The Big Threat: War Footing

August 20, 2025

Hello News Club enthusiasts - it’s great to be back with Episode 4 of our new documentary series, The Big Threat - examining how fake news is threatening the democracies we live in. Arguably, there are no two countries in the world that know this threat better than Estonia and Finland, as I discovered when I traveled there earlier this year to compile this week’s episode. Proximity to Russia and its famous troll factories mean media literacy - for the entire population - is not just a nice to have, it’s existential.

War Footing

A few months ago, I was sitting in a parliamentary building in Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, learning about the existence of the Estonian Women’s Voluntary Defence Organisation. 

A bit like a militarised CWA, it’s an association for Estonian women to get together, share knowledge and learn - among other things - how to be prepared in the event of a Russian invasion. As their website says “every member can take part in military activities and different social events”.

And recently, they’ve added “information warfare” courses to their programming, teaching members how to recognise and resist “information manipulation”.

It’s symbolic in many ways of the whole-of-country approach Estonia, and its neighbour, Finland take towards media literacy.

Sharing a border with Russia means both countries are exposed almost daily to the flood of disinformation that comes out of Moscow’s state-sponsored troll factories. 

And so, to make sure their fledgling democracies are safeguarded, governments of both Estonia and Finland spend a lot of time and money ensuring their citizens learn to tell online fact from fiction. From kids in kindergarten right through to senior citizens. 

And it’s not just the Minister for Education who’s involved, media literacy is just as much a priority within the Ministry of Defence. 

And while we might think we’re immune to these sorts of threats down here in Australia, it’s worth remembering that the internet respects neither distance nor borders. 

You can listen to Episode 4 of The Big Threat here or tune in on YouTube - and hit subscribe while you’re at it. And scroll on for highlights from my conversations. 

Interview Highlights

Highlight 1: On the new war front in Europe

Kristina Kallas, Estonia Education Minister: “The war that we have in Europe - this war is equally happening in social media and online media as it is happening physically on the ground.”

Highlight 2: On Russian disinformation

Siim Kumpas, EU Government: “We cannot make Russia stop using information as a weapon. We can do everything, impose sanctions, stand on our heads, but they will never stop. So we can only talk about making ourselves stronger and build resilience.”

Highlight 3: On preparing for war

Leo Pekkala, Finish Government Agency: “This year was the first time ever in my lifetime that we had the Minister of Defence saying that we are preparing for a war.”

What are we doing about it?

That would be our world-leading daily news podcast for 7-12yos, Squiz Kids, and our media literacy program Newshounds…

Since 2020, our investment in ensuring Australia’s next generations become critical consumers of news and information online has been significant, and we’re committed to the cause.

How can you help? Recommend Squiz Kids to the parents, carers and teachers in your life - and if you fall into one of those categories yourself, dive in. We’re in more than 6,000 classrooms and many more family homes around the country, fuelling kids’ interest in the news every day.

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