Bearing Truthiness: Russia’s Cyclical Legitimation of its Actions

Abstract

This article investigates drivers and mechanisms of policy legitimation in authoritarian states. In highly interconnected and digitalised environments, non-democratic states need to legitimise their policies in order to maintain and cultivate the support of their populations. While democracies are more likely to pursue legitimation through enhanced policy performance, authoritarian states are likely to legitimise their actions through repression and control mechanisms: information control, enhancement of popular sentiments, and narrative shaping. The article elucidates these arguments by focusing on Russia’s actions in three specific contexts, namely Crimea’s annexation, the destruction of sanctioned food products, and military involvement in the Syrian crisis.

Notes

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⁴ For reasons of space and efficiency, the article uses the term Russia when referring to the Russian government or President Putin’s actions.

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¹⁸ Based on the author’s conversation with a representative of the Levada Centre, Berlin, 22 October 2015.

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