ANATOMY OF PROPAGANDA: TOP 3 EVENTS OF THE WEEK
29/05/2023, 12:00
The key trend in state propaganda during the reporting week was the chaotic attempts to justify the failure of the FSB and Russian Armed Forces special forces in the areas adjacent to the Ukrainian-Russian border in the Belgorod region. At the same time, Kremlin is looking for new ways to mobilize Russian society. This time, the propaganda rhetoric includes theses about the West's intentions to "cancel" Russian culture.
The raid of the Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC) and the Legion "Freedom of Russia" in the Belgorod region exposed the mechanics of state propaganda. The event was long ignored by official services and the media, while photo and video evidence has been spreading around the social media. The region's governor, Gladkov, only spoke of an "information attack" on the region, denied rumours of evacuating the population, and urged people not to panic. Only after the situation became critical, the counter-terrorism operation has been announced in the region, and the governor began to report on the allegedly carried out evacuation measures.
In order to smooth out the feeling of a complete failure, both the FSB (which controls the border service) and the Ministry of Defence began to demonstrate determination in protecting the border. Shoigu promised to react harshly to Ukrainian forces attempts to invade Russia. In turn, the FSB began to report on the detention of more "saboteurs". The most striking episode was the arrest of some citizens suspected of planning to blow up the power line supports of two Russian nuclear power plants.
Putin's geopolitical isolationism is reflected in its cultural policy. "Looking at what is happening in the world, we increasingly understand that we do not need landmarks or standards that are crudely imposed from outside, which suppress any originality and originality of development. For us now, essentially, it is a time of self-determination, a struggle for the right to be ourselves," Putin said in a video in regards to the the opening of the Creative Industries Academy.
