Analytical report «The day has come when we all recognized that information has become another type of weapon»: the architecture of Russian disinformation»

Disinformation and propaganda are tools that turn information into a weapon. Nuclear energy is another object of manipulation for the russian media. The example of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is a vivid example of disinformation narratives used by the aggressor state. Read more about this our previous analytical report.

On the familiar example of the ZNPP, the Kyiv School of Energy Policy and the Civil Network OPORA together prepared another analytical material “The day has come when we all recognized that information has become another type of weapon: the architecture of Russian disinformation“.

As it turned out, to reinforce the narratives, the Russian media use various tactics that were developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War, such as:

• “discredit”;
• “divide”;
• “disarm”;
• “demoralize”

It is noteworthy that in the context of disinformation about the ZNPP, the most popular tactics are “discredit” and “disarm”, and their use is often supported by intimidation and conspiracy theories (for instance, about the development of prohibited weapons at the plant). 

As a conclusion, Russian disinformation is a complex system that uses not only media platforms to spread manipulative information. It also includes a large network of actors and platforms and aims to reach a wide audience.