00:00In a shocking twist, the recent Romanian election saw an unexpected surge from
00:04far-right candidate Callin Georgescu. And this wasn't a gradual climb through traditional
00:08political means. No, it was a rapid rise, mainly fueled by TikTok. Thousands of accounts,
00:14many of them fake by the way, spread his populist and conspiratorial messages,
00:18pushing him from obscurity into the national spotlight almost overnight.
00:30What are the differences between the presidents?
00:34First of all, I will put the people and the country in the first place,
00:42and for the system, I will bring the dinner.
01:00And what's more surprising is that until recently, no one had even heard of him.
01:06As a Romanian, I never heard about this guy Callin Georgescu until recently,
01:10and I'm very shocked about the amount of votes he got.
01:13No survey showed him to be relevant at all. It took all of us a surprise.
01:17We're doomed.
01:17This raises an important question. Is TikTok still just an entertainment app,
01:21or has it become a tool for election manipulation?
01:24The European Union seems to think that it is becoming dangerous,
01:27with investigations potentially being launched to explore the platform's role
01:31in this shocking victory in the first round of the Romanian elections.
01:34And of course, it's not just Romania.
01:36Across Europe, TikTok has become an important political tool.
01:40From Germany's Alternative für Deutschland, or AFD,
01:42to France's Rassemblement National using the platform to engage young voters,
01:47TikTok has amplified far-right narratives at unprecedented scale.
01:50In Central and Eastern Europe, TikTok feeds are full of misinformation,
01:54pushing divisive messages, and often echoing conspiratorial or anti-democratic themes.
01:59As TikTok's influence grows, so does the risk to democracy.
02:03Should we just accept this as a byproduct of the digital age?
02:06Or is it time to address how TikTok operates during elections?
02:11Clearly, candidates should be allowed to use their personal accounts
02:14to communicate transparently with voters.
02:17But the widespread dissemination of fake accounts must be somehow addressed.
02:21Before we get into the main arguments, let's quickly see who is Georgescu.
02:30A far-right independent candidate, he openly admires Vladimir Putin,
02:33and Romania's former dictator Antunescu.
02:36His vague manifesto opposes active cooperation with the EU and NATO,
02:40while domestically focusing on reducing imports and catering to farmers.
02:44Some of his supporters have links to extremist movements, organized crime, or religious cults.
02:49So, I would put him in the same category as Trump in the US, Bolsonaro in Brazil, or Orban in Hungary.
02:54Despite not participating in TV debates,
02:56Georgescu's campaign gained massive traction on TikTok two weeks before the election,
03:00due to over 25,000 accounts, some linked to influencers and paid promotions.
03:05Romanian Intelligence revealed that a Telegram group guided tactics to bypass TikTok's
03:10content verification system and mask account origins.
03:13There is also some suspicious funding, including payment from a cryptocurrency entrepreneur.
03:17Romanian Intelligence also identified over 85,000 cyber attacks targeting Romania's election systems,
03:24with patterns resembling Russian disinformation campaigns.
03:28During the first round, he won 23% of the vote with a predominantly young voter base.
03:33But luckily, as of December 6th, Romania's constitutional court has annulled the results of the first round,
03:39emphasizing the need to ensure the correctness and legality of the electoral process.
03:43But yeah, this underscores the power of TikTok and how damaging it can be.
03:52Let's see how this poses a threat to democracy.
03:55Elections are meant to reflect the genuine will of the people.
03:58But platforms like TikTok and their algorithms distort this balance.
04:03By prioritizing sensationalism and engagement, the platform artificially amplifies fringe candidates,
04:09sidelining other voices.
04:11Take Romania, for example.
04:12Giordioscu's victory wasn't a reflection of his policy or public debate.
04:17It was a result of TikTok influencing public discourse.
04:21The agenda-setting theory could explain how platforms like TikTok can dictate what topics
04:26dominate public consciousness, sidelining other candidates in the process.
04:30The implications of this are enormous.
04:32It's not just about one election, it's about trust of the public overall.
04:37When platforms manipulate narratives, they erode the faith in the very foundation of democracy.
04:42Then there's the issue of free speech.
04:44TikTok has been incredible at democratizing access to political discourse and giving the
04:49common people the leverage that they need on certain political topics.
04:52AFD's strategy in Germany exemplifies this really well.
04:56By using TikTok to appeal to young voters, they completely bypassed the traditional media scrutiny,
05:01and they blurred the line between genuine campaigning and manipulation.
05:05According to this study, the party used populist stylistic devices such as provocation,
05:10conspiracy rhetoric, emotionalization and fear-mongering,
05:13simplifying complex issues and undermining rational discourse.
05:17What I'm saying is that free speech must come with accountability.
05:20Just as laws prohibit libel and incitement to violence,
05:23they must also protect the citizens from coordinated disinformation campaigns.
05:28Grassroots campaigns and satire are completely fine,
05:30but there's just simply no need for fake accounts.
05:33And the problem doesn't stop with domestic disinformation.
05:36TikTok, just like other platforms, has also become a tool for international interference.
