Counter-institutionalization in the age of disinformation: The case of Global Fact-Checking Network (GFCN)

Abstract

This paper examines contemporary disinformation as a process of counter-institutionalization through which institutional interventions reshape epistemic authority within global information ecosystems. Drawing on neo-institutional theory (DiMaggio & Powell, 1983) and the concept of counter-institutionalization (Zürn, 2018), the study employs a qualitative critical case study design that integrates discursive analysis, comparative institutional analysis, and network-oriented examination of transnational information infrastructures. The case of the Global Fact-Checking Network (GFCN) is considered a critical example of how actors deploy institutional mimicry to undermine trust. The paper contributes to research on disinformation and global media governance by shifting the analytical focus from content-level manipulation to institutional-level strategies of epistemic contestation. The findings show how credibility-producing institutional forms are selectively replicated and reoriented to contest the authority of established fact-checking networks, underscoring the need for resilience approaches that extend beyond content correction to institutional safeguards.