Introduction: disinformation and power, the intermediaries crisis

The digital acceleration has transformed the media, narratives, information consumption, and the configuration of public opinion. The rise of social networks and users’ fascination with participation have precipitated the process of disintermediation. We are living through a shift in opinion-making, with multiplying content, sources and stories that are often contradictory or simply false. The internet has put the world within our reach, but it is a world that is skewed by algorithms. In this disinformation society, the debate over ideas has become fragmented and polarised, which has in turn contributed to eroding democracy. Issue 124 of Revista CIDOB d'Afers Internacionals reflects on disinformation and power, freedom of expression and lies, the influence of electoral hoaxes, the communication strategies of populism, the purported new discursive authorities, and the political and legislative changes undertaken in the EU and in Ukraine to combat disinformation.