Elements of War Propaganda in Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Crisis Communication

Abstract

Propaganda refers to the conscious or unconscious attempt to manipulate a specific group in order to achieve a desired goal. Particularly in English-speaking coun-tries it becomes synonymous with deceit and falsehood. While scientific literature abounds with studies on wartime propaganda in various historical periods, only a small portion delves into the analysis of propaganda usage by individual politicians during wars. Similarly, a limited number of studies focus on the analysis of wartime propaganda in the public speeches of politicians during contemporary conflicts in a technologically advanced information and communication context. This paper examines the communication aspects of the Russian-Ukrainian War, with a specific focus on the communication of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy. By analyzing publicly available speeches of President Zelenskyy, the study explores whether elements of wartime propaganda are recognizable in his speeches and to what extent they occur. The analysis is based on the systematization of Anne Mo-relli’s ten principles of wartime propaganda, serving as the foundation for a generic framework or analysis matrix. The research has shown that Zelenskyy consistently employs elements of wartime propaganda in his speeches, with a twofold higher occurrence in international compared to national speeches. In international speeches, Zelenskyy tends to strongly focus on accusing the enemy of atrocities and initiating war, while in national speeches, he leans more towards boosting the morale of his own people, emphasizing the struggle for justifiable goals, and highlighting enemy losses. The examination of the occurrence of propaganda elements throughout the analyzed period indicates a constant presence in national speeches, while in international speeches, the occurrence increases over time.