In total, twenty four news articles were selected for our dataset. 12 were from American publications and 12 were from Russian publications. Half of these texts are pre-initial event and the other half are post-intial event. We selected these articles due to the presence of falsified information, tone, and propaganda techniques. Articles were chosen with the purpose of examining the language which hint at bias of the author, publication, and country of origin.
We marked up each text with the tags validity, emotion, and technique. Validity was selected because disinformation is one of the most powerful tools that can be used in a publication to sway the reader’s opinion, and thus is an important marker of bias. Emotion was selected because often the desired result of spreading skewed or dishonest information is to make the reader feel a certain way. Technique was selected because often disinformation or biased material relies on specific tactics to get the point across, and such tactics can contribute to how effective a biased writing is.
The territory that we know to be Ukraine has a long history of occupation by Russia. From the Russian Empire through the Soviet Union, most parts of Ukraine were under Russian control. As a result of Russian influence over this territory, the Russian language adopted the usage of the word "на" for Ukraine. "на Украине" (na Ukraine) roughly translates to "on Ukraine."
In Russian, countries are typically referred to using the word "в" (v) which roughly translates to "in." In English, "в Украине" translates to "in Ukraine" and "на украине" translates to "on Ukraine" or "in the Ukraine."
As a result of the historical connection between Ukraine and Russia, many Russian speakers who grew up in the former Soviet Union will use "на Украине." This term originates from a time in which Ukraine was not a soverign nation and was rather a borderland of Russian territory. The conscious shift towards "в Украине" after Ukraine separated from the Soviet Union is a symbol of the soverignty of the Ukrainian people and government. The usage of "на Украине" can imply that Ukraine is not actually a soverign nation. Ukrainian Russian speakers will most often use "в Украине."
We labeled every instance of "на Украине" with the rhetorical technique of "loaded words" due to its cultural and historical significance. Almost every article published in the Russian Media used "на Украине" instead of "в Украине."
Scroll through the tables below to view definitions for the different types of validities, emotions, and techniques
| Validity Type | Definition |
|---|---|
| Unverified | We were unable to determine if the content is true or false. This category also encompasses opinions |
| Verified | The content has been verified by multiple sources and is true to the fullest extent of our knowledge |
| Mixed | The content is partially true and partially false or unverified |
| Disinformation | The content contains false information |
| Onesided | The content may be true to one side and believed to be untrue to another |
| NA | Validity was not relevant or needed |
| Emotion Type | Definition |
|---|---|
| Hope | The content expresses feelings which seem hopeful or positive |
| Comradery | The content expresses positive relations or partnership with another |
| Sarcastic | The content appears to mock or exaggerate someone or something |
| Anger | The content shows frustration or discontent with the situation |
| Fear | The content expresses concerns about the situation or future |
| Dread | The content expresses pessimistic worry or panic about the situation |
| Pride | The content exudes satisfaction, contentment, or has a complementary tone toward the situation or the people |
| Downplay | The content attempts to remove urgency or seriousness regarding the situation |
| Neutral | The content uses no emotional language |
| NA | The content was not evaluated to be emotional |
| Technique Type | Definition |
|---|---|
| Bandwagon | The content urges that other parties following suit with their actions and that the reader should too |
| Testimony | The content includes testimony from a public figure |
| Glittering Generalities | The conent seeks to make the reader approve and accept the information without examining the evidence. This also includes phrases/words that are concepts like "freedom" that have no clear definition. |
| Loaded Words | The content uses words/phrases that are strong in historical or cultural significance |
| Elicitation | The content attempts to elicit an emotion from the readers |
| Push Blame | The content attempts to push the blame or responsibility for an issue/problem onto another group |
| NA | The content was not employing a propaganda technique |