Leading European news agencies support whole-of-society response to counter disinformation at EANA Spring Conference in The Hague
The Hague, 22 May 2026 – European news agencies must be recognised and supported as critical democratic infrastructure in the fight against disinformation, participants concluded at the Spring Conference of the European Alliance of News Agencies (EANA), hosted by EANA member ANP - Algemeen Nederlands Persbureau in The Hague on 20–21 May and sponsored by Spanish media-tech company Wesog.
Named “A World of Disinformation: Challenges & Solutions for News Agencies”, the conference brought together leaders of Europe’s leading news agencies, technology experts, fact-checkers, and specialists in influence operations to examine how coordinated disinformation increasingly threatens democratic societies and the media organisations that are providing them with trustworthy information.
Participants stressed that news agencies are no longer only reporting on disinformation, instead they are increasingly becoming direct targets of influence operations seeking to undermine trust in credible journalism, impersonate trusted brands, harass journalists, and weaken public confidence in democratic institutions.
EANA President and ANSA CEO Stefano De Alessandri said: "If disinformation prevails, democracy loses control. News agencies are the backbone of Europe’s information ecosystem. And a strong ecosystem depends on strong agencies; when they weaken, the entire chain becomes more fragile. If we want to reduce disinformation, we must strengthen independent and sustainable news organisations, with news agencies playing a central role."
The conference highlighted how foreign and domestic influence operations increasingly exploit technological advances, platform vulnerabilities, and synthetic content to manipulate public debate. Participants also underlined the growing economic dimension of the challenge, noting that the same digital ecosystems that enable disinformation often divert attention and revenues away from trusted journalism.
Experts and agency leaders discussed practical responses ranging from enhanced cross-border collaboration and verification practices to newsroom preparedness, investigative cooperation, fact-checking methodologies, and stronger engagement with policymakers and technology platforms.
A central conclusion of the discussions was the need for a whole-of-society approach to countering disinformation, involving independent media, public institutions, civil society, technology companies, and citizens. Participants emphasised that safeguarding information integrity cannot rest solely on journalists and fact-checkers but requires coordinated systemic responses.
The conference featured contributions from Martha Riemsma, CEO of ANP, and Stefano De Alessandri, President of EANA and CEO of ANSA, who opened the event, alongside keynote speaker Svitlana Slipchenko of Vox Ukraine. Sessions also included presentations by Mark Westerhoff, Saska Lensink (GPT-NL) and Niels Bouwman (Verify) on ANP’s innovation and verification initiatives; Richard Carter and Liesa Pauwels on AFP’s fact-checking activities; Arturo Peres Amores from sponsor WESOG; Saman Nazari of Alliance4Europe and Nataliya Kostiina, deputy director general of Ukrinform, on behalf of EANA’s Committee Against Disinformation who presented a draft report on a study on disinformation ran by the Alliance.
As part of the programme, participants visited the European Space Agency’s European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC), where they met with members of ESA’s communications team to discuss the growing challenges posed by disinformation in the context of science, space, and public trust. The exchange explored how false narratives, information manipulation, and geopolitical tensions increasingly affect scientific institutions and highlighted the importance of credible, evidence-based communication in maintaining public confidence.
The EANA Spring Conference also reaffirmed the Alliance's commitment to supporting collaboration among European news agencies in addressing common threats, strengthening editorial independence, and ensuring citizens across Europe continue to have access to reliable, fact-based information.
About EANA
The European Alliance of News Agencies is the alliance of Europe’s leading news agencies, working to secure a safe economic and legal environment for independent news agencies to operate and provide trusted news services to media, institutions, businesses, and citizens across Europe.
For more details:
Alexandru Ion Giboi
Secretary General
secretarygeneral@newsalliance.org
