We need a better political analysis of Russia! Following Prigozhin’s rebellion on the 23rd of June, the amount of coverage and analysis of Russian politics has increased drastically. Unfortunately, the quality of analysis remains to be questionable at times, as many people who have never researched Russia see themselves as experts on the topic now. Please be careful who you read and watch, especially if the person has no credible history of engagement with Russian political analysis. The majority of so-called new Russia experts tend to hang out on Twitter, where information comes with such a speed that fact-checking becomes a challenge.
How to spot unreliable reporting on Russia?
There are many ways “experts” (this is sarcasm) give away their lack of knowledge and understanding of Russian politics. Here is a list of potential red flags:
- If something looks too good, it probably is. This is true for both authors’ credentials and the claims they make. Some state academic degrees they have never achieved, especially PhDs – this is rather easy to check as most universities have either PhD depositories or alumni pages. Others make up their sources, often claiming they have talked to someone in Putin’s circle, FSB, or DoD. Stay sceptical of such claims, as even if the sources do exist it does not mean they are not spreading disinformation.
- Beware of disinformation in general. Some authors might be spreading disinformation unknowingly, by sharing the information from the source or person they trust. Never rely on someone else’s opinion entirely, always fact-check or cross-check with other sources in order not to become complacent in disinformation spreading.
- Future predictions are notoriously unreliable in politics and international relations. This is what makes our field so exciting and frustrating at the same time. Politics is done by people for people, so human error, irrationality, and emotions can change a lot. Never base your financial decisions on the predictions of Twitter either.
- Beware of big one-sided claims such as “Russia is fallen”, “the end is near”, and the like. More often than not it is just clickbait and has nothing to do with new or original reporting of the events on Russia. For example, Prigozhin has been allegedly spotted in three different locations since the rebellion, with no one verifying it but everyone reporting it.
To conclude, there is a lot of rubbish reporting and questionable analytics of Russia out there. Unfortunately, the louder some of the voices are, the more trustworthy they start to look. Do not fall for it. Stay vigivant and only rely on verified sources and fact-checked information. Torking together we can help to build a better political analysis of Russia.