The Irish Government has published a long-awaited national strategy to counter disinformation, warning of the escalating threat false and misleading content poses to democracy, trust in public institutions, and civic life. The strategy outlines a comprehensive set of actions — from boosting fact-checking capacity to expanding media literacy training — and calls for a whole-of-society response.
Among its recommendations, the strategy calls for sustained investment in fact-checking and “pre-bunking” (early identification and neutralisation of false narratives), as well as support for journalists and media practitioners through training, knowledge-sharing, and funding. Minister Patrick O’Donovan described disinformation as a “danger to democracy,” while Martina Chapman, Chair of the National Counter Disinformation Working Group, noted the problem’s evolving nature and the role of digital platforms in accelerating its spread. Martina Chapman is also a member of EDMO Ireland working on media literacy.
The strategy adopts the EU’s definition of disinformation — content spread intentionally to deceive or secure political or economic gain — and frames its approach around five core principles: protecting freedom of expression, building public resilience, increasing cooperation, enforcing accountability, and promoting evidence-based interventions.
EDMO Ireland’s Assigned Responsibilities
EDMO Ireland is recognised as a key delivery partner and is tasked with several major actions across the strategy, including:
- 1.1 – Identify major trends and knowledge gaps in disinformation research, and disseminate findings to stakeholders through the Oversight Group and wider networks.
- 1.2 – Support collaborative, interdisciplinary research on disinformation involving academic, civil society, regulatory, and international partners.
- 1.3 – Advance empirical research into effective media literacy strategies and assess the needs and capacities of various sectors to deliver media literacy across the life course.
- 4.2 – Contribute to embedding media literacy training into existing training networks through partnerships with Media Literacy Ireland (MLI), expanding outreach and follow-up learning opportunities.
- 4.3 – Increase public awareness by supporting targeted campaigns (such as Be Media Smart) and delivering at least three public events annually to promote counter-disinformation skills.
- 5.1 – Lead development of fact-checking and pre-bunking expertise in Ireland, including support for media practitioners through training, knowledge exchange, and dissemination of disinformation analysis.
EDMO Ireland will work alongside Coimisiún na Meán, the Media Literacy Ireland network, the Office of the Press Ombudsman, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ), and other stakeholders to implement these actions.
The strategy also proposes assessing the feasibility of a dedicated funding strand under the Media Fund to support fact-checking and pre-bunking activities in a sustainable and transparent way.
