Truth Talks: Disinformation in Portugal

What makes Portugal’s disinformation landscape unique—and why is anti-immigrant rhetoric so persistent? In this episode, we talk to Filipe Pardal, COO of Polígrafo and board member of the European Fact-Checking Standards Network, about the most dangerous and recurring fake news narratives in Portugal. 📌 Topics we cover: • How false claims about immigration dominate Portugal’s disinformation space • The use of fake statistics in political campaigns • AI-generated health scams involving well-known doctors • Signs of foreign interference in recent elections • The growing role of pre-bunking and media literacy as countermeasures • How Portugal’s colonial past is weaponised in historical revisionism The sole responsibility for any content supported by the European Media and Information Fund lies with the author(s) and it may not necessarily reflect the positions of the EMIF and the Fund Partners, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and the European University Institute.