#DNL35 · June 13–15 2025
SHADOWS OF ILLIBERALISM
Resisting the Radical Right
THE 35th CONFERENCE OF THE DISRUPTION NETWORK LAB
studio 1, KUNSTQUARTIER BETHANIEN, marianneplatz 2, 10997 Berlin & STREAMING
Workshop at Stadtwerkstatt, Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 11, 10178 Berlin
Curated by Tatiana Bazzichelli (Director, Disruption Network Lab, IT/DE)
Streamed for free. No registration required to follow the stream.
Workshop IS not streamed
Confirmed speakers
Franco Berardi ‘Bifo’
Philosopher, Media Theorist, IT
Katrien Jacobs
Associate Professor in the School of Arts and Social Sciences at Monash University Malaysia, BE/MY
Florian Cramer
Reader/Practice-Oriented Research Professor in Autonomous Art and Design Practices at Willem de Kooning Academy, Rotterdam, DE/NL
Anna Krenz
Founder, Polish Queer Feminist Collective Dziewuchy Berlin, PL/DE
Tonia Mastrobuoni
JOURNALIST, IT/DE
Slavo Krekovič
Cultural Manager, Music Curator and Cultural Organizer, Cultural Center A4, SK
Péter Adamik
Freie Ungarische Botschaft, HU/DE
Donatella Della Ratta
Media Ethnographer, Performer and Curator, John Cabot University, IT
Amber Macintyre
Project Lead, Influence Industry Project, Tactical Tech, UK/DE
Tina Lee
Writer, Editor and Researcher, Hostwriter, US/DE
Tatiana Bazzichelli
Artistic Director, Disruption Network Lab, IT/DE
Maya Talakhadze
Director, Regional Development Hub – Caucasus, GE
Friday June 13 16:00–20:40
Saturday June 14 15:50–20:30
Sunday June 15 12:30–16:00
Podcast: Illiberal Realities: Understanding Propaganda & the Orbanisation of Europe
From our Meetup April 3 at nGbK: Péter Adamik and Sára Szedlár from the Berlin-based Hungarian activist organisation Freie Ungarische Botschaft (Free Hungarian Embassy) gave an overview of how Viktor Orbán's government has built its machinery of power. Listen.
More about the event
Funded by: Hauptstadtkulturfonds (The Capital Cultural Fund), The Reva and David Logan Foundation. Part of New Perspectives for Action. A project by Re-Imagine Europe, co-funded by the European Union.
Partner Venues: Kunstraum Kreuzberg /Bethanien, nGbK, Stadtwerkstatt.
COLLABORATION PARTNER:
r0g _agency.
Streaming partner: Boiling Head Media.
Technology Partner: Geier-Tronic.
SHADOWS OF ILLIBERALISM
Resisting the Radical Right
Conflicts are escalating both locally in Berlin and across Europe, with the rise of right-wing extremism and far-right ideologies. On a global scale, since Trump's second term, ultra-conservative social visions are being implemented, immigration policies are being enforced, and national sovereignty and borders are being defended. This context requires a scientific analysis that goes beyond polarisation and the instrumentalisation of conflicts for political purposes, often targeting the most vulnerable sectors of society. In analysing such a complex issue, we propose to use artistic strategies as visual evidence to inform about the reality in which we live and to promote a constructive dialogue between different actors in our field of art and culture.
With the term "shadows of illiberalism" we refer to the concept of “illiberal democracy”, which describes a governing system that hides its nondemocratic practices behind formally democratic institutions and procedures. Amnesty International notes that in July 2014, the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán gave what has come to be known as his "illiberal democracy" speech in Romania, in which he juxtaposes a democratic “Western" system based on liberal values and accountability to what he calls an "Eastern" approach based on a strong state and weak opposition.
To date, Orbán's new right-wing sovereigntist alliance, Patriots for Europe, has gained enough support to become a political group in the EU Parliament, bringing together MEPs from 12 EU member states, including members from Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, Latvia, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain, as well as Hungary. In addition, other members who have expressed interest in joining are from Poland and Slovakia, and other parties that are speculated to join include MEPS from Slovenia and Aternative für Deutschland (AfD) in Germany.
