Fake videos smear candidates ahead of elections in Germany
DW analyzed 180 posts collected by the investigative collective Antibot4Navalny. The posts target candidates in the four state elections taking place in September – in Saxony-Anhalt, Berlin, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Lower Saxony. Candidates from the CDU, SPD, The Left, FDP and Alliance 90/The Greens are affected. DW found no fake posts targeting the AfD or BSW. Experts attribute the campaign to the Russian influence operation Matryoshka.
"We have seen the disinformation campaign gain momentum, both in volume and in the narratives being spread," said DW Head of Fact-Checking Joscha Weber. "The allegations have also become more extreme, with candidates falsely accused of murder, sexual abuse and corruption. Identifying those behind the campaign is difficult because it largely relies on stolen social media accounts that had been inactive for long periods and rarely reveal the true perpetrators. In one case, however, a translation error strongly suggests the authors were Russian speakers."
Among the posts reviewed on X, TikTok and Bluesky, DW identified 20 that imitated DW content and misused its logo. Other posts falsely cited DW as the source of fabricated claims, and one circulated an invented quote attributed to DW's editor-in-chief. DW reported all identified posts to the platforms through their notice-and-takedown procedures. While TikTok and Bluesky generally remove the content quickly, posts on X sometimes remain online for weeks. DW is also assessing further civil and criminal legal action.
DW Editor-in-Chief Mathias Stamm: "These fake videos exploit the credibility of trusted media outlets to spread false information and mislead the public ahead of critical elections in Germany. We at DW remain committed to transparent, fact-based reporting and will continue to identify and expose the fake content wherever it appears."