"BATTLE OF NARRATIVES" AS A MARKER OF HYBRID WARFARE (CONTENT ANALYSIS OF THE INFORMATION SPACE OF THE KHARKIV REGION)

Abstract

Since the Russian Federation’s full-scale incursion into our country, there has been a notable shift in the narrative landscape at the systemic, national and local levels. By analyzing the content of narratives, it may be possible to make predictions about what will happen in the real world. These could include things like the military situation, the possibility of shelling, and the topics and directions of communication at the international level. The aim of this article is to study the Ukrainian and pro-Russian narratives that have emerged in response to certain events of the hybrid war, with a view to gaining insights into how these narratives are shaping the information space of the Kharkiv region. The object of this study is to examine the battle of narratives as a potential marker of hybrid warfare. The subject is the cognitive confrontation between pro-Russian and Ukrainian narratives in the information space of the Kharkiv region. The study is based on the findings of a content analysis of the information space of the Kharkiv region carried out between January and March 2024, which involved the analysis of over 500,000 items. It is a significant contribution to the field of study that this is the first time the battle of narratives in a specific region of Ukraine has been analyzed in order to predict events (military and socio-political) in the real world. The study offers a theoretical contribution to the field by demonstrating the practical significance of scientific linguistic research in the context of Russia’s full-scale aggression against Ukraine. The practical significance of scientific research may be seen in the development of an algorithm for analyzing the battle of narratives" in order to predict events in reality. The research methodology involved a content analysis conducted on the basis of Big Data technology and a set of analytical algorithms from the Attack Index information and analytical service. This approach allowed us to determine the degree of information resonance or danger of information flows on selected topics/personalities. It has been proven that Russian propaganda tries to transport a number of destructive narratives from the Russian media space into the Ukrainian one: "The Russian Federation is occupying Kharkiv, repeated attacks on Kharkiv and Kyiv are possible"; "A large-scale mobilization will take place in Ukraine to replenish the “catastrophic” gates"; "Russia seized the initiative on all fronts" and others. Kharkiv media during the mentioned period won the battle of narratives, using the following strategies: ignoring Russian narratives aimed at causing citizens a sense of hopelessness and a desire to surrender the city to the enemy; promotion of positive regional therapeutic narratives "Kharkiv is my city", "Kharkiv will stand, it is necessary to unite to oppose the enemy" and national — "Shocking of Kharkiv and other cities of Ukraine is a war crime". It seems that further study of the systemic organization and use of narrative discourse in hybrid confrontation could prove beneficial.