Abstract

Processes of political disinformation have characterized the beginning of the XXI century and have paid the way to a growing scientific literature on post-truth politics and its impact on the public opinions. Vladimir Putin’s Russia is a paradigmatic case of «hybrid warfare» which combines both conventional and cybernetic methods to destabilize the political cohesion of contemporary societies. The Russian invasion on February 24, 2022 is an interesting case study to test the relationship between the political disinformation/misinformation and theories on crisis management in times of war. This article aims at exploring to what extent Putin’s speeches combine post-truth politics and crisis management theory with a particular focus on the «meaning-making» analytical dimension. After a general overview on the Russian mass media and cultural contexts where the Russian narratives have been spread throughout Russia and Ukraine starting from the Euromaidan revolution in 2014, the analysis will focus on the main communicative strategies implemented by the Russian president to legitimize his own political decisions.