МОНГОЛ ДАХЬ УЛС ТӨРИЙН МЭДЭЭЛЛИЙН МАНИПУЛЯЦИ: МЕТА ТӨЛБӨРТЭЙ СУРТАЛЧИЛГААНЫ САНГИЙН ӨГӨГДӨЛД СУУРИЛСАН ШИНЖИЛГЭЭ

Abstract

This article presents the fi ndings of a study examining how media manipulation is being implemented within Mongolia’s political information environment, based on open data from Meta’s Ad Library on paid political advertising. Within the scope of the study, the historical development of media manipulation theory and contemporary trends are synthesized, and five key criteria are developed focusing on digital platform algorithms, the attention economy, and emotion-based mechanisms of influence.
The empirical analysis covers data from 842 political advertisements distributed in Mongolia between September 1 and November 15, 2025, as well as data from 63 Facebook pages. As a case study, the research focuses on the political confl ict between D.Amarbaysgalan and G. Zandanshatar within the Mongolian People’s Party (MPP). The results of quantitative and content analysis indicate the prevalence of highly funded and organized dissemination, astroturfing, agenda-setting/framing practices, and narratives grounded in fear and anger. In alignment with platform algorithms, emotionally driven content was delivered to the public more intensively than policy-oriented information. The study demonstrates that algorithm-based, systematic media manipulation is being practically implemented within Mongolia’s information environment and emphasizes the importance of enhancing research-based understanding and increasing public awareness of such influence.
[1] The academic article “Political Manipulation” written in 1998 by researcher E.Munkhtsetseg is assumed—based on my search—to be the earliest work on this topic.