Research Unit for Political Communication

The Emmy Noether research group on "Mediating (Semi-) Authoritarianism - The Power of the Internet in the Post-Soviet World" is funded by the German Research Foundation DFG (2014-2021). The project investigates the interrelations of internet-mediated communication and politics in the post-Soviet region and, at a more abstract level, compares publics across authoritarian regimes.

The Consequences of the Internet for Russia’s Informational Influence Abroad (RUSINFORM) is a five-year project (2019-2024) funded by the European Research Council (ERC).  The project investigates how, and with what consequences, new Internet-based technologies have contributed to the emergence of novel resources, techniques, and processes by which political elites in Moscow can influence media audiences abroad.

Dr Toepfl heads the Research Unit for Political Communication.  Prior to joining Passau University in 2019, he was an Emmy Noether junior research group leader at the Freie Universität Berlin (2014-19) and a Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellow at the London School of Economics and Political Science (2012-14). He received is doctoral degree in 2009 from the University of Passau.