Justification of Occupation in German (1938) and Russian (2014) Media: Substitution of Aggressor and Victim

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the examination and comparison of the justification of occupation of a neighboring country in the German (1938) and Russian (2014) media. The objective of the study is to reveal the mechanics of the application of the classical manipulative method of substituting of aggressor and victim on the material of German and Russian propaganda in 1938 and in 2014 respectively. According to the results of the study, clear parallels between the two information strategies can be traced at the level of the condemnation of internal aggression against a national minority loyal to Berlin / Moscow and its political representative (the Sudeten Germans – the pro-Russian Ukrainians, as well as the security forces of the Yanukovych regime); the reflections on dangers that Czechoslovakia / Ukraine poses to itself and to its neighbors; condemnation of the violation of the cultural rights of the minority that the occupier intends to protect (German language and culture – Russian language and culture); the historical parallels designed to deepen the modern conflict, to show it as a long-standing and a natural one (“Hussites” – “Banderites”). In the manipulative strategy of both media, the main focus is not on factual fabrication, but on the bias selection of facts, due to which the reader should have an unambiguous understanding of who is the permanent aggressor in the conflict (Czechoslovakia, Czechs – Ukraine, Ukrainians), and who is the permanent victim (Germans – Russians, Russian speakers). The substitution of victim and aggressor in the media in both cases became one of the most important manipulative strategies designed to justify the German occupation of part of Czechoslovakia and the Russian occupation of part of Ukraine.