In the last decade, the Western Balkans countries have been targeted by Russia’s disinformation campaigns. American historian Jason Steinhauer, who recently participated in a conference on this topic in Kosovo, said in an interview with Voice of America that this is part of a Russian plan aimed at undermining relations between Kosovo and the United States and the European Union, and to distance the region from alignment with the transatlantic alliance. In an interview with journalist Garentina Kraja, he stated that so far, this plan has seen moderate success due to funding, internal dissatisfaction, and historical reasons.

Voice of America: Mr. Steinhauer, you recently visited Kosovo, where you participated in the first Balkan conference on disinformation. What were your impressions of how societies and countries in the Balkans are dealing with this challenge and how are they fighting it?

Jason Steinhauer: Overall impressions of Kosovo are very positive. Kosovo has a resilient population that inspired me. However, the country faces many challenges, starting with pollution, climate change. There are many challenges with disinformation, media conditions, and media literacy, and this problem is present in all Balkan countries.

Voice of America: You are the author of the book “History, disrupted”, where you have written about how history has been influenced by social networks…

Jason Steinhauer: Yes, my argument is that just as we have felt the impact of social networks on politics, public health, and journalism, social media platforms have changed the way we speak and tell our history.

At the Pristina meeting, I argued that the more we use social networks to communicate about the past, the more the values ​​of social networks become our values. In other words, we changed the way we tell history and how our stories about history fit the spirit of social networks, privileging some types of history while others are neither seen nor told because we all aim to be as present as possible on social networks. When presence replaces accuracy, the key driver, which has long been the key element in history analysis and studies, then there will be significant consequences for the history we learn and the stories we face. Currently, in our public sphere, we have stories that are visible because we all use social networks to achieve this goal. But does this mean that the history we are seeing is accurate? And when we try to analyze the accuracy of information about a specific event we see on the internet, this picture becomes more complicated and problematic.

Voice of America: In an article about your impressions of Kosovo, you talk about Russia’s role. How is Russian propaganda influencing the distortion of history?

Jason Steinhauer: History can become a powerful weapon. We have seen such a distortion of history especially when it comes to Russia and Ukraine. Usually, when we think about history, we ask questions and try to find evidence to answer them. And so, we come to the conclusion whether something may have happened or not in the past.

In the case of Russia and Ukraine, for example, we have seen actors like Russia, like Putin, who have tried to overturn this historical process. In other words, they first draw the conclusion that interests them and then invent evidence to support their claims. Since we see so much historical information on our social networks every day, as consumers, it is often difficult for us to understand how this historical conclusion was reached. Are they based on accurate and honest methodology, or through a malicious aim to reach a predetermined conclusion?

In countries like the Balkans, we see a lack of critical media reading and a challenge with critical reading of history. It is part of my job to try to build this skill in society.

Voice of America: In this case, what are the disinformation campaigns that dominate and how should countries like Kosovo fight them?

Jason Steinhauer: I think critical reading of media and history is of vital importance. We need to teach people how to assess arguments and evaluate the methodology behind them, just as we teach people to appreciate proper journalism. We need to teach people how to understand whether it is well-researched history or not.

Regarding disinformation that I encountered during my stay in Kosovo, there are some major themes as well as individual examples that reinforce these themes. In Kosovo, the main theme is not to trust the United States, not to trust Europe, that integration into the European Union is not the right answer. That democracy is not the solution, that democracy is not working for you.

They aim to undermine the ties between Kosovo and Europe and of course the United States, or in the case of North Macedonia and Bulgaria, their relations with Europe and the US, and to make these countries look more sympathetically towards Moscow’s views and ultimately support its actions, as is the case in Ukraine. So, it’s about a plan that tries to redirect this part of the world towards the Kremlin and distance it from alignment with the transatlantic alliance, with the United States and Europe.

Voice of America: Have these efforts been successful?

Jason Steinhauer: From what I have seen, the impact has been moderate. There are experts who have studied these issues in more detail, but when you are there, you feel this disappointment because you see exactly how it works.

In many of these countries, unemployment is high, inflation is high, there is pollution, corruption, and all these things fuel dissatisfaction. And often in a society where there is dissatisfaction, it is easy to seek culprits and in this case the culprits are the European Union, the United States, and the transatlantic alliance. It is easy to blame them for very complex challenges. As a result, these theories gain weight. When you are dissatisfied, unemployed, when you cannot achieve goals in life, these theories can become very toxic. The way they are used makes them influential. And of course, disinformation campaigns know how to create divisions and sow discord in society. They also exploit major structural issues that have not yet been resolved.

Voice of America: What are the main obstacles in the fight against disinformation and distortion?

Jason Steinhauer: The main obstacle is funding. When I visited Kosovo, North Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Georgia, I met extraordinary organizations trying to do important work in this direction. But they have chronic problems with lack of funds. The future of these organizations is unclear because donors constantly change their priorities. Therefore, to support civil society in these countries, more investment is needed. For example, Russia spends about 1 to 4 billion dollars every year on information warfare, while in North Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Kosovo we have organizations working with annual budgets of 20 or 25 thousand dollars. It is not a fair fight. Therefore, more investment is needed in this field, more support. We need to restructure our education system and make sure that our students learn critical media reading, ask critical questions about what they see on their phones… And there needs to be more engagement between the United States and Europe. All efforts must be supported not only financially but also politically. It should be a priority and we need to invest if we want results.

Voice of America: What are the reasons for this moderate success, as you put it, that Russia has had?

Jason Steinhauer: Russian campaigns have been successful, first and foremost, because they have had a lot of financial resources. There are information agents working every day, 24 hours a day, seven days a week to spread disinformation and undoubtedly, due to such a large number, some of these campaigns will succeed. Russia spends about 1 to 4 billion dollars annually on this. They already know how social media platforms work and understand the weaknesses of each society, know where they need to touch and how to use disinformation campaigns to cause division and create discord.

Secondly, there are structural issues in many of these regions, including the United States, where we have not found adequate solutions yet. And as a result, many disinformation campaigns hold certain groups responsible, a certain religious belief, a certain ethnic group, or are simply conspiracy theories allegedly orchestrated by the United States, the European Union, or Israel. These types of campaigns are very successful because they provide simple solutions to complex problems.

And thirdly, there are also historical reasons. Countries like Latvia and Estonia have a considerable population that speaks Russian; Serbia and Russia have an alliance based on the common Slavic culture. These historical and cultural connections also give credibility to some of their messages and messengers. For example, when I was recently visiting the Balkans, I heard that Orthodox churches are a source of much disinformation. There is a strong connection between the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Russian Orthodox Church. Many people rely on these churches to maintain ties with the community and they serve as sacred places for millions of people. This trust enjoyed among these communities makes it so that when something is said, which may not be true, to be forged or disinformation, it carries a special weight. So, there are historical and structural reasons. It’s a complex problem that requires investment to be solved.