As details emerge of the atrocities and devastation created by Russian troops in their one-month occupation of Bucha in Kyiv, today’s Dispatch dissects the disinformation campaign the Kremlin have launched in parallel - deploying their usual bag of tricks.
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Deny. Dispute. Deflect. This is the Russian disinformation playbook once again being executed in response to the atrocities that have come to light during Russia’s occupation of Bucha during the month of March.
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Deny: Immediately after an incident or when its first reported, Russia tries to ignore it. Instead, they target the media, journalists and activists, claiming they work on behalf of the West, NATO, CIA or another ‘anti-Russia aggressor’.
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Dispute: In the case of Bucha, Russia then disputed the satellite images, videos on the ground and timelines of events. Russian officials alleged “manipulated” content was used in global news reporting from Bucha.
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Deflect: When evidence of crimes can no longer be ignored, Russia seeks to blame someone else. Russia has tried to claim the atrocities in Bucha were a “provocation” orchestrated by Ukraine to fuel anger towards Russia, gain weapons from the West & “torpedo” negotiations.
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Most desperately, as seen after Bucha, Russia reaches into the depths of delusion. They claim that victims captured in the footage are actually alive, pretending to be dead for the sake of propaganda, operating as “crisis actors” in a “staged” set up.
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These claims have all been part of a wider disinformation campaign by Russia. They’re disseminated online by various methods, including Russia’s verified social media accounts of its embassies around the world, pro-Kremlin bloggers & other non-state actors.
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While the Russian disinformation apparatus spans many countries, actors and platforms, as you might imagine they often contradict their own comments with absurd, inconsistent and unconvincing narratives. But the goal isn’t to convince – it’s mass confusion.
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Like any disinformation narrative, the goal is to shift public opinion, and not towards a certain reality. It’s about throwing enough things at the wall in the hope that something sticks & people are sufficiently unsure and sceptical about the details around an incident.
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The Kremlin’s response to the atrocities in Bucha shows us how little has changed in their communication strategies. If and when atrocities emerge, it reiterates the importance of continuing to record and track their efforts to dispute the facts.
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@ISDglobal
Why aren’t organisations like yours representing to Twitter that it abide by its own rules and remove or interstitial false information from Russia, ie almost every single Russian tweet??
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