Information Laundering via Baltnews on Telegram: How Russian State-Sponsored Media Evade Sanctions and Narrate the War
Information Laundering via Baltnews on Telegram: How Russian State-Sponsored Media Evade Sanctions and Narrate the War

Author(s): Martha Stolze
Subject(s): Media studies, Government/Political systems, Security and defense, Political behavior, Politics and communication, ICT Information and Communications Technologies, Peace and Conflict Studies
Published by: NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence
Keywords: Baltnews; Telegram; information laundering; information influence campaigns; Weaponised information;
Summary/Abstract: Information has long been used as a foreign policy tool by the Kremlin. Most recently the Russian attack on Ukraine has prompted a new wave of research into the way pro-Kremlin messaging is spread in Western countries and to what effect. This study examines a specific form of information influence campaigns (IICs): information laundering (IL). IL is a compilation of deception techniques and thus has the potential to change readers’ beliefs and attitudes. Overall, the study presents a refined, systematic, and reproducible way to identify which current IL attempts target the audience of a specific Telegram channel, and which networks of websites are behind these attempts. It also asks which potential framing biases the audience could be influenced by and with what strategic aim.

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