Forced Confessions

Suppressing Dissent
Authoritarian regimes coerce individuals into delivering scripted public confessions—often under torture or psychological manipulation—and broadcast them through state media to discredit opposition, legitimize repression, and deter dissent by weaponizing the appearance of voluntary admission.
Author
Affiliation

E. Rosalie Li

Information Epidemiology Lab

Published

February 17, 2026

Suppressing Dissent

Authoritarian regimes coerce individuals into delivering scripted public confessions—often under torture or psychological manipulation—and broadcast them through state media to discredit opposition, legitimize repression, and deter dissent by weaponizing the appearance of voluntary admission.

FIMI Taxonomy by Information Epidemiology Lab.

Citation

BibTeX citation:
@article{li2026,
  author = {Li, E. Rosalie},
  title = {Forced {Confessions}},
  date = {2026-02-17},
  url = {https://fimi.infoepi.org/mechanisms/forced-confessions.html},
  langid = {en}
}
For attribution, please cite this work as:
Li, E. Rosalie. 2026. “Forced Confessions,” February. https://fimi.infoepi.org/mechanisms/forced-confessions.html.