Respuestas reguladireas europeas a la desinformación. Atenci´ón especial a las campañas electorales

Abstract

There is increasing concern in Europe about interference in political campaigns: sometimes because of the disinformation or misinformation that some “interested parties” or “foreign entities” promote, sometimes because laws do not take into account the new media and Social Network environments. In this paper, we will address three aspects in particular: Clarification regarding the nature of disinformation (Is it a new phenomenon deriving from ICT?). Guarantees of the electoral campaign processes in Europe (Are laws and electoral bodies ready to handle technical interferences? Are the current regulations valid?). Critical review of the European responses from the Law, legislative initiatives (EU, Germany, France.. ) related to Twitter or Facebook. We consider that a key issue –and part of the solution to combat disinformation- is the attribution of sources (Bel & Corredoira, Cotino, Moretón) from the viewpoint of guarantees, primarily of the right to communicate contained in Art. 19 of UDHR and Spanish Constitution which enshrines the freedom of “truthful information” (news) and also of “ideas” and “opinions”.