Featured stories about Russia
Stories about Russia
Disinformation helps weaponize homophobia in the Balkans
After 2013, Moscow has emerged as major generator of homophobic narratives that exploit existing endemic intolerance in the Balkans region.
Unfreedom Monitor Report: Access
Advox research into internet access, shutdowns and interruptions is now in a report. Read an excerpt and download the full pdf.
A Russian girl drew anti-war picture. Now she is in a children's shelter and her dad is under arrest
One year ago, a fifth-grade student, Masha Moskaleva, drew an anti-war picture. Now, her father faces up to three years in prison and Masha may be sent to an orphanage.
Georgians take to the streets as parliament considers new ‘foreign agent’ bill
Hundreds of Georgians took the streets to protest what civil society describe as Georgia's very own "foreign agent" law.
Fake Russian fact-checkers spread propaganda about the war in Ukraine
PolitiFact analyzed this website and found its fact-checks that use well-known techniques of Russian propaganda — incoherence, a large number of claims, repetition of statements on obvious untruths — to confuse the public.
Charity treason: The legal practice of persecuting Russians who donate to Ukraine
Despite the authorities agreeing that sponsoring the Ukrainian army constitutes treason, in a year, there has not been a single reported criminal case instigated for such donations.
Georgia debates a foreign agent law, which critics say sets a dangerous precedent
The bill was tabled by a group of parliament members, formally from the ruling Georgian Dream who quit the party ranks last year and formed their own political party called People's Power.
Interview with Romanian anti-disinformation activist reveals disinformation campaigns often target refugees from Ukraine
The position of Romania regarding the war in Ukraine remains in line with the EU and NATO, despite pro-Russian destabilizing efforts. However, at general level, disinformation had become part of political discourse.
Every Friday, Russia labels new citizens and organizations as ‘Foreign Agents’
Labeling people and organizations as 'foreign agents' resembles Stalin's repressive regime. It is now being used to push dissenting voices out of the country.
Infrastructural content moderation: the case of Mariupol
In addition to the obvious humanitarian consequences that internet shutdowns in a war zone bring, infrastructural content moderation is a potent and dangerous approach to spreading disinformation.
Rights organization OVD-Info gives an overview of repression in Russia in 2022
In 2022 in Russia, there were more than 21,000 arrests and at least 370 defendants in criminal cases for anti-war statements and speeches. More than 200,000 Internet resources have been blocked including 11 sentences in cases of state treason.
LIVE on November 24: Disinformation and censorship in Russia
Join us on YouTube live on November 24 for a discussion exploring the convergence of Russia’s rapidly strengthening censorship infrastructure, and its use of disinformation both internally and externally.
TikToker Nekoglai was deported from Moscow to Moldova with signs of torture
The “ritual of guilt and shame” has been increasingly used by the Russian police to publicly show the “remorse” and fear of those protesting
Eight months of ‘fakes’ and ‘discreditation’: How the Kremlin’s new laws against anti-war dissent are applied online
Censorship and political repression are not new to Russia, but, in 2022, they reached new heights. Alongside new digital tools, new legislation allows the state to expedite and industrialise the repression of dissidents.
Activists predict homophobic and transphobic violence in Russia, but most avenues of escape are slammed shut
The law on prohibiting "propaganda" from the LGBTQ+ community might trigger homophobic and transphobic violence. Time is running out, and the plea to help needs to be urgently heard.
‘The Art of the Steal?': Russia’s online voting problem
Online voting in an increasingly autocratic Russia means election results should be treated with increased scepticism, not presented as regime approval.
Unfreedom Monitor Report: Russia
Advox research into digital authoritarianism in Russia is now in a report. Read an excerpt and download the full pdf.
War in Ukraine is fundamentally changing the relationship between the internet and geopolitics
Russia's invasion of Ukraine confirmed what internet and war scholars have long predicted: the line between civil and military reality is being erased, further fracturing the world along "sovereign internets."
Access the Unfreedom Monitor database
The Unfreedom Monitor is an Advox initiative to deepen our understanding of the relationship between technology and authoritarian power. In the first phase of this project, researchers working in 11 countries and four key themes conducted analysis of incidents, narratives, and media items, to explain acts of digital authoritarianism and...
Disinformation 2.0: Should we bring the notion of propaganda back into public discourse?
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the unintentional spread of disinformation added a burden on health services when the rise of conspiracies was evident beyond the anti-vaccination movement.
