The Power of Russian Propaganda: Understanding the "Soviet Book Syndrome"

The Kremlin is using the "Soviet Book Syndrome" to exploit citizens' fears and sell its justification for the invasion of Ukraine. Many Russians see the war as a just fight against the "collective West," which is exactly what Putin wants them to think. Contemporary Russian propaganda is strikingly different from Soviet propaganda, and it takes into account that people can get information from different sources. Disillusionment with the Soviet regime and the so-called democracy in the 1990s has shaped Russia's apoliticism, especially as many think the war doesn't affect them.