Polls in Saxony-Anhalt show a historic advance for the Alternative for Germany party, which could reach 50% of the vote in the regional elections in September. If confirmed, it would be the first time a far-right party has governed a German regional parliament alone, a political earthquake in the heart of Europe. 🌍
Algorithms and discontent: the engineering of the populist vote 🤖
The rise of AfD is not spontaneous. Platforms like TikTok and Telegram have been key to spreading its message, using algorithms that prioritize emotional content. Meanwhile, the federal government invests millions in technology to combat disinformation, but results are slow. The paradox is that the same systems that connect voters also fragment public debate, creating bubbles where discontent grows unfiltered.
And meanwhile, the government tests a firewall against extremism 🛡️
The federal executive has launched a program to detect hate speech with AI. It works so well that it has already identified 3,000 offensive tweets... and 12,000 cat memes. Experts say the system confuses sarcasm with threats. Perhaps they should ask AfD to lend them their algorithm, which at least knows how to reach 50% without getting lost in a kitten.