Report on Conspiracy Theories in the Online Environment and the Counter-Disinformation Ecosystem in Poland

Repo on Conspi acy Theo ies
in he Online En i onmen and
he Coun e -Disin o ma ion
Ecosys em in Poland
Elżbie a D ążkiewicz
Resea ching Eu ope, Digi alisa ion and Conspi acy Theo ies (REDACT)
ISBN: 978-91-8104-786-8
REDACT is suppo ed by he CHANSE ERA-NET Co- und p og amme, which has ecei ed unding om
he Eu opean Union’s Ho izon 2020 Resea ch and Inno a ion P og amme, unde G an Ag eemen
no. 101004509. The esea ch on Poland and Slo akia is unded by he Slo ak Academy o Sciences.
Imp in
Published by REDACT No embe 2025
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Con en s
Execu i e Summa y
1. His o y and Con ex o Conspi acy Theo ies in Poland
2. Polish Online En i onmen and Online Conspi acis En i onmen
3. Case S udy: G ea Replacemen Conspi acy Theo ies in Poland
4. Case S udy: An i-Gende Ideology Conspi acy Theo ies
5. The Coun e -Disin o ma ion Sec o in Poland
6. Expanded Key Findings
7. Expanded Recommenda ions
Re e ences
4
6
8
9
11
13
15
17
18
3
Execu i e Summa y
REDACT P ojec Summa y
The REDACT p ojec analysed how digi alisa ion shapes he o m, con en and consequences o
conspi acy heo ies, including online sociali y and o line ac ions and e ec s. Ra he han seeing
digi alisa ion as a p ocess ha has uni e sal ou comes, o conspi acy heo ies as he same o e
space and ime, REDACT conside ed online conspi acy heo ies and coun e -disin o ma ion
o ganisa ions in a selec ion o Eu opean coun ies. The p ojec in ol ed a eam o 14 esea che s
analysing da a om Wes e n Eu ope, Cen al Eu ope, he Bal ics and he Balkans.
Me hodology
Using keywo ds om a ange o conspi acy heo y opics, he p ojec ga he ed 6 million pos s om
Twi e /X, Facebook, Ins ag am and Teleg am be ween 2019–2024. The esea che s used a mix u e
o digi al me hods and close eading s a egies o analyse he da ase s. Each egional eam also
conduc ed e hnog aphic in e iews wi h key membe s o coun e -disin o ma ion o ganisa ions
ac oss Eu ope. Poli ical, social and economic con ex s we e b ough o bea on all o hese me hods
and indings.
Abou he Au ho
Elzbie a D azkiewicz (Associa e P o esso , Lund Uni e si y) has been esea ching conspi acy heo ies
and con lic s o e u h o almos a decade. She also has ex ensi e expe ience in s udying s a e and
non-s a e o ganisa ions, NGOs and ci ic mo emen s. Cu en ly, she is leading se e al in e na ional
p ojec s on coun e ing disin o ma ion and c isis p epa edness.
Key Findings
• Conspi acismhasdeephis o ical oo s:Conspi acy heo ies a e e ol ing bu hey emain
ied o longs anding conce ns abou ex e nal and in e nal enemies and na ional iden i y and
so e eign y.
• Conspi acy hinkingo en e lec scomplexsocio-economicchangesa  heglobalandlocal
le elaswellas hehighlydi e seexpe ienceso  hosechanges.
• Conspi a o ialna a i eso en ecycleold opeswhileadap ing onewissues.
• Conspi acismampli iesna ionalismandpola isa ion:This makes public deba e mo e
emo ionally cha ged and in ac able.
• Conspi a o ialna a i esbecomepa o  hepoli icalmains eam: Once hese na a i es a e
mains eam, in e en ions a e almos impossible.
• G eyzonescomplica ein e en ion: Conspi acy heo ies a e no always exp essed explici ly,
making hem ha d o iden i y, egula e o coun e .
• Fo eignIn o ma ionManipula ionandIn e e ence(FIMI)andhomeg ownconspi acy
heo iesa ecloselylinked:O en exploi ing p e-exis ing ea s and using local ac o s o
sca emonge ing, hey mus be conside ed join ly.
