Propaganda filo-totalitaria online, una “minaccia reale” per i giovani

The Institute for the Investigation of Crimes of Communism and the Memory of Romanian Exile (IICCMER) warns that pro-totalitarian propaganda online has become a phenomenon with a major impact on society, especially on young people. According to an analysis carried out by Didona Goanța, a strategic communication consultant and collaborator of IICCMER, only 200 posts on TikTok generated approximately 130 million views, a sign of massive exposure to manipulative content. The conclusions were presented at the “Romanian Communism” conference, 14th edition, and show the existence of an extensive, systematic network, supported by “troll and bot farms” that promote pro-communist nostalgia and extremist messages.

The analysis identifies two main categories of TikTok pages involved in the spread of propaganda messages.

– Old pages, used for credibility transfer

These appeared around 2017 and built solid communities based on emotional content, animal clips, sensitive images, inspirational messages. After a few years, the administrators suddenly changed the editorial direction, gradually introducing pro-communist content, exploiting the trust already formed between the page and the audience. Strategy: building audience loyalty through emotion, followed by the gradual introduction of propaganda.

-Troll and bot pages, massively activated after 2021

These accounts were created directly for propaganda purposes. Their activity accelerated in 2023, with an obvious peak during the presidential elections. The posts are daily, coherent and synchronized with major political events, indicating sophisticated coordination. Strategy: explicit propaganda, constant rhythm, exploitation of tense political moments.

Well, yes, that’s an issue. But another problem is that “pro-democracy” institutions seem to have been trying their best to normalize surveillance and state-mandated truth for at least the last decade.

If you see crap like Chat Control pushed as normal by people who call themselves pro-democratic and pro-liberty, what exactly should young people see as a scary difference in the communist shitty propaganda, except a different label?

I believe people become radicalized primarily through encounters with profound injustices that strike them as utterly unfair. While there are countless examples, corruption stands out as a potent one. In many societies, citizens witness politicians and institutions engaging in blatant graft, often escaping accountability without consequence. Yet, when elections arrive, voters find no viable options on the ballot capable of addressing these systemic flaws.
We’ve reached a point where genuine reform appears extreme, and only fringe figures propose any meaningful change. Should these radicals ascend to power, they are unlikely to rely on conventional mechanisms, viewing them as hopelessly ineffective. In the case of corruption, for instance, they might bypass lengthy court proceedings and investigations altogether, opting instead to summarily imprison the guilty—actions that demand authoritarian control. This trajectory is alarmingly evident in numerous democracies today. Online propaganda certainly amplifies the process, but it is not the origin; the roots lie in these deep-seated grievances.

Puahing Chat control through against the peoples will seems Totalitarian

Young people have had totalitarianism forced down their throats in school for the past 60 years. 

I think we should be less afraid of a physical war and more of our society collapsing from within. Some people use TikTok and the like as new sources. Just block this trash already and come up with better alternatives.