Identifying Patterns of Russia’s Malign Influence Operations in Online Spaces and Their Influences on Russian-Speaking Populations and Russian Diasporas
Co-Principal Investigators: Dr. Catherine Luther, University of Tennessee and Lt. Col./Dr. Jahara “Franky” Matisek, U.S. Naval War College
Co-Investigators: Dr. Olga Chiriac, Irregular Warfare Initiative of the Modern War Institute at West Point; Dr. Suzie Allard, University of Tennessee; Dr. R. Alexander Bentley, University of Tennessee; Dr. Benjamin Horne, University of Tennessee; Dr. Garriy Shteynberg, University of Tennessee
Years of Award: 2024-2026
Managing Service Agency: Office of Naval Research
Project Description:
This project will entail two overarching objectives. The first is to conduct case studies on the processes and effects of Russia’s malign influence operations targeting Russian-speaking populations and diasporas in the former Warsaw Pact country of Romania and the former Soviet Union country of Moldova. The second will be to be conduct workshops for Professional Military Education (PME) students on the main theoretical frameworks and methods used in our research. Two of the PME students will also work closely with the research team as research assistants, which will allow them to further delve into the concepts driving the project and learn the methods employed in data analyses.