Welcome to the Countering Disinformation Guide

This resource combines the collective experience of organizations on the front lines of combatting disinformation globally. This living project provides an outline of what’s being done to address the challenge in key areas and a searchable inventory of the organizations around the world engaged in making the digital landscape safe for democracy.

Effective democracies require that citizens have access to accurate and impartial electoral and political information. Disinformation campaigns spread cynicism, distort political processes and hinder citizens’ ability to make sound political decisions. Together we seek to identify what works, and expand the community engaged in this effort.

Disinformation has long been a challenge to democracy. The digital age necessitates a renewed commitment and fresh urgency to match the scale, speed, and pervasiveness of online information threats. Meaningful access to a healthy information environment is integral to the functioning of free, rights-respecting societies; as such, countering disinformation and promoting information integrity are necessary priorities for ensuring democracy can thrive globally in the next century and beyond. 

Countering Disinformation: The definitive guide to promoting information integrity (aka the Countering Disinformation Guide) identifies key topics that should drive disinformation and information integrity research and programming going forward, and includes an inventory of actions and interventions from around the world.

About CEPPS

Established in 1995, the Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening (CEPPS) pools the expertise of three international organizations dedicated to democratic development: the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), the International Republican Institute (IRI), and the National Democratic Institute (NDI). CEPPS has a 25-year track record of collaboration and leadership in democracy, human rights, and governance support, learning from experience, and adopting new approaches and tools based on the ever-evolving technological landscape. 

As mission driven, non-profit democracy organizations, IFES, IRI, and NDI differ from many development actors by maintaining long-term relationships with political parties, election management bodies, parliaments, civil society organizations, and democracy activists. 

Through this work, IFES, IRI, and NDI: 

  • Promote meaningful participation of all citizens in their political systems, including women, youth, and other traditionally marginalized groups. 
  • Harness the comparative advantages of media and technology to promote citizen understanding and engagement and transparent political competition. 
  • Support meaningful transition processes that establish positive precedents for effective democratic governance. 
  • Promote the integrity of elections as a sustainable vehicle for peacefully and democratically choosing leaders. 
  • Facilitate the ability of elected political actors to fulfill their responsibilities to citizens through better governance practices. 
  • Promote competitive and representative multi-party political systems. 
  • Ensure respect for the application of impartial legal frameworks and compliance by political actors

Authors

This Guide was authored by Daniel Arnaudo, Bret Barrowman, Julia Brothers, Lisa Reppell, Victoria Scott, Amy Studdart, Kip Wainscott, and Vera Zakem.

Acknowledgement

We thank Sef Ashiagbor, Gina Chirillo, Ebie Dupont, Alberto Fernandez, Shelby Grossman, Luie Tito F. Guia, Philip Howard, Nina Jankowicz, Alyson Kozma, Kate Krueger, Jerry Lavery, Arturo Castillo Loza, Rebecca Mackinnon, Molly Middlehurst, Catherine Morris, Sarah Oh, Alina Potts, Bret Schafer, Rakesh Sharma, Erica Shein, Bjarte Tørå, Natalie Trisilla, Chad Vickery, and Anastasia Wibawa for their contributions as peer-reviewers to this Guide. 

We also thank Otito Greg-Obi, Manuel Wally and Internews for their significant contribution to this Guide.

This Guide is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The opinions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.