Hybrid threats and the normalisation of narrative frameworks in the EU: disinformation, digital media, and the challenge of Euroscepticism

Abstract This study examines how digital media consumption relates to democratic attitudes in the EU (2019–2025), spanning from COVID-19 up to the Ukraine conflict. Contrary to erosion narratives, EU trust remains stable, polarisation does not escalate, and internet use shows only modest associations with identity and integration support. Instead, immigration attitudes and national parliamentary trust emerge as strongest correlators of identity strength, EU exit preferences, and opposition to further integration. These patterns suggest disinformation operates less through direct institutional erosion and more through gradual normalisation of Eurosceptic narratives, particularly around immigration and sovereignty. Digital platforms thus function primarily as agenda-setting vectors amplifying issue-specific frames rather than generalised destabilisation forces. Challenging crisis-driven disinformation narratives, the study demonstrates EU institutional resilience alongside domain-specific vulnerabilities. Findings advance hybrid threat theory by documenting narrative realignment mechanisms and offer implications for targeted media literacy and strategic communication addressing immigration-related framing.