Online memes on anti-American propaganda and the overlooked “silent majority” in support of authoritarian populism in Putin’s Russia

Abstract

Although memes are considered disruptive to elite control over political discourse, their viability for contestation in authoritarian settings remains uncertain. The present study addresses this question by analyzing Russian memes created to ridicule the Kremlin’s propaganda, which accuses the United States of undermining Russia domestically and internationally. These memes depict US presidents engaging in trivial acts of sabotage, from damaging worn-out roads to urinating in dilapidated buildings, thereby exposing the absurdity of Russia’s claims to superpower status. Importantly, the memes go beyond ridiculing the regime to vilify “ordinary Russians” as unsophisticated subscribers to the government’s narrative. The study shows that by focusing on the tug-of-war between the authorities and the protesting “vocal minority,” communication scholars may overlook a sizable “silent majority” that enables authoritarian consolidation. I argue that such outgroup memetic articulations, despite their limitations in mobilizing broader publics, offer valuable insights into authoritarian populism that surpass this empirically flawed binary logic.