AI-driven disinformation disrupts political communication in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Communications expert Adis Hasaković warned that AI-generated synthetic media and bot farms are being deployed in Bosnia and Herzegovina's 2026 election campaign to spread disinformation and manipulate political discourse. He identified two main tactics: creation of deepfake audio, video and images portraying candidates in false contexts, and management of thousands of fake social media accounts that spread hateful content to discredit opponents.
What happened
According to communications expert Adis Hasaković, AI tools are being used in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the 2026 general election campaign in two main ways. The first involves creating synthetic audio, video and photographic content intended to portray political parties or candidates in positive or negative contexts in ways that are not immediately perceptible as fake.
The second and more widespread activity involves managing hundreds or thousands of fake social media profiles and pages through AI tools, known as bot farms, which operate from centralized control centers. These fake accounts lack authentic characteristics such as friend lists or real-person indicators, and primarily use hateful and abusive language rather than substantive arguments to contaminate public discourse with the intent to discredit political opponents.
Reported impact
Hasaković identified an emerging danger that people are losing trust in institutions and societal values due to the difficulty in distinguishing authentic from synthetic content.
Index analysis
The expert noted that some political parties and their representatives have already publicly used AI tools to produce promotional video content, which was sometimes mocked but did not deter continued use, suggesting these synthetic materials have an established audience.
Classification
Sources and evidence
Sources not yet published
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