Digital Warfare: Media and Technologies in the Russo-Ukrainian War
Bielefeld: transcript Verlag (2025), 366 pp.
Contains figures
Series: Edition Politik, 176
ISBN 978-3-8376-7521-4 (print); 978-3-8394-7521-8 (pdf)
"Digital media and technologies remain unpredictable when we approach them as actors in armed conflicts. Artificial intelligence, drones, information leaks, hacking, propaganda and fakes become part of war reality. The contributors to this volume prompt us to focus on the virtual fronts of the Russo-Ukrainian War, examining the agency of an individual, community and society in the digitalized war reality. This collection illustrates how digital spaces empower society to stay resilient, resist Russia's aggression and defend democratic values in times of adversity and severe trials." (Publisher description)
Foreword: War in the Smartphone Age / Matthew Ford, 13
Introducing Digital War: Ukraine, Russia and the Augmented Frontlines of the Future / Roman Horbyk, 17
PART I. SOCIETY, COMMUNICATION AND ACTIVISM
1 Homeland Humanitarianism in Russia’s War Against Ukraine: a Study of Four Ukrainian Diasporic Communities / Olga Boichak, 45
2 From Leaflets to Livestreams: The Evolution of Wartime Communication / Oksana Domina, 69
3 Language of War: Neologisms in British Media and Their Role in the Ukrainian War Narrative / Nadiya Ivanenko, 85
PART II. WAR REALITY AND DISINFORMATION
4 AI visions: Representing Russia's War Against Ukraine for Humans and Machines / Mykola Makhortykh and Miglė Bareikytė, 107
5 LLMs as Information Warriors? Auditing how LLM-Powered Chatbots Tackle Disinformation about Russia’s War in Ukraine / Mykola Makhortykh, Ani Baghumyan, Victoria Vziatysheva, Maryna Sydorova and Elizaveta Kuznetsova, 123
6 #Biolabs: The Spread of a Russian Disinformation Campaign to the German Social Media and Public Sphere / Jonas Ziock, Fiete Stegers and Christian Stöcker, 151
7 More Than Slacktivism: Russian Instagram Celebrities at the Outbreak of War in Ukraine / Nuppu Pelevina, 177
PART III. MEMORY, COMMUNITY AND RESILIENCE
8 An Unexpected Battlefield: Weaponization of Online Piracy as a New Domain in Digital War / Kateryna Boyko, 199
9 “Today We are Drawing Death”: Instagram’s Role in Artistic Responses to the Bombing of Okhmatdyt / Alina Mozolevska, 219
10 “May the Force Be with You”: Ukrainian War Humor as a Sign of Resilience / Orest Semotiuk, 241
11 When War Cats Go Viral / Elena Korowin, 257
PART IV. RELIGION, MEDIA AND WAR
12 The Ukrainian Orthodox Church’s Online Media After the 2022 Invasion: A Strained Attempt to Hold a Middle Ground / Jacob Lassin, 277
13 The World Russian People’s Council and Russo-Ukrainian Relations: From Forging Hegemony to Promoting Domination / Bojidar Kolov, 295
14 “The Lord is my Banner”: Making War Sacred in Russian Orthodox Media / Nadia Zasanska, 317
PART V. BOOK REVIEWS
Managing Meaning in Ukraine: Information, Communication, and Narration since the Euromaidan Revolution by Göran Bolin and Per Ståhlberg, Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2023, 347
War in the Smartphone Age: Conflict, Connectivity and the Crises at our Fingertips by Matthew Ford, London: C. Hurst & Co Publishers, 2025, 351
APPENDIX
Afterword: Digital Formation of Resistance / Nadiya Ivanenko and Nadia Zasanska, 357
Introducing Digital War: Ukraine, Russia and the Augmented Frontlines of the Future / Roman Horbyk, 17
PART I. SOCIETY, COMMUNICATION AND ACTIVISM
1 Homeland Humanitarianism in Russia’s War Against Ukraine: a Study of Four Ukrainian Diasporic Communities / Olga Boichak, 45
2 From Leaflets to Livestreams: The Evolution of Wartime Communication / Oksana Domina, 69
3 Language of War: Neologisms in British Media and Their Role in the Ukrainian War Narrative / Nadiya Ivanenko, 85
PART II. WAR REALITY AND DISINFORMATION
4 AI visions: Representing Russia's War Against Ukraine for Humans and Machines / Mykola Makhortykh and Miglė Bareikytė, 107
5 LLMs as Information Warriors? Auditing how LLM-Powered Chatbots Tackle Disinformation about Russia’s War in Ukraine / Mykola Makhortykh, Ani Baghumyan, Victoria Vziatysheva, Maryna Sydorova and Elizaveta Kuznetsova, 123
6 #Biolabs: The Spread of a Russian Disinformation Campaign to the German Social Media and Public Sphere / Jonas Ziock, Fiete Stegers and Christian Stöcker, 151
7 More Than Slacktivism: Russian Instagram Celebrities at the Outbreak of War in Ukraine / Nuppu Pelevina, 177
PART III. MEMORY, COMMUNITY AND RESILIENCE
8 An Unexpected Battlefield: Weaponization of Online Piracy as a New Domain in Digital War / Kateryna Boyko, 199
9 “Today We are Drawing Death”: Instagram’s Role in Artistic Responses to the Bombing of Okhmatdyt / Alina Mozolevska, 219
10 “May the Force Be with You”: Ukrainian War Humor as a Sign of Resilience / Orest Semotiuk, 241
11 When War Cats Go Viral / Elena Korowin, 257
PART IV. RELIGION, MEDIA AND WAR
12 The Ukrainian Orthodox Church’s Online Media After the 2022 Invasion: A Strained Attempt to Hold a Middle Ground / Jacob Lassin, 277
13 The World Russian People’s Council and Russo-Ukrainian Relations: From Forging Hegemony to Promoting Domination / Bojidar Kolov, 295
14 “The Lord is my Banner”: Making War Sacred in Russian Orthodox Media / Nadia Zasanska, 317
PART V. BOOK REVIEWS
Managing Meaning in Ukraine: Information, Communication, and Narration since the Euromaidan Revolution by Göran Bolin and Per Ståhlberg, Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2023, 347
War in the Smartphone Age: Conflict, Connectivity and the Crises at our Fingertips by Matthew Ford, London: C. Hurst & Co Publishers, 2025, 351
APPENDIX
Afterword: Digital Formation of Resistance / Nadiya Ivanenko and Nadia Zasanska, 357
