How do algorithms facilitate the rise of political fringes in Europe? And what makes it worthy for political opportunists to be radical? We invited Prof. Miguel Poiares Maduro, who has an academic background in law, governance and politics, to reflect on the various threats to democracy from social media, and to zoom in on his home country, Portugal.

Prof. Poiares Maduro also chairs the executive board of the European Digital Media Observatory, so we asked him about responses to anti-Ukrainian disinformation across the political spectrum. Here are the links to the past episodes mentioned:

Antivaxxers and pro-Kremlin ideas: https://www.theinoculation.com/are-antivaxxers-more-likely-to-be-pro-putin/

How the Portuguese far right opposed vaccine mandates and got an electoral boost: https://www.theinoculation.com/portugal-is-europes-vaccine-hero-losing-its-special-balance-allowing-right-wing-parties-to-flourish/

Ales Herasimenko predicts that antivaxx movements will overflow into political ruptures: https://www.theinoculation.com/the-inoculation-episode-4/

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