Who is Ukraine’s enemy: narratives in the military communication regarding the war in Donbas

ABSTRACT

The war in Donbas has caused significant changes in the attitudes and values of Ukrainians. The army, which was considered a completely corrupt and outdated institution before 2014, turned into one of the country’s most trusted political actors. The significant stream of volunteers who joined the army, and the subsequent high level of financial support provided by Ukrainian people, are among the reasons for this shift. All of these factors, together with the ongoing low-grade war in Ukraine, explain the heightened interest in how the army communicates with the rest of the country. This research is aimed at looking more deeply at the narratives which underlie official military communication in Ukraine and to identify changes, if any, occurring throughout the period from 2014 to 2017. This study focuses on the gap in understanding how the military institution regards the war in Donbas and through which narratives it communicates the war to its audience.

KEYWORDS:

• Strategic narratives
• military communication
• a clash of narratives
• war in Donbas
• war coverage

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Daria Taradai, Ph.D., is a senior lecturer in Mohyla School of Journalism (NaUKMA, Kyiv, Ukraine). Ms. Taradai is teaching International Journalism which is the sphere of her main research interest. Also, she takes part in international research studying the coverage of the war and post-war situation in Ukraine.