The dominant position of Russian-language media has left Moldova the most vulnerable country in Eastern Europe to Kremlin propaganda, a new study claims.
Moldova is the most exposed country in Eastern Europe to Russian propaganda, owing to the dominance of Russian-language media, the Russian orientation of the main Church, poverty and lack of trust in the political class, according to a study called “Resistance to disinformation in Central and Eastern Europe”.
The researchers and authors from the Ukrainian NGO Prism identified three major groups of the population who are most vulnerable to Kremlin propaganda.
The first one is the Russian-speaking community, much larger than the ethnic Russian community, which makes up almost 20 per cent of the population.
The second is active followers of the Orthodox Church in Moldova, which is canonically subordinate to the Russian Orthodox Patriarchate in Moscow.
The third are the 718,000 pensioners in Moldova who traditionally rely for news on the mainly Russian-language television stations and newspapers.
“The elderly, especially in rural regions, have a tougher time in distinguishing between propaganda and actual information. While the younger generation may use alternative sources from the web, the older people are ‘bombarded’ by Russian and local propaganda,” the study said, quoting Petru Macovei, director of the Independent Press Association, based in Chisinau.
Ten out of the 15 main popular televisions stations in Moldova broadcast in Russian. As official statistics show that most of them cannot survive on their own income, there are questions regarding their financing sources, the study said.
The study monitored a total of 14 states which are deemed vulnerable to Russian propaganda, from May 2017 to May 2018.
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