Romania: the death of democracy?
In a twist worthy of “Black Mirror”, Romania has become the setting for an episode that might have been called The Death of Democracy.
The first round of the country’s general elections has been annulled by the country’s Constitutional Court citing manipulation on TikTok and allegations of Russian interference.
Is this the beginning of the end of social democracy, or just another example of how social networks are increasing being used as digital Trojan horses bearing fake news and polarization? Social media, which once promised to connect the world, have brought us together in ways even Orwell could not have imagined. Not content with sharing our lives, we now have to foist our opinions on others, along with misinformation and downright lies.
Romania’s authorities have blamed TikTok, once known mainly as the terrain of teenage choreographies rather than for its political influence, saying the social network has been used to spread misinformation, while the platform has failed to take action to curb this clear breach of its rules, or at least waiting too long to do so. Who would have thought that such a seemingly trivial app could play such a key role in determining elections, with its future up in the air, first in the United States, and now in the European Union? I hate to say it, but I told you so, and repeatedly.
