What do the Russians think of the war in Ukraine? Statistics from online search services in Russia provide answers. It becomes clear that a mood swing is taking place.
According to analyzes by Google Trends and Yandex – Russia’s main search engine – Russians have shown little or no interest in the terms “denazification” and “demilitarization” in recent months, writes the Ukrainian newspaper Kyiv Post. At the same time, they often look for the words “withdrawal” and “how to throw up”. British journalist Peter Pomerantsev also finds clear signs of a mood swing in an interview with the newspaper.
“Such indicators should be heeded – not those of those who support and oppose the war. This is all bullshit. One should focus on indirect indicators. The things Russians look up in Yandex say a lot more about the public mood,” says Pomerantsev.
«Mobilization» most searched term
According to data from Google Trends, “mobilization” has been the most searched word in Russia in the past 12 months. This is underlined by Yandex’s statistics. The word reached 50 million searches in September. As early as September, when Vladimir Putin (70) called for partial mobilization, the search included “breaking your hand” and “discharge from the army”. Also very popular: “How to leave Russia”.
Searches for the term “nuclear war” also reached half a million searches in the same month — their previous wartime record.
Do Russians want to avoid propaganda?
Other popular words are “Ukraine – people”, “Ukraine – country in Europe” and “VPN”. This stands for «Virtual Private Network». This allows a secure network connection to be established when using public networks. VPNs encrypt internet traffic and disguise users’ online identities. This makes it more difficult for third parties to track a user’s online activities and steal data.
The increase in VPN requests could be an indication that many Russians are trying to avoid propaganda and get information from the outside world, the paper said. They may also use such services to access prohibited sites such as Instagram. (nab/chs)