Reenvisioning Russian Propaganda: Media Decentralization and the Use of Social Networks as a Means to Government Continuity

Abstract Abstract: Russia’s social scene has been anything but stable. Through economic turbulence and social unrest by political opposition, Navalny being only the most recent figure in a long list, Russia, under Putin’s leadership, has shown that it can persist when faced with hardship. How does the regime do this? This article argues that its robust propaganda machine is the answer to this question. I provide three arguments to support this thesis. First, I will present how information is produced and disseminated. Second, Russian propaganda, used for branding itself, attempts to influence foreign just as much as domestic audiences. Finally, using private proxies to peddle a positive message on Twitter will be analyzed. Russias propaganda machine threatens liberalism in the West. This article hopes to add to the conversation as first, recognizing the threat, and second, providing information for combatting the regime.