4
• Thecoun e -disin o ma ionsec o  eliesp edominan lyonci ilsocie yo ganisa ions,which
a eunde undedandunde p essu e.
• E e ydayuse splayanimpo an  oleincoun e ingconspi acism:The Polish educa ion
sys em (bo h o mal and in o mal) is an un apped esou ce o suppo ing he igh agains
disin o ma ion and conspi acy heo ies.
Key Recommenda ions
1. Unde s and conspi acy heo ies as a unique o m o disin o ma ion: Conside wha makes
conspi acy heo ies ‘s ickie ’ han o he o ms o disin o ma ion.
2. Don’ use conspi acism o uel poli ical wa s: S and up agains he no malisa ion o
conspi acy heo ies in public discou se.
3. Don’ allow populis conspi acism o se he e ms o na ional deba es: Media neu ali y
does no mean ha we ha e o ole a e o ms o denialism, eiled acism, homophobia and
adicalisa ion. Resis clickbai .
4. C ea e socie y-cen ed solu ions: Don’ o e es ima e solu ions ocusing on echnology.
5. Disincen i ise online disin o ma ion: This equi es egula o s and pla o ms o wo k
oge he o he public good.
6. Look beyond social media: Conspi acy heo ies do no exis only in he online wo ld and
should be conside ed as pa o he la ge ecosys em.
7. Acknowledge ha jus as he p oblem o conspi acy heo ies is poli ical, so is he
coun e ing o disin o ma ion, which dese es suppo : Run na ionwide p og ammes o all
ages ha link c i ical li e acy skills o eal local and global issues (co up ion, heal h, his o y)
and mobilise us ed local ac o s ( eache s, doc o s, communi y leade s).
8. Regula e pla o ms wi h anspa ency and sensi i i y o local needs: Push pla o ms o
ine-g ained mode a ion da a, s onge Polish-language mode a ion eams, coope a ion wi h
egula o s and measu es ha disincen i ise disin o ma ion.
9. A oid hea y-handed censo ship; insis on due p ocess: Any legal measu es mus ha e clea
c i e ia, judicial o e sigh and swi , p opo iona e implemen a ion — anspa ency o e
sec e akedowns.
10. Design ailo ed, e idence-based esponses: Di e en conspi acy ypes (an i-gende
ideology, an i-mig an , an i-Uk aine, e c.) need di e en app oaches.
11. P o ec and s eng hen independen ins i u ions and jou nalism: Fund and legally
sa egua d public se ice media, in es iga i e ou le s, egula o s and public b oadcas e s o
ebuild us and p e en cap u e.
12. In es in ci ic capaci y and apid esponse: P o ide s able, mul i-yea unding o NGOs and
c ea e c oss-sec o , non-pa isan apid- esponse uni s o coo dina ed communica ions, ac -
checking and e idence-based explana ions.
5

1. His o y and Con ex o Conspi acy Theo ies in Poland
Cen al and Eas e n Eu opean spaces a e
o en desc ibed as he a che ypes o s ong
conspi a o ial cul u es. This is unde s andable
gi en he numbe o eal conspi acies expe ienced
by coun ies in he egion.1 In he case o Poland,
his includes ex e nal conspi acies, such as he
Ribben op-Molo o Pac , o he pos wa e o s
o S alin and his allies o ins all a communis ,
p o-Moscow egime in Poland. Bu while he ea
o he ex e nal enemy is s ong, he ea o he
in e nal ai o is pe haps he mos signi ican
di e ence be ween Eas e n and Wes e n
Eu opean conspi acism.2 This ope is pa icula ly
s ong in Poland. The Ta gowica Con ede a ion
o 1792 played a pi o al ole in gene a ing ea s
o in e nal eache y, making i an indispensable
pa o Polish poli ical li e. This pe cep ion was
consolida ed and complica ed du ing he 20 h
cen u y, pa icula ly du ing Wo ld Wa II. This
his o ical con ex is impo an because many
conspi acy heo ies in Poland oday u ilise his
ea o be ayal, o ins ance, in na a i es in which
p ominen poli icians a e accused o be aying
he na ion and o being puppe s in he hands o
o eign eli es.
