Wartime And Social Media Ecosystem. Disinformation Strategies And Bridges for Under-The-Radar Platforms.

Abstract [eng]

Although the subject of disinformation has been studied in the pre-digital era and in recent years in relation to changes in global geopolitics, the war in Ukraine opens up a new phase in which it is possible to identify the persistence of processes that were already in place, and at the same time to trace a new order of information disorder. The new element is the emergence of a media ecosystem in which, alongside mainstream social networks such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, the role of under-the-radar platforms such as Telegram, Gab, and 4Chan Rumble emerges. Using a computational approach based on digital methods, the research identified, from a collection of data from Facebook and Twitter, recurring bridges to environments such as Telegram and Rumble. However, the content analysis revealed the prevalence of hyper-partisan content over disinformation content, with a significant presence of videos and news channels featuring Russian sources, video interviews with relevant figures in Ukrainian politics, and a marginal volume of conspiracy or disinformation content. In the latter case, the role of political influencers who divert connected audiences to marginal platforms and more problematic sources proves to be strategic.