Hybrid Conflicts: Digital media as instrument for manipulating. What has it been like in Ukraine?
Palabras clave:
digital media, manipulation, hybrid conflict, propaganda, disinformation, social media
Resumen
In hybrid wars, digital media have become a powerful political manipulator of consciousness, so a deep understanding of the mechanisms of such manipulation is a key task in finding ways to counteract it. The purpose of the article is to identify, classify and quantify the main manipulative techniques used in digital media in the context of a hybrid conflict (on the example of the Russian-Ukrainian war), as well as to assess the specifics of their use by various social networks. To that end, a content analysis of 2024 posts from the Facebook, X (Twitter), and TikTok platforms was conducted, categorizing the samples into pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian sources. The results revealed a profound asymmetry: manipulative techniques were more widespread in pro-Russian sources, in particular dehumanization of the enemy, conspiracy theories and visual misinformation. TikTok was the most manipulative, with visual manipulation as the main tool of influence. It turned out that there is a stable negative correlation between trust in the source of information and the amount of manipulation. The results of the study confirm the systemic nature of the information operation and point to the need for a comprehensive response based on media literacy, support for independent media, international cooperation, and accountability of digital platforms.
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LEWANDOWSKY, S., ECKER, U.K.H. AND COOK, J. (2017) ‘Beyond misinformation: Understanding and coping with the “post-truth” era’, Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 6(4), pp. 353–369. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jarmac.2017.07.008
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POLYAKOVA, A. AND BOYER, S.P. (2018) The future of political warfare: Russia, the West, and the coming age of global digital competition, March. Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution. Available at: https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/the-future-of-political-warfare.pdf
PROHONIUK, L. (2025) ‘The role of media communications in ensuring the information security of the state in a hybrid warfare: Challenges, threats and ways to increase the sustainability of society’, Society. Technology. Solutions. Proceedings of the International Scientific Conference, 3, pp. 44–45. Available at: https://doi.org/10.35363/ViA.sts.2025.129
ROMAŃSKI, R. (2025a) ‘Mechanisms of disinformation amplification in hybrid warfare: The case of the conflict in Ukraine’, Bulletin of «Carol I» National Defence University, 14(2), pp. 123–138. Available at: https://doi.org/10.53477/2284-9378-25-13
ROMAŃSKI, R. (2025b) ‘Mechanisms of disinformation amplification in hybrid warfare: The case of the conflict in Ukraine’, Bulletin of «Carol I» National Defence University, 14(2), pp. 139–154. Available at: https://doi.org/10.53477/2284-9378-25-13
TUMBER, H. AND WAISBORD, S. (eds.) (2021) The Routledge companion to media disinformation and populism. London: Routledge. Available at: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003004431
WARDLE, C. AND DERAKHSHAN, H. (2017) Information disorder: Toward an interdisciplinary framework for research and policymaking. Strasbourg: Council of Europe. Available at: https://rm.coe.int/information-disorder-toward-an-interdisciplinary-framework-for-researc/168076277c
WOOLLEY, S.C. AND HOWARD, P.N. (eds.) (2019) Computational propaganda: Political parties, politicians, and political manipulation on social media. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190931407.001.0001
ZUBOFF, S. (2019) The age of surveillance capitalism: The fight for a human future at the new frontier of power. New York: PublicAffairs. Available at: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=56791
ZHUYKOVA, M. (2024) ‘Potochne znannya vs. naukove znannya v definitsiyakh zahalʹnykh tlumachnykh slovnykiv [Commonsense knowledge vs. scientific knowledge in the definitions of general dictionaries]’, Synopsys: Text, Context, Media, 30(1), pp. 34–42. Available at: https://doi.org/10.28925/2311-259x.2024.1.5
BENNETT, W.L. AND LIVINGSTON, S. (eds.) (2020) The disinformation age: Politics, technology, and disruptive communication in the United States. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108914628
BRADSHAW, S. AND HOWARD, P.N. (2018) ‘The global organization of social media disinformation campaigns’, Journal of International Affairs, 71(1.5), pp. 23–32. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/26508115
ECKER, U.K.H., LEWANDOWSKY, S., COOK, J., VAN DER LINDEN, S., ROOZENBEEK, J. AND ORESKES, N. (2022) ‘The psychological drivers of misinformation belief and its resistance to correction’, Nature Reviews Psychology, 1(1), pp. 13–29. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44159-021-00006-y
