Fourth DSI Strategy Lab

The topic of «disinformation» has become increasingly important in recent years. Although the extent, sponsorship and impact of disinformation campaigns are the subject of scientific controversy, the topic enjoys broad public attention and has led to various legislative measures. One example is the EU's Digital Services Act, which has been in force since February 17, 2024. 

In Switzerland, the Federal Council had tasked the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) with drafting a consultation proposal on the regulation of communication platforms. The aim is to strengthen the rights of users in Switzerland and require greater transparency from platforms, without restricting the positive effects of these platforms on freedom speech and freedom of expression. The new provisions are to be modelled on the rules of the European Union's Digital Services Act.

The goal of the fourth DSI Strategy Lab was to contribute to this consultation process. As part of a preparatory series of events, particular attention was to be given to the issue of disinformation.

The Scientific Committee for the fourth DSI Strategy Lab consists of:

• Prof. Noah Bubenhofer, UZH/PhF (Linguistics)
• Prof. Thomas Friemel, UZH/PhF (Communication Science)
• PD Dr. Markus Christen, UZH/DSI (Ethics)

The following representatives of DSI Communities and partner organizations support the fourth DSI Strategy Lab 2024:

• DSI Community Communication: Sarah Ebling, Linards Udris, Sabrina Kessler
• DSI Community Cybersecurity: Melanie Knieps, Leila Cyragan
• DSI Community Democracy: Fabrizio Gilardi, Karsten Donnay
• DSI Partner ITSL: Florent Thouvenin, Stephanie Volz

In the fall semester 2024, the DSI held a series of events on the topic of disinformation under the title «DSI Disinformation Month». Among others, the two DSI Communities Communication and Democracy each hosted a public event. All information on the events can be found under this link.

For political reasons, the preliminary draft of the Federal Act on Communication Platforms and Search Engines (VE-KomPG) was not published until late October 2025. Interested parties were invited to submit comments on the draft by February 16, 2026. The following individuals formed the core team for the DSI/UZH consultation response:

• Abraham Bernstein (Computer Science)
• Florent Thouvenin (Law)
• Markus Christen (Ethics)
• Noah Bubenhofer (Linguistics)
• Thomas Friemel (Communication Science)
• Stephanie Volz (Law)

As part of this process, the Center for Information Technology, Society, and Law (ITSL) held a preparatory workshop and evening event on January 14. On February 3 and 4, the DSI organized a consultation retreat to discuss and draft the consultation response. The text can be downloaded here:

Consultation Response (PDF, 149 KB)