A 2-day hybrid workshop with experts and scholars whose research captures the state of authoritarian information manipulation and dissemination around the world. The workshop is designed to promote future collaboration and research that informs the dissemination of authoritarianism, and ways to counter it.

The rise of repressive and authoritarian “hybrid regimes” is considered among the greatest threats to democracy today. Information suppression and manipulation is a crucial tool that authoritarian regimes and authoritarian populist actors use to spread narratives that undermine democratic institutions. This is not limited to domestic politics as digital technologies are providing authoritarian states the tools to penetrate ‘healthy’ democracies and transcend their authoritarian politics to reach people across national borders. This includes the emigrant diaspora groups residing in democratic countries but originating in authoritarian nations. The transnationalisation of authoritarian politics and narratives enabled by digital technologies is posing significant challenges to the trustworthiness of democratic processes and institutions.

The workshop aims to provide new conceptual, methodological and empirical insights into the mechanisms by which authoritarian regimes and actors undermine trustworthiness in democratic processes and institutions of other countries. The focus of the conference is to learn from different applied conceptual frameworks and methodologies to shed empirical light on the (digital) strategies used to manipulate democratic narratives, attitudes, and politics. The conference will inform the design of future research and provide much-needed understanding of the complex dissemination of authoritarianism by governments, non-state actors, state-sponsored actors, and political parties/organisations across the world. The workshop especially aims to examine the complexities surrounding the transnational propagation of misinformation and disinformation, investigating its impact on societies, diasporas, politics, and cultures worldwide. We encourage contributions that shed light on this phenomenon across various disciplines and regional contexts. The proliferation and (mis)use of new technologies, directed at manipulating public sentiment, open up new avenues for interdisciplinary investigations into the transnational and international dimensions. Consequently, we pose inquiries into how state actors, those influenced or sponsored by states, and non-state entities manipulate public opinion and sentiments in other countries via digital technologies, polarise societies, and undermine trust in democratic institutions. While extant research has predominantly focused on China and Russia, our conference seeks to glean insights from well-established case studies, including their methodologies, to broaden the scope of research into lesser-explored contexts, where authoritarianism and transnational repression are more subtle.

For inquiries and submissions, please contact Hasnan Bachtiar at hasnan.bachtiar@deakin.edu.au

We look forward to your contributions and the vibrant discussions ahead.