The Polish con ex is also di e en om he Wes
in he lack o o e s igma isa ion o conspi acy
heo ies. In Wes e n Eu ope, he 1950s we e
pi o al o he delegi imisa ion o conspi acy
heo ies.3 In Cen al Eu ope, on he o he hand,
ha was a ime when conspi acy heo ies
we e in eg a ed in o o icial Communis Pa y
discou se. Communis p opaganda no only
included lies abou he s a e o he economy
and socie y, bu also was hea ily dependen on
an i-capi alis , an i-Wes conspi acy heo ies.
Sca emonge ing was an impo an pa o
communis ideology; ci izens we e encou aged
o s ay igilan and o wa ch ou o ai o s o
he s a e. Communis au ho i ies equen ly used
conspi acy heo ies o in luence he a mosphe e
in hei coun ies o jus i y hei own ac ions.
The e en s o Ma ch 1968 a e an example o his,
when, o jus i y he b u al c ackdown on s uden
p o es s and o push o a shi in poli ics,
he Communis Pa y u ilised well- ehea sed
an isemi ic conspi acy heo ies.
When he Solida i y mo emen inally
succeeded in 1989, suspicion owa ds he
s a e, eli es, o eign powe s and one ano he
was so eng ained i was ha d o o e come.
The poli ics o he 1990s we e in luenced by
he weaponisa ion o he lus a ion p ocess
and an u ge o e eal he u h abou he end
o communism. The ques ion o who among
poli icians and high-le el ci il se an s had
collabo a ed wi h communis in e io police
and se ed as in e nal o ex e nal agen s – and
lied abou i – was a d i ing o ce in he poli ics
o he e a, gene a ing suspicion and conspi acy
heo ies. This a mosphe e led o he collapse
o se e al go e nmen s, mos no ably Jan
Olszewski’s go e nmen in 1992. Conspi a o ial
in es iga ions conce ning communism and i s
dissolu ion con inue o shape con empo a y
poli ics. In pa icula , he conse a i e camp,
con inues o uel conspi acy heo ies conce ning
he Magdalenka alks and Round Table
Nego ia ions, as well as specula ion su ounding
Lech Wałęsa and his alleged conspi ing
agains he Solida i y mo emen . Acco ding o
F anciszek Czech and some o he expe s we
in e iewed o his p ojec , he mos p ominen
conspi acy heo ies in Poland conce n he end o
communism.4
While he Cen al and Eas e n Eu opean
conspi a o ial milieu is unique o an ex en , he
di e ences be ween Wes e n and Eas e n Eu ope
should no be o e es ima ed. As in o he pa s
o Eu ope, since he 19 h cen u y he e has been
a endency o a ibu e socie al p oblems o a
clandes ine plo by Jews. The p edominan ly
Ch is ian, Ca holic en i onmen o Poland
os e ed an i-Judaic belie s ha po ayed
Jews as sa anic conspi a o s, poisoning wells
and kidnapping Ch is ian child en o i ual
pu poses.5 In he in e wa pe iod, an isemi ic
conspi acy heo ies we e widely sp ead by
na ional- adical mo emen s such as Falanga
and i s leade Bolesław Piasecki6 as well as he
Na ional Democ acy mo emen and i s leade
Roman Dmowski.7
6
A his ime, he no ion o Judeo-Bolshe ism
(‘Żydokomuna’) gained momen um, sp eading
he idea ha communism was in en ed by
Jewish conspi a o s o ake o e Poland and he
wo ld. In he pos wa and la e pos -communis
pe iods, o he a ian s o an isemi ic conspi acy
heo ies we e p opaga ed, associa ing Jews
wi h capi alism and impe ialism. In bo h
a ian s Jews we e dehumanised, ep esen ing
an almos me aphysical e il, a o eign powe
plo ing agains he Polish communi y in o de
o exploi i . These an isemi ic conspi a o ial
opes connec s ongly in Cen al Eu ope, whe e
ic imhood plays a la ge pa in social iden i y.
