Gerald Fleischmann — the spokesperson for 2 former Austrian leaders — warns that democracy is in peril from on-line influencers covertly spreading disinformation.
Gerald Fleischmann, former spokesperson of Austrian chancellors Sebastian Kurz and Karl Nehammer, has revealed a brand new guide, Codes of Extremists, that explores disinformation and the have an effect on of extremism on Europe’s balance.
The communications supervisor has labored for the Austrian Other folks’s Celebration (ÖVP) since 2007 — changing into a key consultant and the lead spokesperson for chancellors Kurz and Nehammer.
His new guide explores the ways and rhetoric of extremists around the political spectrum to know the way excessive ideologies threaten Eu democracy.
In an interview with Euronews, Fleischmann mentioned how Germany and Austria may just toughen democracy, the risk of on-line influencers in spreading excessive concepts and what left-wing and right-wing extremists have in not unusual with Islamists.
Euronews: What will have to Germany and Austria do to offer protection to democracy?
Gerald Fleischmann: To begin with, I feel it’s essential to proceed the trouble that this guide undertakes — to convey transparency, train other folks, and spotlight that many of those influencers are in reality participants or so-called “witting brokers” (that means they deliberately paintings inside of an intelligence operation) running for international forces.
On the similar time, I imagine it can be crucial to toughen conventional media in Austria, Germany, Switzerland, and throughout Europe. Thus far, conventional media has performed an crucial function in upholding democracy through making a shared public house with not unusual laws and a type of collective id.
With the decline of conventional media — partially pushed through those radical teams — this shared public house is being misplaced. Key phrases listed below are “echo chambers” and “clear out bubbles.”
Younger persons are changing into indifferent from conventional media, and lots of not eat it in any respect. There are two key problems right here. Originally, it’s placing that every one social media platforms originate from The us, Russia, or Asia (akin to China), however no longer a unmarried one comes from Europe.
This can be a political factor. Secondly, conventional media faces the problem of transitioning into trendy, virtual codecs — social media with video-based content material. That is referred to as “social journalism.”
Euronews: What threat comes from influencers inside of excessive actions?
Fleischmann: Many of those influencers goal younger other folks, presenting themselves as advisors or mentors. It’s no longer in an instant obvious, once in a while for a very long time, that they’re in reality participants of organisations or so-called “witting” or “unwitting brokers.”
In reality, many of those influencers perform the usage of intelligence company strategies — some even relationship again to the KGB generation.
The sort of strategies, recognized in intelligence jargon because the “Firehose of Falsehood,” works through flooding a society with incorrect information. In a Western, liberal society, other folks eat media in a undeniable method.
Intelligence businesses discuss with the overall inhabitants as “sleepwalkers.” Those sleepwalkers are skilled thru consistent publicity to false knowledge, in order that after all, society not is aware of what is right and what’s false.
That is the objective of international forces — on this case, basically Russia, but in addition radical actions from the Arab global. The total purpose is to persuade a brand new era of younger other folks and, thru that, destabilise Western democracy.
Euronews: What do left-wing extremists, right-wing extremists, and Islamists have in not unusual?
Fleischmann: So, within the guide that we’re discussing — the only I wrote — I give an explanation for a minimum of seven commonalities. The primary is antisemitism. Each right-wing extremists and Islamists proportion this.
We’ve noticed this not too long ago within the context of Palestinian demonstrations, the place they’ve joined forces with demonstrations supporting the terrorist organisation Hamas. Antisemitism exists in many various paperwork and impacts all 3 teams — no longer all participants, however sure segments inside of those teams.
Then there’s a type of anti-imperialism directed in opposition to Europe and the US, in addition to a basic anti-globalisation stance.
They talk of a world conspiracy, of “globalists,” and identical narratives. Any other key feature is subversion — those actors perform covertly, with out other folks noticing. Moreover, all of them showcase a undeniable phobia in opposition to their fighters — they painting their adversaries as having some roughly “illness.”
For instance, they discuss “Russophobia” for any individual essential of Putin, “Islamophobia” for any individual who opposes Islamist ideologies, and identical labels in different spaces. There also are shared parts of what some name “gender insanity” and different divisive narratives. A couple of extra not unusual characteristics come with polarisation — fostering department as an alternative of discussion —radical rhetoric and movements, once in a while bordering on violence, and resistance to regulations.
Those are one of the most shared traits. Proper-wing extremists, left-wing extremists, and Islamists all have those in not unusual, and their movements are directed in opposition to Western liberal democracy.
Euronews: Russian disinformation campaigns advertise the AfD, which has additionally been recommended through Elon Musk. How do you view this marketing campaign?
Fleischmann: Russian disinformation campaigns obviously purpose to destabilise Europe. They use the process I discussed previous — the “Firehose of Falsehood.”
This technique follows a idea referred to as “fuzzy common sense,” which is particularly designed to undermine the democratic cloth of Europe. It’s achieved subversively, that means covertly, with out other folks realising it. Influencers fake to be any individual they don’t seem to be.
No one is meant to note. This can be a way of subversion. By contrast, there’s no subversion coming from the US. One can not accuse elected US presidents or eccentric billionaires of performing subversively — they do the entirety overtly.
Everybody sees it. They play with open playing cards. This guide explicitly offers with subversive forces that perform covertly, with out other folks realising it.
And the objective of the guide is to make this clear — to turn: Who’re those other folks? Who’s at the back of them? And what strategies do they use to achieve our more youthful era? Russia isn’t just the usage of right-wing extremists but in addition left-wing extremists.
The Codes of Extremists through Gerald Fleischmann used to be launched on 1 February 2025.