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Guest column by Sofia Nerbrand
Today, the truth of false statements on the Internet is drowned. People with different perceptions and opinions come together on different islands in the network, reinforce each other's beliefs and try to bring down their opponents with posts, bravos and divisions.
It does not just happen spontaneously between people. Powerful interest groups and states have considerable resources for information warfare. The Kremlin undermines democracy in Russia through a massive propaganda apparatus in Russian. Channels such as Russia Today and Sputnik News broadcast Russian politics and images of the world in several languages abroad to provide an alternative to the "Western News Agenda".
We also see examples of the flawless propaganda war in the West. US President Donald Trump for his fight against "false news" and "institutions" such as CNN and the New York Times.
The assassination of Saudi journalist and dissident Jamal Khashoggi at the Istanbul consulate showed the world that the country was ready to kill people who say wrong things. The murder of poisons by the Skripal father and daughter in Russia sends the same clear message: going into exile does not guarantee survival.
The goal is of course to silence people. Gladly before saying and writing things publicly.
But it is not only the states that consolidate their power, whether internally or internally. Putin, for example, sponsors the nationalist movement in Europe. In St. Petersburg, Swedish Nazis who make weapons seek to lend money to the national collection The Pens.
The symbiosis between alternative media and nationalist parties in different countries is also becoming increasingly evident. An image of common reality and a vision of vision dominate all these bubbles. "Mass immigration", Muslims and multiculturalism are the biggest threats.
Here Sweden comes on the scene. The ISD organization, which is working to map and fight against extremism, has been studying the Swedish elections for the Civil Emergency Agency in conjunction with the London School of Economics. Their report shows that the foreign power has not had a significant impact on the Swedish elections, although the roles of the Russian networks reinforce the history of a declining country. The alternative right in Sweden does not cooperate with his opinions abroad to such extent.
On the other hand, Sweden has become an important platform on the international scene where nationalist groups hold that the Swedish model no longer works. Car fires, terrorism and the refugee crisis dominate Sweden's image. The goal is to make Sweden smile and lose its political glory.
Nobody in the global connected city of today avoids the bloody and deeply alarming war of information. Everyone must therefore decide whether to close an island or build bridges for better understanding, synergies and diversity.
The choice is yours.
Sofia Nerbrand is President of the Bertil Ohlin Institute Liberal Foundation.
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