Resea ch shows ha an isemi ic conspi acy
heo ies co ela e wi h compe i ion o he s a us
o ic im and des oy in e g oup ela ions, as
ic imised g oups deny o minimise he s a us
o his o ical ic ims o o he s.8 An example is he
case o Polish conse a i e g oups dis o ing he
memo y o Wo ld Wa II c imes in gene al and he
Holocaus in pa icula .
An isemi ic opes and he ea s o ex e nal and
in e nal enemies accumula e in se e al popula
conspi acy heo ies, pa icula ly conce ning
he EU and ‘ he Wes ’. He e, he EU is p esen ed
as he ex e nal enemy, wi h ‘B ussels Eli es’
plo ing o endange Poland h ough economic
exploi a ion, he loss o na ional so e eign y and
he imposi ion o alues ha a e no compa ible
wi h he adi ional Polish Ca holic–Conse a i e
a ian . Ano he e sion o his conspi acy
heo y iden i ies he ‘gende and gay lobby’ as
he main h ea , plo ing o des oy he amily
and e adica e he Polish na ion by co up ing
i s alues. Theo ies u ilising he ea o he loss
o so e eign y a e equen ly weaponised in
poli ics, wi h poli icians accusing each o he o
ac s o eache y and o se ing as puppe s o
B ussels, Ge many o Russia. Thei echoes can
also be ound in clima e change denialism, which
is equen ly in e p e ed as a plo o end he
Polish coal indus y, e e se he las hi y yea s
o mode nising e o s (which included a s ong
emphasis on suppo ing he au omobile and
a ia ion indus ies h ough la ge in es men s
in mo o ways and ai po s) o coun e Ca holic
doc ine, which sees he en i onmen as
subse ien o humans.
In Poland, conspi acy heo ies a e no jus
on he inges o poli ics. An oni Macie ewicz
and some o he poli icians a e esponsible o
sha ing conspi a o ial specula ion conce ning
he Smoleńsk plane c ash. G zego z B aun
has been accused o an isemi ism, in 2019
Sławomi Men zen ‘jokingly’ summa ised
he p og amme o his pa y as: ‘We do no
wan Jews, homosexuals, abo ions, axa ion
and he Eu opean Union’. Some membe s o
he Kon ede acja pa y also suppo ending
Poland’s ban on p omo ing ascism and ha e
speech. Cu en P esiden Naw ocki p opaga es
iews ha Ge many is using he EU o
subo dina e Poland and ac i ely uels heo ies
ha Lech Wałęsa was a ai o o Solida i y
and sec e ly plo ed wi h he Sec e Se ice.
Some Ca holic bishops and p ies s sp ead
conspi a o ial na a i es, pa icula ly wi h
ega d o gende ideology and eminism.
Conspi acy heo ies a e no jus a cha ac e is ic
o new media o a p oblem limi ed o digi al
media. They ha e been sp ead by igh -wing
news ou le s such as Gaze a Polska ( ounded
in 1993), Sieci ( ounded 2012), Do Rzeczy
( ounded 2013) o Radio Ma yja (es ablished in
1991). Du ing he PiS go e nmen , he na ional
TV b oadcas e , Telewizja Polska, p oduced
pseudo-documen a ies such as Rese , which
was s ongly conspi a o ial in one. Since 2022,
TV Republika – a igh -wing ele ision s a ion
linked o Gaze a Polska – has equen ly se ed
as a pla o m o conspi a o ial iews.
The sp ead o conspi acy heo ies is made
easie no only due o hei no malisa ion in he
poli ical sphe e, bu also because o inc easing
dis us in science. E en be o e Co id-19, low
accina ion a es ha e been a se ious issue,
wi h o ganisa ions such as STOP-NOP gaining
popula i y.9 Co id-19 only exace ba ed his
si ua ion, bu i also (again) linked science
wi h poli ics. While pandemic denialism was
popula , he e we e also many conspi a o ial
oices ci cula ing among libe al audiences
accusing he conse a i e PiS-led go e nmen
o delibe a ely hiding he eal in ec ion and
mo ali y a es o push i s own poli ical
agenda.10
7
2. Polish Online En i onmen and Online Conspi acis En i onmen
In e ne usage in Poland is high (89.8%). In
2025 he e we e app oxima ely 29 million
ac i e social-media use iden i ies, which
is equi alen o 75.6% o he popula ion.
