TikTok users and young people in Germany are significantly less suspicious and have a more favourable view of Moscow and Beijing, according to the study, which flags it as a concern ahead of Germany’s upcoming elections.
Young Germans who use TikTok are more likely to be climate sceptics, be less critical of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and believe that the Chinese political system is better than democracy, according to a new study.
The liberal politics Friedrich Naumann Foundation, which commissioned the study, said that it shows how disinformation narratives and foreign propaganda are impacting Germany as its February elections approach.
“Ahead of the federal elections, concerns about foreign disinformation are growing,” the foundation said. “The federal government fears that foreign states are deliberately influencing the public debate. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution is warning against false reports and manipulation.”
It said that young people and TikTok users are particularly susceptible to these narratives.
For example, it found that 42% of those under 29 doubt that Russia is deliberately spreading false information, compared to 30% of all respondents.
Around 50% of TikTok users doubt that Russia is spreading fake news. The figure stands at 59% for China.
This shows that TikTok users are significantly less suspicious and have a more favourable view of Moscow and Beijing, according to the study, which was carried out by the Allensbach Institute and surveyed 2,000 people of all ages.
Looking at particular disinformation narratives appears to confirm this.
Some 78% of all respondents agree that Russia is waging an illegal war of aggression against Ukraine — but this figure falls to 69.7% among under-29s. It falls further still for TikTok users: 66%.
More than a third of all TikTok users believe that Russia desires peace in Ukraine more than the West, compared to 23% of young people and 18% of the general population.
When it comes to China, while 81% of Germans in general believe China is a dictatorship, 67% of those under 29 do. Around a third of TikTokers believe China is not a dictatorship.
Nearly 30% of Germans believe that China’s authoritarian system is more efficient than Western democracies, according to the study, which jumps to 42% for TikTok users.
Pro-Russian and Chinese propaganda is considered hazardous to the German elections as it may sway voters to back parties that are critical of Western support for Ukraine and who advocate distancing themselves from the EU.
From politics to science
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation says it is “particularly frightening” that many young people and TikTok users appear to have a warped view of basic scientific findings.
Some 71% of those under 29 agree with the statement that vaccines have helped to save millions of lives. Among TikTok users, the number of those who agree is lower at 69%
“More than 20% of young people, or one in five, and around a quarter of all TikTok users even openly doubt this finding that has been established for decades,” the foundation says.
When looking at climate change, only 64% of respondents and 67% of young people believe human activity causes climate change. For TikTok users, the figure is just over half.
The coronavirus pandemic also remains a source of conspiracy theories, according to the foundation, almost five years on since it first erupted in Europe.
A quarter of the total population agrees with the statement that governments or elites deliberately created the pandemic to control the population more closely. This idea seems to be particularly widespread on TikTok, with almost 44% of users agreeing.
A call to strengthen traditional media
The survey shows that the public still hasn’t recognised the extent and danger of disinformation in our society, according to Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, deputy chairwoman of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation and Germany’s former justice minister.
“Young people are much more susceptible to disinformation and TikTok plays a crucial role in this,” she said. “We must not allow Chinese and Russian disinformation to continue to spread in our midst. It is a danger to our democracy.”
Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger added that those who consume traditional media are “significantly susceptible to disinformation”.
“This is why extremists are deliberately attacking their credibility,” she said. “Trust in the media has reached a low point. We must strengthen traditional media and finally teach responsible use of social media in schools.”
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