Breaking Disinformation: How Internal Communication Strengthens Organizations

Marten Neelsen:

It doesn’t start with a storm on social media. A single message or a remark in the office kitchen is enough: “Did you hear, the media is hiding the truth?” or “I saw a video that proves something completely different.” What circulates on TikTok, Facebook, or Telegram doesn’t stop at the factory gates or office doors. Employees carry these narratives into the company. External disinformation turns into an internal reality.

Surveys show that two-thirds of employees perceive more polarizing discussions at work. At first glance, this isn’t necessarily bad. Democracy, also within companies as part of society, thrives on debate and diverse opinions. The problem starts when discussions become poisoned. One in five employees already say that political attitudes directly strain collaboration. Today, such attitudes are often amplified by disinformation. We must not underestimate this risk or treat it as something that only exists online. The real challenge lies in how organizations deal with imported narratives. For communicators, this means they are not only information managers, but guardians of the culture of debate.

How False Narratives Enter the Workplace

Manipulation has always been part of communication. From misleading marketing promises to the divisive fake news around the pandemic or elections, actors have always invented stories to attract attention, stir emotions, sell products, or gain power. What is new is the speed and reach. Algorithms, filter bubbles, and social media ensure that falsehoods travel six to ten times faster than the truth.

As a result, employees encounter the same narratives in their feeds that polarize public debate. They bring them into meetings, team chats, or informal conversations. Organizations thus become unwilling echo chambers for social conflict. This does not always have to be about politics or parties. Even seemingly trivial questions like “Is sunscreen harmful?”, “Should you drink raw milk?”, or “What does masculinity mean?” can spark heated debates. People have argued about less. And the problem grows when employees move in very different social circles: the topics that dominate an office where colleagues read national newspapers are not the same as those shaping conversations on a construction site where TV or TikTok set the agenda. The risk of fragmentation rises when these worlds collide inside the same company. 

Orientation Instead of Silence

This is not a theoretical scenario. It is happening right now in Slack channels, project meetings, and video calls. And it paralyzes companies. How can teams focus on progress if they argue about what reality even is instead of the actual strategy?

Anyone who pushes back against disinformation will quickly face the accusation of restricting free speech. The concern is understandable, but the point is not to create a “thought police.” A diversity of perspectives is valuable. What we are seeing, however, is a diversity of realities, and this creates a new form of leadership challenge. Leaders no longer only manage people, but must also respond to the information ecosystem in which they live.

This is where internal communication comes in. Communicators cannot be present in every meeting or listen to every conversation at the coffee machine. Their strength lies elsewhere: in creating structures, enabling others, and setting clear boundaries. Silence only enlarges the vacuum. If no one explains, the stage is left to those who sell simple truths. Orientation must be created in advance, through rules, processes, and guidance, not only once a rumor has already spread across the company.

From Threats to Structures

The task of countering disinformation is often reduced to fact-checking. But real impact comes from building systems that combine orientation, resilience, and culture.

It begins with rules. Clear conversation guidelines and the normalization of constructive disagreement prevent conflicts from escalating. Equally important are leaders who are prepared for sensitive situations. As the first point of contact when employees encounter misinformation, they need support in the form of talking points, FAQs, and conversation guides. Their role is not to control, but to moderate and manage uncertainty.

At the same time, media literacy has to be strengthened across the workforce. Employees who learn to critically assess sources, interpret images, and reflect on their emotions are less vulnerable to manipulation. Internal communication can support this with practical formats such as checklists, campaigns, or team challenges. This is not a side task but a strategic necessity: according to the Communications Heatmap 2025, 80 percent of communication leaders say strengthening internal communication is the number-one challenge in transformation processes.

Another critical step is establishing early-warning systems. Communicators act like seismographs. They recognize when a whisper threatens to become a wave and connect internal observations with external monitoring. This becomes even more urgent as employees split into parallel realities shaped by different media habits and social networks.

Preparation for crises must also include disinformation scenarios. What happens when a colleague shares pieces of information that are not true? How should teams respond when a rumor spreads across internal channels? Organizations that have rehearsed such situations act with greater confidence in reality. This matters, because 85 percent of communication professionals identify change fatigue among employees as one of the most pressing challenges. 

Ultimately, resilience is anchored in culture. Every belief in disinformation is also a belief in a convenient narrative. A resilient culture, by contrast, rests on facts as the foundation, respect over loudness, and diversity as a resource. Communicators shape this culture by setting topics, telling stories, and making values visible. They create the conditions under which disinformation cannot gain interpretative power.

What Lies Ahead

The task of internal communication is not to refute every falsehood one by one. The real goal is to create spaces where disinformation cannot dominate interpretation. Companies that learn to handle uncertainty and manipulation are not only more resilient against disinformation, but also against crises and change. 

The biggest danger does not come from individual posts or memes, but from the way they quietly seep into corporate culture and erode trust. This is where internal communication makes the difference. It creates structures that provide orientation, equips leaders to handle conflict, and strengthens employees in critical thinking. The question is not whether disinformation will reach companies, but how well prepared we are to respond.

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Marten Neelsen is a freelance communications consultant, author, and moderator specializing in disinformation, media literacy, and corporate communications. As Expert Lead Corporate Communications at IBM iX, he also develops innovative campaigns that engage employees and the wider public alike.

Written by: Editor