Google, YouTube and Facebook a e he h ee
mos isi ed websi es in Poland. The mos
popula pla o ms (by sha e o popula ion) a e
Facebook (86.5%), Messenge (80%), Ins ag am
(63.2%), Wha sapp (58.7%) and TikTok (51.8%).
Compa ed o Wes e n Eu ope, he numbe o X
use s in Poland is low (28.7%). When measu ed
by ime spen on pla o ms, he mos popula
si es by a a e TikTok, YouTube and hen
Facebook. Howe e , Facebook s ill leads in web
a ic e e als (58.78%) ollowed by Ins ag am
(18.75%), Pin e es (8.9%) and X (6.11%).11
Poland has a di e se media landscape,
including i s public se ice TV and adio
b oadcas e s. Du ing he eigh yea s o ule
by PiS, hese we e used as p opaganda ools,
and p i a e media was unde s ong p essu e,
o en subjec ed o SLAPP cases. T us in
p i a e media companies is also equen ly
unde mined by smea campaigns (o en led by
poli icians and conse a i e pundi s) accusing
hem o ‘ ep esen ing o eign in e es s’.
Acco ding o he Reu e s Ins i u e Digi al News
Repo o 2024, since 2015 us in in o ma ion
media has d opped by 17 pe cen age poin s
( om 56% in 2015 o 39% in 2024).12 Ac oss all
media, he ankings o he mos us wo hy
is led by p i a e adio s a ions (RMF FM and
Radio Ze ). The igh -wing newspape Gaze a
Polska, known o sca emonge ing and
sp eading conspi acy heo ies, sco es almos
he same as he le -leaning online magazine
OKO P ess, known o i s in es iga i e
jou nalism and ac -checking se ices (31%
and 32%). A he bo om o he anking a e he
abloid magazine Supe Exp ess and na ional
TV b oadcas e TVP.
Acco ding o he s udy unde aken by he Digi al
Poland Founda ion in 2024, as many as 16%
o esponden s claimed hey do no ha e any
eliable sou ces o in o ma ion.13 The h ee
mos eliable sou ces a e ele ision (chosen
by 64%, conside ed eliable by 27%), in e ne
po als (chosen by 58%, conside ed eliable by
25%) and adio. Social media is consolida ing
i s posi ion as a sou ce o in o ma ion, mo ing
ahead o p in media.
As Co id-19 es ic ions eased, a new c isis
began – he ull-scale in asion by Russia o
Uk aine. This igge ed new conspi acy heo ies,
bu also escala ed hyb id wa a acks om
Russia, which equen ly included he sp ead o
disin o ma ion and conspi acy heo ies.
In sum, he wo ld o conspi acy heo ies in
Poland is highly di e se and s ong. I aps in o
cen u ies-old conce ns abou independence
and powe , as well as his o ical in e e hnic
con lic s, such as hose be ween Ca holic and
Jewish popula ions, o Polish and Uk ainian
ones. While conspi a o ial he o ic has ne e
been ully delegi imised in he Polish poli ical
sphe e, cu en ly i seems o be escala ing, wi h
Fo eign In o ma ion Manipula ion In e e ence
(FIMI) only making he issue wo se.
Figu e 1. Pos on X, 2025: “#PiSRussianAgen s:
The u h comes ou in he end.”
8
The las decade has wi nessed he ise o
he highly conse a i e Telewizja Republika.
Since 2023 i has become one o he as es
g owing b oadcas e s in he coun y, o en
opping popula i y ankings (o bo h digi al and
adi ional legacy media), despi e being accused
o sp eading disin o ma ion and apping in o
conspi a o ial na a i es. Inc easingly, Polish
conse a i e commen a o s (such as Łukasz
Wa zecha, Ra ał Ziemkiewicz and many o he s)
ha e success ully expanded hei jou nalis ic
ac i i ies o social media, in pa icula YouTube.
