Securitization of Disinformation in the UN Human Rights Council : Case of Securitization or Politicization?

Abstract: This thesis addresses speech acts on the subject of disinformation as a threat at the United Nations Human Rights Council in its 47th, 49th and 50th sessions where the matter was discussed. By combining securitization theory and qualitative content analysis with a method of examining speech acts through specific variables, it is possible to examine if this was a case of securitization or politicization and if the process was a success or a failure. The findings suggest that there were two instances that could be regarded as securitizing acts. A part of the audience accepted disinformation as a threat. However, the lack of supranational power of the Council, failure to unilaterally depict disinformation as an existential security threat, lack of exceptional measures and disagreements between representatives caused obstacles for the process. Thus I argue that disinformation was not securitized but quasi-successfully politicized in the Human Rights Council and that the discussion revealed geopolitical tensions within the organization which can make decision-making difficult also in the future.