On 27 February 2024 experts from the Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD) were hosted by the American University in Bulgaria to present their latest findings on countering the impact of misleading information in Bulgaria to over 20 students majoring in Journalism and Mass Communication. Taking place in the Balkanski Academic Center, the guest lecture was opened by Dr. Darina Sarelska, Assistant Professor, Journalism & Mass Communication, American University in Bulgaria and drew on the expertise of Goran Georgiev, Senior Analyst, and Graham Grifith, Senior Fellow and Fulbright Scholar.

Participants were exposed to CSD’s data-driven, digital forensics approach to investigating foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI) as developed in the Kremlin Playbook series. Students were familiarized with both the material and ideational aspects of the local information market, as well as the various social listening tools, methods and OSINT-collection techniques used to analyze the creation and consumption of content from the perspective of political and social science. By drawing on a series of historical and contemporary examples, the lecture also examined the roles of popular culture and the entertainment industry in forming preconceptions and political identities. The event concluded with a review of the EU and Bulgaria’s relevant institutional and legal frameworks and the importance of information literacy skills for a vigilant democratic society and independent, high-quality journalism.