One o he mos success ul channels is Kanal
Ze o, un by con o e sial jou nalis /poli ician
K zysz o S anowski. The second as es g owing
channel is he Sejm’s o icial YouTube channel,
which cu en ly has 702k subsc ibe s, i e imes
mo e han Ge many’s Bundes ag channel.
This al eady complex landscape is u he
complica ed by he economy. Polish media
consume s a e e y eluc an o pay o con en
and subsc ip ions. A he same ime, he e a e
no subsidies o na ional o local p in media.
As a esul , p in media aces inc eased inancial
p essu e, compe ing wi h digi al media in he
clickbai ace by op ing o sensa ionalised
con en o cu ing back on in-house ac -
checking. As a esul , such se ices a e pushed
on o o he o ganisa ions o become he
esponsibili y o media consume s.
The s udy unde aken by he Digi al Poland
Founda ion indica es ha only one in i e Poles
knows abou ac -checking o ganisa ions, bu
62% o esponden s ecognise he need o such
se ices. In he same s udy, 79% indica ed ha
a some poin in hei li es hey encoun e ed
disin o ma ion, and acco ding o 81% o
esponden s, he scale o online disin o ma ion
has g own in he las decade. Simila esponses
we e gi en o ques ions abou ake news.
Signi ican ly, esponden s encoun e ed ake
news equally equen ly in social media
(55%) and on ele ision (53%), bu 70% o
esponden s admi ed ha hey ecei ed ake
news om ano he pe son, ei he h ough wo d
o mou h (57%) o h ough social media (49%).
This shows ha we ha e o pay equal a en ion
o o line and online spaces when i comes o
he sp ead o disin o ma ion. Impo an ly, hal
o esponden s (52%) poin ed o poli icians as
esponsible o sp eading alsehoods.
Resea ch shows ha he Polish popula ion is
s ongly conce ned wi h disin o ma ion. In he
su ey conduc ed by he Pew Resea ch Cen e in
2025, 85% o Polish esponden s iden i ied he
sp ead o alse in o ma ion online as he p ima y
h ea , wi h he sp ead o in ec ious diseases,
e o ism, clima e change and he s a e o he
economy anked signi ican ly lowe .14 This is he
highes esul among 25 coun ies su eyed.
Signi ican ly, he pe cen age o adul s who
conside alse in o ma ion o be a se ious h ea
has inc eased by mo e han 20 pe cen age
poin s since 2022, when he sp ead o in ec ious
diseases was conside ed he la ges h ea .
This e lec s he in ensi ied weaponisa ion o
conspi acy heo ies and disin o ma ion du ing
he mos ecen elec ion campaigns in 2023
and 2025, as well as in ensi ied FIMI a acks
o igina ing om Russia.
Poland is a pa icula ly high isk o FIMI.
Acco ding o he Mic oso Digi al De ense Repo
o 2024, Poland anks hi d in Eu ope and nine h
in he wo ld in e ms o exposu e o a acks
om cybe c iminal o ganisa ions sponso ed by
o eign coun ies, mainly Russia.15 Disin o ma ion
sp ead by Russia s ongly in luences he poli ical
landscape as well as public moods, especially
a i udes on such sensi i e issues as mig a ion.16
Acco ding o Polish go e nmen ep esen a i es,
he e is e idence ha he GRU (Main Di ec o a e
o he Gene al S a o he A med Fo ces o he
Russian Fede a ion) and FSB (Fede al Secu i y
Se ice o he Russian Fede a ion) ha e been
ec ui ing people h ough he da k web o
in luence he esul s o he 2025 p esiden ial
elec ions by sp eading disin o ma ion online.17
Figu e 2: “Any his o y o men al condi ions in he
amily?” - “My B o he -in-Law eads ‘Wybo cza’ and
wa ches TVN.” Meme om Facebook, 2024.
9
• G eyzonescomplica ein e en ion:
Conspi acy heo ies a e no always exp essed
o e ly. They a e o en communica ed h ough
innuendo, implica ion, specula ion and
memes a he han explici claims, making
hem di icul o iden i y, egula e o coun e .
