The Russian invasion of Ukraine also represents a significant challenge for social media such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, accused – in the past – of not reacting quickly to the spread of fake news on their platforms. And just what is being played on social media in these terrible hours is another strand of this war. A trend that seems clear enough, with Putin increasingly isolated – despite the social propaganda of which Russia is a great teacher – and with a world full of celebrities who continue to post messages for peace, in support of Ukraine and against the Russian offensive.
On social networks, the roles seem a bit reversed. The firepower that Russia boasts on the military level, against a decidedly weaker army like the Ukrainian one, does not exist in the social world. Indeed, it is precisely on the digital platforms that Putin seems surrounded, condemned in advance for his offensive. And it is a technological fact, even before that of opinion.
Social media against Putin, Putin against social media
On social media, Putin is forced to play defense. And he is in fact slowly trying to shut down the use of platforms like Facebook and Twitter on Russian territory. The Kremlin leader and his advisors have realized that propaganda has its limits. He can’t stand the pacifist wave when he launches missile attacks on a city like Kiev. And so from Moscow they are trying to silence the voices of the “enemy” West, blocking the platforms.
They started with Twitter, a very useful social network during a war, because it is a source of constant updates and official communications (Ukrainian leader Zelensky uses Twitter to communicate every update). Photos and videos of the Russian attack arrive on Twitter, and this is a problem for Putin. Because that is, that the Russian state TVs hide, is shown on the bird’s social network. And he risks reinforcing internal protest. An unsustainable situation for the Kremlin, which has decided to block – or severely limit – the Russian people’s access to Twitter, creating a sort of China-style firewall.
Most Russians who still intend to use social media are forced to do so using a VPN. The same is happening with Facebook, which is severely restricted because it is accused of controlling and tagging content from Russian state media. It must be said that Facebook, in Russia, does not have very many users (the Russians prefer the local VKontakte, where control of the Kremlin seems to be widespread).