Soviet and Russian Disinformation are a subset of what are called Active Measures.
Active Measures (AM), as a part of Russian Information Warfare, by my rough estimate, accounts for 10% of what Russian media and their proxies publish on behalf of Russia. They contribute nothing positive for anybody. AM simply undermines a target, for instance, the United States, Ukraine, the UK. Often AM provides nothing else other than a reference upon which a more legitimate or mainstream “news source” might allude to in order to substantiate a usually bogus claim against the target. Russia, much more so than their Soviet predecessors, flings copious amounts of bullcrap against the proverbial wall to see what sticks. The quality of Russian AM is far, far below that of the Soviets. I am left wondering three things in one question – What am I not seeing? Is this the cover (smoke/obscurant) for the crafty good stuff? If something is classified about this, what good does it do anyone?
One last question. Where did all the good Soviet “lessons learned” go? This new generation just sucks <censored>. That reset button didn’t mean flush.
I am currently writing a chapter dealing with Russian Information Warfare and Active Measures are a large part of what they are doing. Notice my choice of words, please, this is what Russia is doing in addition to what they have done.
I owe you, dear reader, a paper describing the very nature of Active Measures, it will be here soon. Please, hearken back to a blog I did some time ago, Russian News And Russian Proxy News Sites. The proxy news sites are the key, here. Active Measures generally use “news sites” set up outside Russia and only occasionally publish stories given to them by their Russian sponsors. Generally they are set up by Russia, sometimes far in advance of their use. They will publish ordinary news stories, for the most part, but then one story will be planted by their Russian sponsor. Eventually we will tie this all together.
When dealing with Russian Information Warfare, not including all the eight (plus) parts of Russian Information Warfare does the reader a disservice and provides incomplete information for the information community.
On a personal note. Dear Russian propagandists, do you feel your sources and methods becoming more and more exposed? Does the mud you are sleeping in feel comfortable?
A dear friend, kh, has been kind enough to forward to me a number of references to Soviet disinformation. I took what she sent me and expanded upon it. This list is by no means exhaustive, but it gives me a foundation on which to work. I thought it too good not to share.
- The KGB and Soviet Disinformation: An Insider’s View
- Bittman, Ladislav. The KGB and Soviet disinformation: an insider’s view. Washington: Pergamon-Brassey’s, 1985.
- “Soviet disinformation.”
- Douglass Jr, Joseph D. “Soviet disinformation.” Strategic Review 9.1 (1981): 16-26.
- The New Image Makers
- Bittman, Ladislav, ed. The New Image-Makers: Soviet Propaganda & Disinformation Today. Potomac Books, 1988.
- Dezinformatsia: the strategy of soviet disinformation
- Shultz, Richard H., and Roy Godson. “Dezinformatsia: the strategy of soviet disinformation.” (1986).
- Webs of Soviet Disinformation
- Huyn, Hans Graf. “Webs of Soviet Disinformation.” Strategic Review (1984): 51-58.
- Secret empire: The KGB in Russia today
- Waller, J. Michael. Secret empire: The KGB in Russia today. Westview Pr, 1994.
- Warriors of Disinformation
- Snyder, Alvin A. Warriors of Disinformation. Arcade Publishing, 1997.
- Deception operations: studies in the East-West context
- Charters, David, and Maurice Tugwell. Deception operations: studies in the East-West context. Brassey’s UK, 1990.
- Target America: The influence of communist propaganda on US media
- Tyson, James L. Target America: The influence of communist propaganda on US media. Gateway Books, 1981.
- Curbing Soviet disinformation
- Holden, Constance. “Curbing Soviet disinformation.” Science (New York, NY)242.4879 (1988): 665-665.
- Disinformation as a KGB weapon in the Cold War
- Romerstein, Herbert. “Disinformation as a KGB weapon in the Cold War.”Journal of Intelligence History 1, no. 1 (2001): 54-67.
- Soviet Bloc ‘Disinformation’and other ‘Active Measures’
- Bittman, Ladislav. “Soviet Bloc ‘Disinformation’and other ‘Active Measures’.” In Intelligence Policy and National Security, pp. 212-228. Palgrave Macmillan UK, 1981.
- The Other Side of Perestroika The Hidden Dimension of the Gorbachev Era
- by Brian Crozier Demokratizatsiya: The Journal of Post-Soviet Democratization https://www.gwu.edu/~ieresgwu/assets/docs/demokratizatsiya%20archive/04-1_Crozier.PDF
- Russia’s Use of Disinformation in the Ukraine Conflict
- by John R. Haines February 2015 http://www.fpri.org/articles/2015/02/russias-use-disinformation-ukraine-conflict
- A Selected Chronology Of Crude, Derogatory Soviet Disinformation, January 1989 To August 1991
- Soviet Active Measures in The ‘Post-Cold War’ Era 1988-1991 http://intellit.muskingum.edu/russia_folder/pcw_era/sect_10a.htm
- Note to readers. I am not certain as to the authenticity of this source, however it originates at 163 Stormont Street, New Concord, OH, so I will include it until further notice.
Non-academic references
- Soviet Bloc Intelligence and Its AIDS Disinformation Campaign
- By Thomas Boghardt, CIA.gov, https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/vol53no4/pdf/U-%20Boghardt-AIDS-Made%20in%20the%20USA-17Dec.pdf
- Dezinformatsiya
- Barron, John. “Dezinformatsiya.” The Penguin Book of Lies. London: Viking(1990).
Filed under: Information operations