• FIMIalignscloselywi hhomeg own
conspi acy heo ies,o enexploi ingp e-
exis ing ea sandusinglocalac o s o 
sca emonge ing:They mus be conside ed
join ly.
• Conspi a o ialna a i eso en ecycle
old opeswhileadap ing onewissues:
Topics shi wi h c ises (gende → COVID →
Uk aine), bu ac o s euse co e epe oi es
( ea o he ex e nal enemy, eache y,
ic imhood) o i new con ex s.
Coun e -Disin o ma ion Sec o
• While hePolishs a eismakingsomep og-
essinadd essing hep oblemo disin-
o ma ion,i s esponseiss illinsu icien :
The e is a lack o cla i y on which ins i u ions
a e esponsible o add essing he p oblem
o disin o ma ion, wha he s a e s a egy is
and wha he p io i ies in ha ield a e.
• Thelabou o coun e ingdisin o ma ion
andconspi acy heo ies eliesp edomi-
nan lyonci ilsocie yo ganisa ions,which
a eunde undedandunde p essu e: In
he las decade he e has been a signi ican
g ow h o ci ic ini ia i es aimed a coun e -
ing disin o ma ion. Howe e , unding is s ill
p eca ious and ulne able o geopoli ical
shi s, esou ces a e minimal ela i e o he
scope o disin o ma ion and he e a e no
consequences o sp eading lies.
• Technology-o ien edsolu ionslimi 
possibili ieso deepandmeaning ul
change: Deba es conce ning coun e -
disin o ma ion equen ly ocus on seeking
echnology-based solu ions, bu he
p oblem o conspi acy heo ies is nei he
exclusi ely no p edominan ly digi al. While
digi al pla o ms o e he in as uc u e o
conspi acy heo ies o a el, he popula i y
o conspi acy heo ies canno be blamed
on digi alisa ion alone, as hey a e deeply
oo ed in he egional poli ical cul u e and
na ional iden i y poli ics, as well as low us
in science and expe s. Sea ching o a digi al
solu ion is a s a , bu a ue change equi es
a shi in he poli ical cul u e.
• E e ydayuse splayanimpo an  olein
coun e ingconspi acism: G ass oo , ad-hoc
ini ia i es should no be unde es ima ed. In
Poland, hei impo ance is e lec ed in he
popula i y o scien i ic and poli ical blogs,
podcas s and social media g oups and
channels whe e con en c ea o s and hei
audiences discuss cu en issues and engage
in con e sa ions abou ‘ he u h’, o e ing
hei own analysis and in e p e a ions o
speci ic e en s o debunking (dis)in o ma ion
o popula misconcep ions.
• ThePolisheduca ionsys em( o maland
in o mal)isanun apped esou ce ha 
canbebe e u ilised o os e  esilience
agains conspi acy heo ies:Unlike in
o he coun ies – such as he No dics,
whe e sou ce c i icism has been pa o he
na ional cu iculum o decades – in Poland,
subjec s ha could suppo he igh agains
disin o ma ion a e no p io i ised in na ional
educa ion. A p esen , such educa ional
p og ammes a e mos ly p omo ed by ci il
socie y ac o s, a he han he s a e.
• While ac -checkingandmediali e acy
a euse ul, heyha e hei limi a ions:
Such app oaches push esponsibili y o
add essing he p oblem o conspi acy
heo ies and disin o ma ion on consume s o
digi al con en a he han hose who p oduce
con en o p o ide pla o ms enabling
conspi acy heo ies. Wide app oaches
o imp o e socie al esilience and c isis
p epa edness as well as s onge egula o y
solu ions a e needed.
16

7. Expanded Recommenda ions
1. Don’ useconspi acism o uelpoli icalwa s:
Conspi a o ial na a i es a e equen ly sp ead
and popula ised by poli ical eli es, so ocusing
only on add essing he p oblem a he socie al
le el is no enough. S and up agains he
no malisa ion o conspi acy heo ies in public
discou se.
