- Topic
Disinformation
Misinformation · Fake news · Regulation
Disinformation and misinformation are widely seen as a major threat to democracy. But the evidence shows that their reach and effects are far smaller than the public debate suggests. I study what false information does, who people blame for it, and how to regulate it. I also show that alarm about disinformation has costs of its own: it raises support for restricting speech online, which can weaken the foundations of the democratic public arena.
For journalists and regulators: how big the problem is, how to report on it without overstating it, and how to regulate it without causing other harms.
Selected publications
- Disinformation and the Structural Transformations of the Public Arena
Disinformation reaches few people. The real challenge is how digital media redistribute attention and reach in the public arena.
- Negative Downstream Effects of Alarmist Disinformation Discourse
Alarmist coverage of disinformation raised its perceived threat and support for restricting speech online. Balanced coverage lowered the perceived threat without these costs.
- Foundational Questions for the Regulation of Digital Disinformation
Responsible regulation weighs the risks of disinformation against the risks of regulating it, which takes evidence on its reach, effects, and mechanisms.
- Political Disinformation
An overview of the debate on “fake news”, bots, and deep fakes. It separates individual, collective, and discursive harms, and calls for research that puts conceptual clarity and evidence before alarm.
Recent publications 9
2026 2
2025 1
- Ja, Digitalisierung birgt Risiken – Regulierung aber auchAndreas Jungherr and Thomas Hess
2024 3
- Blame and Obligation: The Importance of Libertarianism and Political Orientation in the Public Assessment of Disinformation in the United StatesAdrian Rauchfleisch and Andreas Jungherr
- Foundational Questions for the Regulation of Digital DisinformationAndreas Jungherr
- Negative Downstream Effects of Alarmist Disinformation Discourse: Evidence from the United StatesAndreas Jungherr and Adrian Rauchfleisch