The Implications of the Convergence between Russian Disinformation Narratives and Western Far-Right Discourse
Restricted (Penn State Only)
- Author:
- Stover, Henry
- Area of Honors:
- Global and International Studies
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Yuliya Ladygina, Thesis Supervisor
Jonathan Eran Abel, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- Biological Weapons
Neo-Nazism
Anti-Christian
Satanic
Satanism
Russian Disinformation
Disinformation Narrative
Russia
Ukraine
United States - Abstract:
- The Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine that started on February 24th, 2022, undermined the foundations of the rules-based international world order and brought war to the continent of Europe for the first time since the Second World War. Along with the horrific stories and images of tremendous loss and destruction that flooded the internet since the full-scale invasion, Russian state-sponsored media has disseminated propaganda and disinformation to engage in another constantly evolving dimension of modern warfare—a war of information and perception. By infiltrating the media spaces of African, Asian, Latin American, and Western countries, particularly in the United States and Central Europe, with Russia-friendly stories, Russia has attempted to turn various countries and populations over to its side in its war of aggression against Ukraine and the Western world. Notably, Russian propaganda and disinformation targeting Ukraine has found a niche in media spaces, primarily in Western countries, where they promote pernicious narratives designed to lower trust in domestic government institutions. During my research, I have surveyed a number of public speeches delivered by Putin, and a series of texts generated by Russian state-sponsored media outlets, including Russia Today, Sputnik, and Izvestia. My inquiry has established that three Russian disinformation narratives that focus on neo-Nazism, biological weapons, and alleged anti-Christian policies in Ukraine are especially popular among Western conservative and far-right commentators who cover Ukraine. When it comes to Russia’s accusation of Ukraine of neo-Nazism and development of biological weapons, Tucker Carlson and his extensive criticism of Ukraine might be the most illustrative example. The Russian anti-Christian disinformation narrative, in turn, features prominently in Majorie Taylor Greene’s statements. In my analysis, I illustrate that Western conservative and far-right government officials, media figureheads, and social media circles often use narratives generated and promoted by Russian propaganda to target Ukraine for their own domestic political agendas unrelated, or only tangentially related, to Ukraine’s ongoing fight for its statehood. When surveying online posts and group discussions by Western conservative and far-right figures, I have observed the popularity and farcical nature of these Russian disinformation narratives. The propaganda of the Russian government, the Kremlin, proves to be effective in undermining support of Ukraine among Western conservatives and the far-right, especially in the United States where support of Ukraine is declining among Republicans (Cerda). While weakening support for Ukraine, a fellow democracy, the Kremlin’s propaganda, I argue, is also often used to diminish trust in Western governmental institutions among two key political demographics: Western conservatives and the far-right. In my conclusion, I propose that to counter such a coordinated informational assault on domestic social unity and democratic integrity, Western governments must promote media literacy and introduce a comprehensive and diligently regulated fact-checking process for digital media.