Populism and Misinformation in the Digital Age: Who Really Pays the Price?

In today’s digital age, populism no longer relies solely on rallies, posters, or radio speeches. It thrives online, on social media timelines, encrypted messaging apps, livestreams, and viral videos. The internet has become a powerful political arena, one where emotions often travel faster than facts and where misinformation can shape public opinion long before the truth catches up.

At its core, populism claims to speak for “the people” against a corrupt elite. While this framing can sometimes highlight real social grievances, in the digital era it is increasingly fueled by misinformation, disinformation, and simplified narratives that reduce complex realities into shareable slogans. The result is a digital ecosystem where fear, anger, and resentment are easily weaponized,and where women, girls, and marginalized communities often bear the greatest harm.

The Digital Amplification of Populism

Social media platforms were designed to maximize engagement, not accuracy. Algorithms reward content that provokes strong reactions, outrage, fear, pride, or outrage disguised as patriotism. Populist actors have learned to exploit this design by spreading emotionally charged messages that divide society into “us” versus “them.”

Misinformation plays a critical role here. False claims about elections, immigration, public health, or national security circulate widely because they are simple, sensational, and repeatable. In many cases, these narratives are intentionally misleading, crafted to erode trust in institutions such as courts, media, civil society, and even scientific expertise.

In contexts where digital literacy is uneven and access to reliable information is limited, misinformation becomes even more dangerous. It can influence voting behavior, justify repression, and normalize hostility toward dissenting voices, especially those who challenge dominant power structures.

Gendered Disinformation: A Feminist Concern

While misinformation affects everyone, it does not affect everyone equally. Women, particularly women in public life, activists, journalists, and feminists, are disproportionately targeted by coordinated disinformation campaigns. These attacks often focus not on ideas or policies, but on gender, morality, appearance, or personal life.

Female leaders and advocates are more likely to be portrayed as “unfit,” “immoral,” or “foreign agents,” reinforcing long-standing sexist stereotypes. Online abuse, doxxing, and threats are frequently used to silence women’s participation in political and civic spaces. In this way, digital populism does not just distort truth, it actively pushes women out of public discourse.

From a feminist perspective, misinformation is not only a problem of false content but a problem of power. Who gets to speak? Who is believed? Whose voices are amplified, and whose are discredited? When misinformation thrives, it often reinforces patriarchal norms by punishing women who challenge the status quo.

Populism, Control, and the Shrinking Civic Space

Another troubling trend is how populist narratives are used to justify increased digital surveillance and censorship. Governments may claim to be protecting “the people” from fake news or foreign influence, while passing laws that criminalize online speech, restrict access to information, or target activists and journalists.

Women human rights defenders and grassroots organizers are often among the first to feel these restrictions. Their online spaces, blogs, group chats, social media pages, are monitored, shut down, or weaponized against them through misinformation and harassment.

This shrinking civic space undermines democratic participation and deepens gender inequality. When women feel unsafe speaking online, the digital public sphere becomes less inclusive, less representative, and less democratic.

Why Feminist Digital Literacy Matters

Combating populism-driven misinformation requires more than fact-checking. It demands feminist digital literacy, an approach that recognizes how power, gender, and technology intersect.

Feminist digital literacy encourages users to ask critical questions: Who created this content? Whose interests does it serve? Who is being targeted or excluded? It empowers women and girls not just as consumers of information, but as creators, analysts, and defenders of digital spaces.

At Shetechtive, we believe that equipping women with digital skills, critical thinking tools, and knowledge of their digital rights is essential to building more resilient online communities. When women are confident navigating digital spaces, they are better positioned to challenge misinformation, support one another, and reclaim narratives that have been distorted.

Reclaiming the Digital Future

Populism and misinformation will not disappear overnight. But their impact can be reduced through collective action, by demanding platform accountability, promoting inclusive digital policies, supporting independent journalism, and centering feminist perspectives in tech governance.

The digital age offers immense possibilities for participation, creativity, and resistance. Ensuring those possibilities are not hijacked by misinformation requires intentional effort, especially from those who have historically been excluded from power.

A feminist response to misinformation is ultimately about justice: the right to accurate information, the right to speak without fear, and the right to shape our digital futures on our own terms.