Umberto Eco as a foreign agent: Quantitative Analysis of signs of Fascism in Russian Mass Media (2011–2024)#

Alexander Smoljanski

Abstract: This study explores the transformation of the Russian political regime from 2011 to 2024 by examining whether it has adopted characteristics of fascism, as described by Umberto Eco in his essay “Eternal Fascism: Fourteen Ways of Looking at a Blackshirt.” We used the Integrum Worldwide database to conduct a sociolinguistic analysis, tracking the rise of 14 signs of fascism in Russian mass media over this period. All collected and included data, tables, and observed trends indicate an increasing resemblance of the Russian regime to fascism in Umberto Eco’s terms. 

Introduction#

The question of whether Russia’s current political regime bears similarities to the fascist regimes of the 20th century has been a topic of growing interest. This research aims to investigate this hypothesis through a sociolinguistic analysis, guided by the 14 characteristics of fascism outlined by Umberto Eco and the characteristics offered by the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), which define fascism as the ideology and practice asserting the superiority and exclusivity of a particular nation or race, denying democracy, establishing a cult of leadership, and using violence and terror against political opponents and dissent. 

Research Objective#

To investigate the hypothesis of the similarities between the current Russian regime and European fascist regimes, primarily based on Eco’s and RAS’s frameworks. 

A Brief Description of the Research#

Methodology: Sociolinguistic analysis of the frequency of words and expressions specific to the 14 signs of fascism in Russian mass media.

Research Period: 2011–2024. 

Research Tool: Integrum Worldwide databases. 

Research Tools of Integrum Worldwide#

The research utilized the Integrum Worldwide database, the world’s largest archive of mass media from Russia and the former USSR, containing 120,000 databases with over 3 billion documents and 700,000 new documents added daily.

The table below provides detailed statistics on 23,308 databases of Russian mass media used specifically in this study:

Table 1#

Theoretical Framework#

Umberto Eco’s 14 signs of fascism outlined in 2015:#

1. The cult of tradition
2. Irrationality and rejection of modernity
3. Action without reflection
4. Treating doubt as betrayal
5. Xenophobia and racism
6. Reliance on the middle class
7. Obsession with conspiracy theories
8. Portraying the enemy as both powerful and weak
9. Viewing life as a continuous war
10. Contempt for the weak
11. The cult of heroes and death
12. Machismo and sexism
13. Rejection of parliamentarism
14. The use of Newspeak

Description of Fascism by the Russian Academy of Sciences outlined in 1995#

According to the Russian Academy of Sciences, fascism is defined as an ideology and practice that:

• Asserts the superiority and exclusivity of a nation or race
• Incites national intolerance
• Justifies discrimination against other peoples
• Denies democracy
• Establishes a cult of a leader
• Uses violence and terror to suppress political opponents and dissent
• Justifies war as a means of solving interstate problems

As we can see, all the signs of fascism defined by the Russian Academy of Sciences correspond to one or another sign of fascism formulated by Umberto Eco.

Methodology#

The number of documents in the analyzed databases is constantly increasing. This is the reason why, in addition to examining the absolute number of relevant documents, their relative frequency—the ratio of the relevant documents to the total number of documents in the databases in the respective year—serves a particular interest. In fact, that parameter represents the share of each concept under study in the Russian media space.

A relevant document is counted only once in the statistics, even if the keywords are mentioned in the document more than once.

A small number of relevant documents contain keywords in non-relevant contexts. Still, we assume that the percentage of irrelevant contexts does not change much from year to year and, therefore, does not significantly affect the dynamics of relative statistics.

Three search queries and corresponding graphs illustrate each of Eco’s characteristics of fascism. The result of each query is illustrated by one mass media document. The exceptions are Sign 12 and Sign 14, where it was necessary to make not three but four illustrations for the analyzed signs of fascism.

The results of the 2024 survey are extrapolated from data from the first half of the year.

Statistics of fascist signs in Russian media#

Here are the results of the study of the Sign 1. The cult of tradition / Культ традиции.

Statistics and graphs of all characteristics of fascism are in Appendix 1. 

