Golbraikh V.B.Russian anti-vaccine movement in social media: protests, forms of participation. Current problems of Europe. 2023. No. 3 (119). Pp. 194-213.

Текст статьи на сайте журнала URL: https://upe-journal.ru/article.php?id=2537 (дата обращения 24.11.2023)

Abstract

Social media are essential sources of information on various socio-political issues, including health and healthcare issues. Social media has become a central platform for the dissemination of anti-vaccine views. This study analyzes to what extent the conflict around the introduction of QR codes during the COVID-19 pandemic has become the agenda in the largest social media in Russia – VKontakte. As part of the study, several types of virtual communities on VKontakte were considered: 1) virtual communities created by supporters of the anti-vaccine movement; 2) the community of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation; 3) territorial virtual communities. The content analysis method was used to analyze posts and comments. The study showed that the topic of protests against the introduced QR codes is present in a wide variety of virtual communities. At the same time, the analysis revealed a weak digital network participation of users in such forms of digital participation as reposts and comments in all types of virtual communities. The study found a significant difference between the “anti-actionist” communities and the Communist Party communities, on the one hand, and the territorial communities, on the other, in using them to mobilize citizens in protest actions against the introduced QR codes. The study showed that Russian social networks, like social media in other countries, continue to be a resource for drawing citizens' attention to conflicts around issues such as the introduction of QR codes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Virtual communities were public forums where there was a fierce discussion in connection with the measures taken by the authorities. The analysis showed that the arguments expressed by anti-vaccinationists do not generally differ from the arguments of their likeminded people in other states.