Trending headlines containing nuclear-related terms have increased significantly.
The Ukrainian Center for Countering Disinformation posted a message to Telegram on August 29, 2022, saying:
The Kremlin expects that, given the need for Europe's nuclear security, it will convince the IAEA of the need to connect the nuclear power plant to Russian power grids. Or, in the event of an impossibility, stop the operation of the ZNPP altogether so that electricity is not supplied to Ukraine during the heating season and is not exported to Europe.At the request of the Russian Federation, among the IAEA experts there are no specialists from countries that strongly support Ukraine. For the most part, the mission will consist of experts from "neutral" countries.
Russia has attempted to frame the situation in Zaporizhzhya as the Ukrainians recklessly shelling a nuclear power plant.
Hoaxlines compiled trending headlines from pro-Kremlin sources to complement reporting and disinformation tracking related to the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant. The graph below shows counts for trending headlines containing the nuclear-related search term by date for both Trending headline tracker tables (non-Russian and Russian-language sources). Access the live graph here.
The graph shows a significant uptick in the number of headlines matching the nuclear-related search query in August 2022. The last time we saw a similar elevation was at the end of May 2022. The increase may indicate Russia sees provoking fear of nuclear disaster as advantageous at this time (Gittleson, 2022). The Hamilton Dashboard created for tracking media related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine shows similar trends. The board reflects all output rather than trending headlines.
Though more detailed data analysis would be needed to confirm, we speculate that the increase in nuclear-related headlines may be the product of inauthentic activity and coordinated messaging. The number of tweets from Russian state-affiliated accounts about nuclear threats increased in August 2022. The increase in articles per day was more modest.
The Russian state has a history of effective media manipulation using inauthentic activity (Marwick & Lewis, 2017). Boosting the content past an algorithm threshold means more people will see the articles, and the content may then scare, confuse, or mislead them (Agarwal et al., 2017). Inauthentic activity and coordinated messaging may explain the increased number of trending headlines.
Pro-Kremlin trending headlines from Russian-language sources.
Messaging directed at the domestic Russian population includes claims like “The authorities of the Zaporizhzhya region said that Kyiv had disconnected Ukraine from the NPP with its own hands” and “A terrorist attack is prevented at the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, and the Ukrainian shock drone is shot down.” The content presents Russia as being accommodating and inviting toward a “neutral” party. Examples include the headline “Russia welcomes the mission of the IAE at the Zaporizhzhya NPP” and “ The provocation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was prevented at the Zaporizhzhya NPP.”
The headlines about nuclear threats appeared alongside headlines about a referendum in early August and have picked up again.
headline_en | source | published |
|---|---|---|
In the Zaporizhzhya region, they called the shelling of the Armed Forces of Energodar by revenge for collecting signatures under the appeal in the IAEA | tvzvezda.rutvzvezda.ru | August 29, 2022 |
Magate will leave several people at the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant on an ongoing basis | tvzvezda.rutvzvezda.ru | August 29, 2022 |
Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation: Russia welcomes the mission of the IAE at the Zaporizhzhya NPP | tvzvezda.rutvzvezda.ru | August 29, 2022 |
MO RF: On August 28, Ukraine used a drone to strike at the territory of the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant | tvzvezda.rutvzvezda.ru | August 29, 2022 |
The Kamidze USC, which drew in the vault of nuclear waste, is shot down over the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant | kz.tsargrad.tvkz.tsargrad.tv | August 29, 2022 |
A terrorist attack is prevented at the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, and the Ukrainian shock drone is shot down | md.tsargrad.tvmd.tsargrad.tv | August 28, 2022 |
The Director General of the IAEA admitted the possibility of an accident at the Zaporizhzhia NPP | by.tsargrad.tvby.tsargrad.tv | August 26, 2022 |
