Reexamining Soviet Approaches to Western Propaganda and Disinformation Theory from a Contemporary Perspective

• In Event: Disinformation and the Ukraine War: Historical and Cross-Cultural Approaches

Abstract

This paper will examine the little researched interest of Soviet academics in Western publications on propaganda and disinformation produced in the aftermath of the two world wars. It will focus on two periods when this interest was particularly pronounced: the 1920s and the 1960s-1980s. It will discuss how and why the discourse of (Western) disinformation began to play a central role in the latter period. In conclusion, the paper will discuss the implication of these historical findings for current scholarship on disinformation.

Authors

• Vera Tolz-Zilitinkevich, U of Manchester (UK)

• Alexandr Voronovici, U of Manchester (UK)