Because Sept 22 has been announced as a ‘national day of mourning’ in
Australia, I am confirming that we SHALL be going ahead with our fantastic
online Roundtable!
K
From: lct-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <lct-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> on behalf of LCT
Centre <lctcentreglobal@xxxxxxxxx>
Date: Friday, 9 September 2022 at 14:34
To: lct@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <lct@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, asflanet@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<asflanet@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [LCT] [Roundtable] SAVE THE DATE! Information warfare and
constellations!
[cid:ii_183208282e3fec6d6c41]
Next LCT Centre Online Roundtable: September 22nd – **4 pm SYD**
Disinformation as a weapon: Analysing information warfare with ‘clusters’ and
‘constellations’
Eszter Szenes and Mark W. Perry
We are constantly faced with disinformation and conspiracy theories that seem
to spread faster than fact-checkers and experts can debunk them. This
persistent information blitzkrieg is amplified by social media, mass media,
state-sponsored troll factories and automated bots. One example of such
state-coordinated information warfare is the Kremlin’s propaganda ecosystem. In
this Roundtable we demonstrate the usefulness of the LCT concepts of clusters
and constellations, which explore how certain kinds of meanings are condensed
and grouped together, for the study of information warfare.
Specifically, we will unpack the disinformation campaigns that were
strategically conducted in parallel to Russia’s 2015 intervention in Syria and
its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Findings reveal how recognisable and
recurring configurations or patterns of meanings cluster into information
tactics that portray Russia’s adversaries as terrorist recruiters and
aggressors bent on encircling Russia and committing atrocities. In contrast,
clusters that project Russia’s superior military capabilities and position it
as a global superpower and a humanitarian protecting local populations are most
closely tied to Russian military objectives. By identifying the role of these
cluster bombs in creating axiological constellations of alternative realities
and comparing them to open-source conflict data, we illustrate the potential of
an LCT-informed approach for predicting future military interventions in other
contexts.
Date: Thursday, 22 September 2022
Time: 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm SYDNEY TIME (Figure out your local time
here<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/eq8SCQnMBZf65GWA0Ux2wau?domain=timeanddate.com>)
Venue: ONLINE ZOOM
Link: https://uni-sydney.zoom.us/j/82775521047
Password: LCT
Meeting ID: 827 7552 1047
Please use your name or you won’t be allowed in.
If more than 30 minutes late, email:
lctcentreglobal@xxxxxxxxx<mailto:lctcentreglobal@xxxxxxxxx>
<mailto:lctcentreglobal@xxxxxxxxx> .