The authorities of the Zaporozhye region said that Kiev had disconnected Ukraine from the NPP with its own hands | segodnia.rusegodnia.ru | August 26, 2022 |
In the Zaporizhzhia region, Kyiv is afraid of disrupting the visit of the IAEA mission to the NPP | tvzvezda.rutvzvezda.ru | August 25, 2022 |
In Zaporizhzhia, they said that the shelling of the NPP threatens to disrupt energy supplies to Europe | tvzvezda.rutvzvezda.ru | August 25, 2022 |
Pro-Kremlin trending headlines from non-Russian language sources
headline_en | domain | pub_date |
|---|---|---|
Kiev shelling damages roof of nuclear reactor fuel storage – official | rt.comrt.com | August 29, 2022 |
German Experts Warn Of Grid Instability..."Conventional Power Plants Needed For A Long Time To Come" | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 29, 2022 |
Ukrainian drone downed over nuclear plant – MoD | rt.comrt.com | August 29, 2022 |
Swiss Politicians Form 'Stop The Blackouts' Coalition: "We Cannot Do Without Nuclear Power Plants" | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 29, 2022 |
The UN secretary general calls to "relegate nuclear weapons to history" | actualidad.rt.comactualidad.rt.com | August 29, 2022 |
Ukrainian forces bomb the city where the Zaporozhie nuclear power plant is located | actualidad.rt.comactualidad.rt.com | August 28, 2022 |
Growing Risk Ukraine Nuclear Plant Could Sputter Radioactive Substances: Operator | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 27, 2022 |
Zelensky Warns Of "Radiation Disaster" As Reconnected Nuclear Reactor Is Building Up Capacity | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 26, 2022 |
Artillery hits Zaporozhye nuclear dump | rt.comrt.com | August 26, 2022 |
Nuclear-For-All Is A Real Green Policy In A Dangerous World | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 26, 2022 |
One of two ZNPP units disconnected from power grid after Kiev's strike commissioned again | tass.comtass.com | August 25, 2022 |
Security systems activated at Zaporozhye nuclear power plant – officials | rt.comrt.com | August 25, 2022 |
Oil Spikes After Local Media Reports 'No Iran Nuclear Deal' | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 24, 2022 |
In Stunning Post-Fukushima Shift, Japan Revisits Nuclear Power As Global Energy Turmoil Worsens | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 24, 2022 |
Damage to Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant revealed (VIDEO) | rt.comrt.com | August 24, 2022 |
Evidence of Ukrainian shelling of Zaporozhye provided to UN | rt.comrt.com | August 23, 2022 |
LIVE: The UN Security Council discusses the situation at the Zaporozhie NPP | actualidad.rt.comactualidad.rt.com | August 23, 2022 |
Iran Slams US For Procrastinating On Nuclear Deal | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 23, 2022 |
Top German Official Says Life Extensions For All Nuclear Power Plants Unlikely | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 22, 2022 |
Ukraine's continued shelling of Zaporozhye NPP leads to disaster, says diplomat | tass.comtass.com | August 21, 2022 |
IAEA mission to Zaporozhye. WaPo damages Zelensky. Putin at the G20. Part 2 | theduran.comtheduran.com | August 20, 2022 |
Iran drops key demand for nuclear deal revival — media | rt.comrt.com | August 20, 2022 |
Details Of New Iran Nuclear Deal Approved By Tehran: Report | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 20, 2022 |
Details of EU plan to revive Iranian nuclear deal leaked to media | rt.comrt.com | August 19, 2022 |
Putin Warns Macron "Large-Scale Catastrophe" Looms At Ukraine Nuclear Plant | zerohedge.comzerohedge.com | August 19, 2022 |
An aggregated list of headlines from pro-Kremlin sources that matched a nuclear-related query has been compiled here. This is for reference only and has not been verified or screened for unrelated headlines. We’re making it available in case it is of use to anyone.
References
- Agarwal, N., Al-Khateeb, S., Galeano, R. & Goolsby, R. (2017). Examining the use of botnets and their evolution in propaganda dissemination. Defence Strategic Communications, 2(1), 87–112.
- Gittleson B. Putin’s nuclear alert part of “pattern” of “manufacturing threats”: Psaki. In: ABC News [Internet]. 27 Feb 2022 [cited 29 Aug 2022]. Available: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/putins-nuclear-alert-part-pattern-manufacturing-threats-psaki/story?id=83130027
- Marwick & Lewis. (2017). Media manipulation and disinformation online. Data & Society. https://datasociety.net/library/media-manipulation-and-disinfo-online/