Post-Truth Politics as a Mobilization Tool: EU Contestation in the Alternative for Germany’s Campaign for the 2019 European Parliament Elections

This article analyzes the use of disinformation, misleading frames and resentful rhetoric as a mobilization tool in the Alternative for Germany (AfD)’s campaign for the 2019 European Parliament elections. In an age of post-truth politics, the use of such strategies has become a standard tool in the repertoire of populist actors. Disinformation refers to the deliberate spread of false information for manipulative purposes, but is often accompanied by misleading frames and/or resentful evaluative styles and aims to cause outrage in an effort to mobilize potential supporters and voters. Increasing distrust of mainstream media, indeed of the journalistic profession as such, as well as the rise of social media and user-generated content contribute to the increasing relevance of disinformation strategies. Despite the AfD’s thematic shift from issues of European integration to migration and multiculturalism, the EU still represents an important point of reference in the party’s rhetoric, underlined by the explicit inclusion of a German exit from the EU (“Dexit”) as a measure of last resort in the party’s manifesto for the 2019 European Parliament elections. Empirically, this article analyzes the importance of post-truth politics in the AfD’s campaign both from the perspective of the actor and the arena dimension in that it addresses (a) the key actors involved in the spread of disinformation and (b) the importance of social/digital media, but also more traditional campaigning tools such as gatherings/rallies as a venue for spreading disinformation.