–39. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002716212451428
Castells, M. (2009). Communication power. Oxford University Press.
Council of Europe. (2017). Information disorder: Toward an interdisciplinary framework for research and policymaking (C. Wardle & H. Derakhshan, Authors). https://edoc.coe.int/en/media/7495-information-disorder-toward-an-interdisciplinary-framework-for-research-and-policymaking.html
Dobrescu, P., & Țugui, A. (2021). Dezinformarea digitală în România: Percepții și impact electoral. Revista Română de Comunicare și Relații Publice, 23(3), 45–60. https://doi.org/10.21018/RRCRP.2021.3.4
European Commission. (2018). Tackling online disinformation: A European approach. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52018DC0236
European Commission. (2019). EU youth strategy 2019–2027. https://youth.europa.eu/strategy_en
European Commission. (2022). EU code of practice on disinformation. https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/code-practice-disinformation
European Commission. (2023). Youth and digital democracy report. https://commission.europa.eu
European Democracy Monitor. (2024). Youth, trust and elections in Europe. European University Institute.
Eurobarometer. (2024). Young Europeans and political participation. European Commission. https://europa.eu/eurobarometer
Friedrich Ebert Stiftung. (2023). Tinerii și democrația în România contemporană. https://romania.fes.de
Guess, A., Nagler, J., & Tucker, J. (2019). Less than you think: Prevalence and predictors of fake news dissemination on Facebook. Science Advances, 5(1), eaau4586. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aau4586
Hart, R. (1992). Children’s participation: From tokenism to citizenship. UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre.
Hoskins, B., & Janmaat, J. G. (2019). Education, democracy and inequality: Political engagement and citizenship education in Europe. Palgrave Macmillan.
Institutul Național de Statistică. (2021). Participarea la vot în România 2020. https://insse.ro
Lewandowsky, S., Ecker, U. K. H., & Cook, J. (2020). Beyond misinformation: Understanding and coping with the “post-truth” era. Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 6(4), 353–369. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jarmac.2017.07.008
Norris, P. (2011). Democratic deficit: Critical citizens revisited. Cambridge University Press.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2023). Civic engagement among youth in OECD countries. https://doi.org/10.1787/civic-engagement-youth-2023-en
Oxford Dictionaries. (2016). Word of the year 2016: Post-truth. https://languages.oup.com/word-of-the-year/2016/
Pew Research Center. (2022). News consumption across social media platforms. https://www.pewresearch.org
Putnam, R. D. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. Simon & Schuster.
UNESCO. (2021). Media and information literacy curriculum for teachers. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377065
Wardle, C., & Derakhshan, H. (2017). Information disorder: Toward an interdisciplinary framework for research and policymaking. Council of Europe.
Youth Myth Busters Project. (2021). European recommendations for increasing civic and political engagement of youth, including combating fake news. Erasmus+ Programme. https://www.youthmythbusters.eu