EUROPEAN EXTERNAL ACTION SERVICE (2025) 3rd EEAS report on foreign information manipulation and interference threats: Exposing the architecture of FIMI operations, March. Available at: https://www.eeas.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/2025/EEAS-3nd-ThreatReport-March-2025-05-Digital-HD.pdf
GEISSLER, D., BÄR, D., PRÖLLOCHS, N. AND FEUERRIEGEL, S. (2023) ‘Russian propaganda on social media during the 2022 invasion of Ukraine’, EPJ Data Science, 12(1), Article 35. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1140/epjds/s13688-023-00414-5
HORBYK, R., PRYMACHENKO, Y. AND ORLOVA, D. (2023) ‘The transformation of propaganda: The continuities and discontinuities of information operations within Soviet/Russian active measures’, Nordic Journal of Media Studies, 5(1), pp. 68–94. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2478/njms-2023-0005
JAKUBOWSKI, J. AND ZINICHENKO, V. (2024) ‘From classic to TikTok propaganda: Russian aggression in Ukraine and new media perspective’, Polityka i Społeczeństwo, 3(22), pp. 98–111. Available at: https://repozytorium.ur.edu.pl/handle/item/11330
LEWANDOWSKY, S., ECKER, U.K.H. AND COOK, J. (2017) ‘Beyond misinformation: Understanding and coping with the “post-truth” era’, Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 6(4), pp. 353–369. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jarmac.2017.07.008
MARWICK, A.E. AND LEWIS, R. (2017) Media manipulation and disinformation online. New York: Data & Society Research Institute. Available at: https://datasociety.net/library/media-manipulation-and-disinfo-online/
MUSTAȚĂ, M.-A. Et al. (2023) ‘Assessing the truthfulness of security and defence news in Central and Eastern Europe: The role of cognitive style and the promise of epistemic sophistication’, Applied Cognitive Psychology, 37(6), pp. 1384–1396. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.4130
PASITSELSKA, O. (2022) ‘Better ask your neighbor: Renegotiating media trust during the Russian–Ukrainian conflict’, Human Communication Research, 48(2), pp. 179–202. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hqac003
POCHEPTSOV, H.H. (2016) Meanings and wars: Ukraine and Russia in information and meaning wars. Kyiv: Vydavnychyi dim “Kyievo-Mohylianska akademiia”. Available at: http://www.eebooks.de/Smysly-i-viiny-Ukraina-i-Rosiia-v-informatsiinii-i-smyslovii-viinakh
POLYAKOVA, A. AND BOYER, S.P. (2018) The future of political warfare: Russia, the West, and the coming age of global digital competition, March. Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution. Available at: https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/the-future-of-political-warfare.pdf
PROHONIUK, L. (2025) ‘The role of media communications in ensuring the information security of the state in a hybrid warfare: Challenges, threats and ways to increase the sustainability of society’, Society. Technology. Solutions. Proceedings of the International Scientific Conference, 3, pp. 44–45. Available at: https://doi.org/10.35363/ViA.sts.2025.129
ROMAŃSKI, R. (2025a) ‘Mechanisms of disinformation amplification in hybrid warfare: The case of the conflict in Ukraine’, Bulletin of «Carol I» National Defence University, 14(2), pp. 123–138. Available at: https://doi.org/10.53477/2284-9378-25-13
ROMAŃSKI, R. (2025b) ‘Mechanisms of disinformation amplification in hybrid warfare: The case of the conflict in Ukraine’, Bulletin of «Carol I» National Defence University, 14(2), pp. 139–154. Available at: https://doi.org/10.53477/2284-9378-25-13
TUMBER, H. AND WAISBORD, S. (eds.) (2021) The Routledge companion to media disinformation and populism. London: Routledge. Available at: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003004431
WARDLE, C. AND DERAKHSHAN, H. (2017) Information disorder: Toward an interdisciplinary framework for research and policymaking. Strasbourg: Council of Europe. Available at: https://rm.coe.int/information-disorder-toward-an-interdisciplinary-framework-for-researc/168076277c
WOOLLEY, S.C. AND HOWARD, P.N. (eds.) (2019) Computational propaganda: Political parties, politicians, and political manipulation on social media. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190931407.001.0001
ZUBOFF, S. (2019) The age of surveillance capitalism: The fight for a human future at the new frontier of power. New York: PublicAffairs. Available at: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=56791
ZHUYKOVA, M. (2024) ‘Potochne znannya vs. naukove znannya v definitsiyakh zahalʹnykh tlumachnykh slovnykiv [Commonsense knowledge vs. scientific knowledge in the definitions of general dictionaries]’, Synopsys: Text, Context, Media, 30(1), pp. 34–42. Available at: https://doi.org/10.28925/2311-259x.2024.1.5
Publicado
2026-05-02
Cómo citar
Sogorin, A., Atamanenko, I., Purnak, V., Martynov, I., & Halukh, O. (2026). Hybrid Conflicts: Digital media as instrument for manipulating. What has it been like in Ukraine?. Espacio Abierto, 35(3), 9-24. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19687145
Sección
En foco: Interpretación sociológica de conflictos híbridos
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