05:41In Hungary, for example, pro-Russian narratives, surprise, surprise,
05:44infiltrated TikTok feeds, spreading anti-European sentiment and stalking division.
05:49Similar tactics have been observed in Slovakia and Estonia,
05:52where misinformation preys on cultural fears.
05:54And now my favorite part.
05:56Let's talk about the mimification of politicians.
05:58Well, as a representative of Gen Z,
06:02I absolutely loved all the memes about Kamala Harris in the U.S.
06:06You think you just fell out of a coconut tree?
06:11You exist in the context.
06:15Talking about the significance of the passage of time.
06:19Right? The significance of the passage of time.
06:22Kosher salt, fresh ground pepper.
06:24Maybe chop up a little thyme.
06:28You could also chop up, but not with the thyme, just the salt pepper.
06:31Mix that up also with some thyme.
06:33You could even do a little rosemary.
06:34The context.
06:37Of all in which you live and what came before you.
06:40Baste with butter.
06:41Yes, hi.
06:46Or about Giorgio Meloni in Italy.
06:49So I get it, okay?
07:07I love the memes as well.
07:09But would I vote for someone just because they became a popular meme?
07:14Absolutely not.
07:14But apparently TikTok has that power on people.
07:17To convince someone to vote for a politician just because they were funny for a second.
07:22And this is why I find it so interesting.
07:24Platforms like TikTok aren't just reshaping how politicians engage with voters.
07:29They are fundamentally changing what political engagement looks like.
07:33Take Jordan Bardella, the 28-year-old leader of France's far-right national rally.
07:37With over a million followers on TikTok, Bardella's posts rarely focus on policies.
07:42Instead, they lean into viral trends like posing in turtlenecks, gaming,
07:46or grabbing casual drinks while carefully avoiding overt political messaging.
07:51Half of his content doesn't even mention politics directly,
07:54but instead uses humor, punchlines, and popular memes to resonate with his audience.
07:58And here's where it gets tricky.
08:00Many viewers don't even realize they're engaging with a far-right politician.
08:04To them, Bardella is just another influencer.
08:07He's relatable, he's entertaining, and he's charismatic.
08:10But behind the memes, there's a deliberate strategy to normalize far-right ideologies
08:14among young, impressionable audiences.
08:17And of course, it's not just in France.
08:19Of course, it's not just the far-right.
08:20We have the example of the Democrats in the US,
08:23and the popular coconut tree meme from Kamala Harris.
08:27But research shows that far-right politicians dominate platforms like TikTok,
08:31often because they understand the platform's logic better.
08:34By packaging anti-immigrant rants or critics of climate policy in fun, entertaining clips,
08:40they gamify political discourse, turning complex issues into shareable, reactionary moments.
08:45And, I mean, it works.
08:47In France, for example, surveys revealed that nearly a third of voters aged 18 to 24
08:52were considering voting for Bardella's party in the elections.
08:56Many young voters say that they really like Bardella because of his funny, entertaining, and witty
09:00content without realizing the political underpinnings of it.
09:05The right simply memes better.
09:07But their goal isn't just to win over a few elections.
09:09It's to dominate over the cultural discourse and shape how young voters perceive politics.
09:20So what can be done about this?
09:22Of course, we can't stop candidates from going viral on TikTok.
09:25But the process can be made more transparent and more accountable.
09:28One of the most obvious measures would be to require TikTok to verify all political accounts,
09:32especially during the election period.
09:35Another important possible measure would be to require TikTok to include disclaimers
09:39or context for heavily edited videos like political debates or disinformation campaigns
09:45to make sure that a viewer that has no prior knowledge about the situation
09:49would get the important context and not get easily influenced.
09:52And I think it's also completely fair to enforce penalties on platforms that
09:56fail to remove fake accounts or disinformation promptly.
09:58So far, TikTok hasn't been very successful at it, and something needs to be done.
10:03There are so many other policies that could be implemented, and I wouldn't go into too much detail
10:06here.
10:07But another thing to keep in mind is that the enforcement of these policies
10:12remains the biggest challenge.
10:13AI systems are already being used to detect bots and disinformation campaigns,
10:17but they still have a long way to go.
10:19Combining AI with independent audits and appeals processes could improve the enforcement process.
10:24Another point of concern is linked to the question of bias.
10:27Could these policies unfairly target certain political ideologies?
10:30Of course, to avoid that, regulations must be applied equally to all parties.
10:34Because this isn't about silencing one side, for example, the right.
10:37It's more about protecting the democratic integrity overall.
10:41So I really think it's extremely important to curb manipulation, promote transparency,
10:45and foster accountability to really ensure that platforms like TikTok empower voters
10:51rather than deceive them.
10:52So from Romania to Georgia, and across the digital landscape,
10:56we must ask ourselves, how do we want these platforms to shape our future?
11:00Because memes can be so fun and entertaining,
11:02but we must ensure that democracy remains in the hands of the people.
11:07And that's it for today's video.
11:08Thank you so much for watching it, and see you in the next one.
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