POLITICAL MOBILIZATION ON TikTok: RUSSIAN-SPEAKING USERS BEFORE AND DURING THE SPECIAL MILITARY OPERATION
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17072/2218-1067-2025-3-40-50Keywords:
social media, TikTok, political mobilization, digital processing, participationAbstract
This research examines changes in TikTok content following the start of the Russian Federation's special military operation and the platform's blockade in Russia, suggesting that these events created "mobilization conditions" that led to increased politicization of Russian-speaking content. The study analyzed videos and their metadata, including hashtags, using two datasets: one from the period before the special military operation (244 hashtags, 19 thematic groups, 2,520 videos) and one from after (187 hashtags, 17 groups, 851 videos). The Russian-language segment of TikTok contained political content even before the special military operation, including videos on democracy issues, elections, actions by opposition forces, etc. After the start of the special military operation, most highly viewed and liked videos in the Russian-language TikTok segment analyzed focused on political issues, primarily military. The researchers associate the obtained results with changes in the everyday life of Russian TikTok users: the videos reflect relevant issues. Another explanation for the politicization of video content may be connected with the change in users structure in blocked TikTok: tools for bypassing the blocking were used specifically by those TikTokers who were ready to promote their civic position on the Internet.References
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