cover image: Policy Brief Gender-Based Disinformation: - A Tool of Hybrid Warfare

Policy Brief Gender-Based Disinformation: - A Tool of Hybrid Warfare

25 Jul 2024

Background: Introducing Gender-Based Disinformation The political and economic costs of traditional military conflict have increased the appeal of foreign disinformation campaigns (Ang, Anwar, and Jayakumar 2021). [...] This form of disinformation is characterized by the spread of narratives that evoke traditional constructs of masculinity and femininity to fulfill political, social, and economic goals (Thakur and Hankerson 2022). [...] As academic research consistently highlights how states use identity groups in their foreign influence operations to reduce inter-group solidarity and polarize foreign publics, Canada must understand how and why its adversaries use gender-based disinformation; it must develop policy to respond to the threat of gender-based disinformation in both an equitable and effective manner. [...] Though more research is required to understand the extent to which gender-based disinformation is prevalent in the Canadian context, Canada remains vulnerable to this form of foreign interference. [...] In their efforts to combat gender-based disinformation, DND should collaborate with feminist civil society organizations to ensure that disinformation policies serve the needs of Canadian civilians and correspond to the narratives used by Canada’s foreign adversaries.

Related Organizations

Canadian Armed Forces
Columbia University
Department of National Defence
European Union
Public Safety Canada
Queen's University
Pages
7
Published in
Canada

Table of Contents