Sign 1. The cult of tradition / Культ традиции#

Table 2#

Table 3. Frequency of concepts “traditional values”, “spiritual and moral values”, and “ancestral heritage” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 1#

Pic. 2#

Pic. 3

Relative frequency of concepts #

Diag. 1. Traditional values#

Diag. 2. Spiritual and moral values#

Diag. 3. Ancestral heritage#

Commentary#

1. Absolute number of relevant documents#

It is essential to pay attention to the dynamics of the relative frequency of mentioning the studied concepts and also to the absolute number of their references in mass media.

A good illustration is the number of references to the concept of respect for civil rights.

In 2011, this word combination was mentioned only 24 times in all Russian mass media (i.e., in more than 20 million documents analyzed in this study). That is, the concept was mentioned on average only twice a month. In 2024, it was mentioned even less frequently: only 7 times, i.e., approximately once every two months.

Table 4. Respect for civil rights (number of relevant documents)#

2. Increase in the absolute and relative frequency of all analyzed signs of fascism over the 2011–2024 period#

Absolute and relative frequencies of almost all analyzed signs increased from 2011 to 2024.

The frequencies of the following signs have grown significantly, suggesting that they are particularly characteristic of the Russian regime in the period under study:

• traditional values (see diag. 1)
• spiritual and moral values (see diag. 2)
• doubt and liberalism as treason (see diag. 10)
• traitors to the motherland (see diag. 12)
• Western masters (see diag. 20)
• Russophobia (see diag. 21)
• the pursuit of peace as betrayal (see diag. 26)
• heroic death (see diag. 33)

3. A noticeable decrease in frequency is demonstrated by concepts traditionally regarded as suspicious by fascist regimes:#

• sex and erotica (see later diag. 37)
• independence from the state (see later diag. 5)
• support for culture (see later diag. 8)

4. Newspeak#

The detailed statistics and graphs related to Newspeak are presented in Appendix 1 as Sign 14. Usage of Newspeak / Использование Новояза.

Using Newspeak often does not create new meanings of reality but increases confusion, i.e., the act of speaking becomes more important than its meaning.

The frequency of the passive voice’s usage has significantly increased over the years (see later Table 31, Diag. 44).

5. Correlation between the frequency of signs of fascism in the media space and in real life#

Statistics of the signs and their dynamics are quite distinctly linked to political and economic events, as seen in the list of “Main Events of the Year” chosen by the official news agency RIA NOVOSTI (see Appendix 2).

The similarity between patriotic Z-art and fascist art of the 20th century#

A fictional Russian poet, Gennady Rakitin, created by an anti-war activist, has been publishing “patriotic” poems about war, Russia, and the “people’s leader” on his VKontakte page for about a year.

His poems have entered contests, been awarded prizes at festivals, and were reposted in Z-poetry channels. Nearly a hundred Russian Duma deputies and senators have subscribed to Rakitin’s page. Later, it turned out that Rakitin’s verses were translations of poems published in Nazi Germany in the 1930s and 1940s.  

Almost verbatim similarities between Russian and Nazi propaganda#

A good example is the commentary of the Tsargrad TV channel on the Russian missile attack on Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital, OHMATDET, published on July 8, 2024 (https://tsargrad.tv/articles/detskaja-bolnica-v-kieve-ne-sluchajnost-pora-jeto-priznat-i-perestat-bojatsja_1025063):

You must realize — simple and scary: there are no humans on the other side. Not a single human being. Our missiles do not kill people. Not a single human being. There are no people there. 

You do not have to make excuses for hitting a children’s hospital. We need to say, do you want it to stop? Surrender. Capitulate. 

Conclusion#

If we use Umberto Eco’s signs and characteristics of fascism, the study results suggest that between 2011 and 2024, the Russian regime has increasingly resembled a fascist one.

Umberto Eco argues that the presence of even one of these 14 characteristics of fascism is enough for the fascist nebula to start condensing.

There is good reason to believe that if Umberto Eco published his signs of fascism today, he would be recognized as a foreign agent in modern Russia.

Appendix 1. Statistics and graphs of all 14 signs of fascism#

Sign 1 is discussed above in the text of the article.

