77. Special Release: Natalia Konstantinova - How Russians view the invasion of Ukraine

The Voices of War

My guest today is Natalia Konstantinova, who is better known by her social media handle, Natasha from Russia. She is a popular Russian blogger and vlogger whose original aim was to help explain Russia to the outside world, but since her country's invasion of Ukraine, she has become a prominent voice about how this war is perceived in Russia.

Some of the questions we explored are: What does the average Russian believe is happening in Ukraine? How much support is there for the invasion of Ukraine in Russia? What information is consumed by Russians? What does Russian domestic propaganda look like? How are the ongoing military losses perceived in Russia? What are the impacts of sanctions on Russia?

Some other topics we covered are:

• Commentating against the war from inside Russia
• Challenges and support for protesters in Russia
• Style of repression in Russia
• Reality about elections in Putin’s Russia
• How everyday Russians view the ongoing invasion of Ukraine
• Reasons behind Russian apathy towards the invasion of Ukraine
• Reflection on the impact of sanctions and how Russia is adapting
• Information that is available in Russia and what Russians watch, read, and listen to
• The dominance and influence of propaganda
• What Russians know about the death of their soldiers
• Natasha’s humanitarian efforts in Mariupol

You can follow Natasha on TikTok, Twitter, Instagram or Facebook, for more of her work.

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