A tale of heroes and villains: Russia’s strategic narratives on Twitter during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

ABSTRACT This research studies how Russian authorities disseminated strategic narratives on Twitter from January 1st, 2020, to March 11th, 2021, this last date coinciding with the first anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic. 111,077 tweets in English from 203 Russian authorities’ accounts, including Governmental profiles, embassies, and diplomats, are considered. To recognize the narratives, a sequential design is implemented. First, Bertopic is used to perform both traditional topic modeling and dynamic topic modeling. The frequency and thematic significance of the 15 most salient topics are analyzed. Second, the strategic narratives’ approach is adopted to identify thematic and structural patterns among the most representative tweets of each topic. The findings disclose that Russia’s efforts to shape perceptions on Twitter are grounded in a gradual and coordinated approach informed by identity and system narratives. They portray Russia as a long-established beneficial force to the world unlike the West, depicted as a hostile antagonist. Issue narratives during the pandemic, such as the supply of health resources, are presented as a logical outcome of this rationale. Thus, these seemingly scattered tweets can be better understood when they are interpreted within the overarching narratives they form over time.