The Ideology of the “Russian World” and its Implementation in the Media of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in 2022–2024

DOI 10.17721/2522-1272.2024.85.8

Alla Boіko,
Doctor of Philological Sciences, Professor,
Educational and Scientific Institute of Journalism,
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv,
0000-0003-2697-7605

Danilo Filonenko,
PhD (Social Communications), Assistant
Educational and Scientific Institute of Journalism,
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv,
0000-0001-7776-8374

ABSTRACT

The article examines specific communication technologies that can be classified as manipulative, using materials from the online publication “Orthodox Life” as a case study. This publication is one of the official organs of the UOC, and its topics, ideas, and concepts are disseminated through various information channels, influencing different audience groups. The authors of the article argue that several manipulative techniques are employed in this publication – myth-making technology, manipulation of certain ideals and values, spiritual and symbolic manipulation, emphasis on emotional aspects of readership, among others – to promote the ideology of the “Russian world.”

The attributes of this ideological concept include the Russian language, media attempts to create a common historical and cultural space between Ukraine and the Russian Federation, Orthodoxy, loyalty to the Russian Federation, hostility towards Europe and the USA, and a negative attitude towards representatives of other religions. The article also highlights the use of the “spiral of silence” technique, popular in this and other UOC MP publications. Key events of 2022-2024, namely the war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, are silenced in the analyzed media, and materials conceal the aggression of the Russian Federation and the role of the Russian Orthodox Church, which has declared murders and terror a “holy war.” Instead of informing the audience, low-content publications create so-called information noise, aiming to distract the audience from real issues. Through manipulative technologies, the myth of the “Russian world” is constructed in “Orthodox Life” as the dominant ideology for the people of Ukraine. The study of manipulative technologies used in UOC media is crucial for effective information warfare and countering the ideology of the Russian Federation, which is propagated through the Russian Orthodox Church and its affiliates. Keywords: information war, manipulative technologies, “Russian world,” religious organizations.

KEYWORDS: information warfare; manipulative technologies; «Russian world»; religious organizations.