2009 Articles

Weaponizing the Story: Chechen and Russian Media Operations

Billingsley, Dodge

While “warfare remains a violent clash of interests between organized groups characterized by the use of force,” the media war was, and still is, a critical component for both Russian and Chechen strategies in the fight for Chechnya. The wars in Chechnya were won and lost, in large part, by the attention or lack thereof on the part of both sides to information operations, specifically media operations. The Chechen and Russian approaches to media operations were significantly different during the first war (1994-1996); there was also a discernible shift in the nature of media operations conducted by both sides during the second war (1999-present).