In Germany, nationalism and far-right ideology have been on the rise for more than a decade, and the AfD as the second most popular party since 2023. Similarly, a conservative movement against "wokeness" is taking over in the US, a country where Donald Trump is the new president since January 20, 2025, criticising race theory, gender rights and queer theory, often provoking irrational chains of reactions supported by conspiracy theories and harassment campaigns based on isolationism, anti-feminism, homophobia, white supremacy as well as anti-Semitism and Islamophobia.
On the other hand, Russia's invasion of Ukraine has created a threat to neighbouring countries such as Georgia, where a controversial 'foreign agent' law was passed, threatening the existence of many local NGOs working on democracy and civil rights, and the escalation of violence against LGBTQ+ communities made headlines during the attack on Tbilisi Pride 2023, a violent counter-demonstration organised by far-right, nationalist and ultra-nationalist groups.
In such a scenario, which is clearly based on the weaponisation of culture, the role of art and visual culture becomes necessary to produce evidence of these phenomena. This conference builds on our previous 2018 series entitled 'Misinformation Ecosystems', which analysed cultural, political and technological issues related to fake news and right-wing supremacist ideologies through our conferences HATE NEWS and INFILTRATION.
We aim to update a previous debate on the strategic production of misinformation and misleading propaganda by bringing together speakers who share methods (from these or similar cases) that can be used to produce evidence of online hate, systematic discrimination, targeting of women, minorities, and people at risk. The focus will be on the strategic use of online tools by political right-wing groups, the weaponisation of LGBTQ+ culture by far-right groups online and offline, the rise of anti-democratic and authoritarian ideologies in Europe and the complicit role of Big Tech, where algorithms and social media platforms are misused by the far-right to polarise users and increase online traffic.
In this conference programme, we want to raise awareness by reflecting on possible counter-measures from artistic, technological and political frameworks.
SHADOWS OF ILLIBERALISM will showcase technological/media, artistic and activist practices to produce strategies to counteract human rights violations and environmental violence by state or corporate actors. The conference is preceded by a meetup at nGbK where to analyse a specific local case study where to understand how weaponised discrimination works.
Workshop · Defending Civic Space: Countering Disinformation in Challenging Environments
Sunday 15 June, 13:00–16:00, Stadtwerkstatt (Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 11, 10178 Berlin)
Register here
With Maya Talakhadze (Director, Regional Development Hub – Caucasus, GE)
Max 30 participants. No prior technical knowledge or special equipment are required.
Around the world, civic space is becoming increasingly restricted. In many countries, governments are using legal, administrative and narrative tools to limit activism, weaken independent media and discredit opposition voices. This workshop will examine how disinformation - including conspiracy theories and misleading narratives - is used to justify these actions. It will also explore the wider impact of such tactics on protest movements, media freedom and the safety of human rights defenders.
Led by Maya Talakhadze, Director of the Regional Development Hub - Caucasus (Tbilisi, Georgia) the session will draw on case studies from Georgia, Hungary, Russia and Turkey to examine both strategies of repression and forms of resistance. These examples will help participants to recognise how disinformation is weaponised to shape public perceptions and undermine democratic space.
The workshop will begin with a short presentation on the global trend of shrinking civic space and its impact on activism, providing a common ground for deeper engagement. Participants will then work in small groups to compare real cases, analyse government rhetoric, and reflect on resistance strategies that have been effective in different contexts. Interactive exercises throughout the session will encourage critical thinking, creativity and collaborative learning. The workshop will conclude with a strategic discussion on countering disinformation, amplifying independent voices, and sustaining civic engagement in increasingly challenging environments.
This workshop is designed for around 25 international participants with an interest in media freedom, human rights and governance. No prior technical skills or special equipment are required.
Watch talks from related conferences
Playlists: Go to our YouTube playlists for Infiltration, Hate News & more (see all playlists)
Some suggestions:
Infiltration: Mapping the International Far Right · Julia Ebner & Patrik Hermansson
Facing Ideologies & Strategies of Hate · Caroline Sinders, Øyvind Strømmen, Cathleen Berger, Margarita Tsomou
Anatomy of a Conspiracy Theory · Alistair Alexander
Uncovering Corruption: On Strategic Harassment, Mexican Trolls and Election Manipulation · Andrea Noel, Renata Avila
Across & Within Right-Wing Extremism: Investigations and Interference · Mattias Gardell, Richard Gebhardt, Janez Janša, Christina Lee
Transgressions Then & Now: How does the Alt Right Reenact Counter Culture? · Florian Cramer, Stewart Home, Tatiana Bazzichelli