2. C ea esocie y-cen edsolu ions;don’ 
o e es ima esolu ions ocusingon
echnology: Conspi acy heo ies do no
exis only in he online wo ld. Many sp ead in
‘ adi ional’ ways: a poli ical allies, h ough
ace- o- ace communica ion, p in media, TV
and adio, e c. Thus, hey should be conside ed
as pa o he la ge ecosys em.
3. Don’ allowpopulis conspi acism ose  he
e mso na ionaldeba es: Media neu ali y
does no mean ha we ha e o ole a e o ms
o denialism, eiled acism, homophobia and
adicalisa ion. Resis clickbai .
4. Tackle oo g ie anceswi hpolicyand
ins i u ionals eng hening: Ins ead o
lamen ing alling le els o us , ins i u ions
should become wo hy o us . The ocus
canno only be on he ‘pa anoia’ o ci izens,
bu should examine he us wo hiness o
ins i u ions and poli ical ac o s. Because
conspi acy heo ies a e be e hough o as
symp oms a he han causes o democ a ic
dis unc ion, ene gy should be di ec ed owa ds
making democ a ic ins i u ions and sys ems
ai , obus and anspa en .
5. P o ec ands eng henindependen 
ins i u ionsandjou nalism: Fund and legally
sa egua d public se ice media, in es iga i e
ou le s, egula o s and public b oadcas e s o
ebuild us and p e en cap u e.
6. Disincen i iseonlinedisin o ma ion:
To unde s and con empo a y conspi acism,
we need o examine how pla o m a o dances
and inancial incen i es shape online
communica ion and, c ucially, how hey
in e sec wi h adi ional media and he
o line wo ld. This equi es pla o ms gi ing
access o esea che s and conside ing digi al
in as uc u es as a public good.
7. Regula epla o mswi h anspa encyand
sensi i i y olocalneeds: Push pla o ms o
algo i hmic anspa ency, ine-g ained mode -
a ion da a and s onge mode a ion eams wi h
necessa y language and socio-cul u al skills.
Pla o ms mus coope a e wi h egula o s and
measu es mus be aken o disincen i ise disin-
o ma ion, bo h o pla o m owne s and use s.
8. Add esscu en  undingmodels o coun e -
disin o ma ionwo k:Funding models o
coun e -disin o ma ion wo k should be
e o mula ed in consul a ion wi h he sec o
o ensu e swi and adequa e esponses o
eme ging issues. The e is an u gen need o
mo e sus ainable planning, be e s a e suppo
and in es men in he sec o .
9. A oidhea y-handedcenso ship;insis on
duep ocess: Any legal measu es mus ha e
clea c i e ia, judicial o e sigh and swi ,
p opo iona e implemen a ion.
10.C ea ealliances:Fos e and suppo
coope a ion be ween ci ic and s a e ac o s,
and na ional and in e na ional ins i u ions
coun e ing disin o ma ion. The exchange
o ideas, lea ning bes p ac ices and join
ini ia i es can enhance capaci y o ackle
he p oblem o disin o ma ion. S ong
ansna ional alliances can also p o e cen al
o add essing p oblems ela ed o FIMI.
11.Design ailo ed,e idence-based esponses:
Di e en conspi acy ypes need di e en
app oaches.
12.Acknowledge ha ,jus as hep oblemo con-
spi acy heo iesispoli ical,soiscoun e ing
disin o ma ion: Ins ead o di iding socie y in o
hose who de end ‘ u h and democ acy’ and
hose who ha e been ‘b ainwashed by algo-
i hms’ we should acknowledge ha decisions
abou wha coun s as disin o ma ion o con-
spi acy a e ne e comple ely neu al — hey
always in ol e poli ics and alues. Recognising
his does no mean abandoning ac s; a he , i
allows us o a gue mo e hones ly ha poli ics
g ounded in e i ied in o ma ion and open de-
ba e o e s ci izens he ai es and mos demo-
c a ic way o make collec i e choices.
17
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25 P. Mieczkowski e al., Dezin o macja oczami Polakow (Digi al Poland, 2024).
18
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