Sign 2. Irrationality: admiration for technology but rejection of modernity / Иррациональность: восхищение техникой, но неприятие модерна#

Table 5#

Table 6. Frequency of concepts “our scientific and technological achievements”, “independence from the state”, and “respect for civil rights” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 4#

Pic. 5#

Pic. 6#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 4. Our scientific and technological achievements#

Diag. 5. Independence from the state#

Diag. 6. Respect of civil rights#

Sign 3. Action without reflection, suspicious view of culture / Действие без рефлексии, подозрительное отношение к культуре#

Table 7#

Table 8. Frequency of concepts “you should talk less”, “support for culture”, and “art experiments” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 7#

Pic. 8#

Pic. 9#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 7. You should talk less#

Diag. 8. Support for culture#

Diag. 9. Art experiments#

Sign 4. Doubt is viewed as betrayal or treason / Cомнение трактуется как предательство или измена#

Table 9.#

Table 10. Frequency of concepts “doubt and liberalism”, “one must love the Motherland”, and “traitors to the Motherland” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 10#

Pic. 11#

Pic. 12#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 10. Doubt and liberalism as treason#

Diag. 11. One must love the Motherland#

Diag. 12. Traitors to the Motherland#

Sign 5. Xenophobia, racism / Ксенофобия, расизм** #

Table 11#

Table 12. Frequency of concepts “Asian visitors”, “Khohly”, and “traitors to the motherland” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 13#

Pic. 14#

Pic. 16#

Relative frequency of concepts  #

Diag. 13. Asian visitors#

Diag.14. Khohly#

Diag. 15. Ukranian fascists

Sign 6. Reliance on the middle class / Опора на средний класс#

Table 13#

Table 14. Frequency of concepts “stability and confidence for the future”, “salary increase for government employees”, and “middle-class income growth” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 17#

Pic. 18#

Pic. 19.#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 16. Stability and confidence for the future#

Diag. 17. Salary increase for government employees#

Diag. 18. Middle class income growth#

Sign 7. Obsession with conspiracy theories, cultivating a sense of being under siege / Одержимость теориями заговора, культивация чувства нахождения в осаде#

Table 15#

Table 16. Frequency of concepts “agents of the West”, “Western masters”, and “russophobia” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 20#

Pic. 21#

Pic. 22#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 19. Agents of the West#

Diag. 20. Western masters#

Diag. 21. Russophobia#

Sign 8. The enemy is portrayed as powerful to inspire fear and as weak to be defeated / Враг изображается как мощный, чтобы внушать страх, и как слабый, чтобы его можно было победить#

Table 17#

Table 18. Frequency of concepts “weakness of the West”, “U.S. and Western hegemony”, and “threat for Russia” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 23#

Pic. 24#

Pic. 25#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 22. Weakness of the West#

Diag. 23. Western hegemony#

Diag. 24. Threat for Russia#

Sign 9. Life is regarded as a continuous war, and the pursuit of peace as cooperation with the enemy / Жизнь понимается как непрерывная война, а стремление к миру — как сотрудничество с врагом#

Table 19#

Table 20. Frequency of concepts “holy war”, “the pursuit of peace as a betrayal”, and “a real man should serve” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 26#

Pic. 27#

Pic. 28#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 25. Holy war#

Diag. 26. The pursuit of peace as betrayal#

Diag. 27. A real man should serve#

Sign 10. Contempt for the weak / Презрение к слабым#

Table 21#

Table 22. Frequency of concepts “wimp”, “weakness and lack of will”, and “contempt for the weak” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 29#

Pic. 30#

Pic. 31#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 28. Wimp#

Diag. 29. Weakness and lack of will#

Diag. 30. Contempt for the weak#

Sign 11. The cult of heroes and the cult of death / Культ героизма и культ смерти#

Table 23#

Table 24. Frequency of concepts “our heroism”, “fallen heroes”, and “heroic death” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 32#

Pic. 33#

Pic. 34#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 31. Our heroism#

Diag. 32. Fallen heroes#

Diag. 33. Heroic death#

Sign 12. Machismo, sexism, rejection of a non-standard sexual behavior / Мачизм, сексизм, неприятие нестандартного сексуального поведения#

Table 25#

Table 26. Frequency of concepts “LGBT”, “stronger sex”, “weaker sex”, and “sex and erotica” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 35#

Pic. 36#

Pic. 37#

Pic. 38#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 34. LGBT#

Diag. 35. Stronger sex#

Diag. 36. Weaker sex#

Diag. 37. Sex and erotica#

Sign 13. Individuals are treated as a single nation whose will is expressed by a supreme leader; rejection of parliamentarism / Индивидуумы воспринимаются как единый народ, чью волю выражает верховный лидер; неприятие парламентаризма#

Table 27#

Table 28. Frequency of concepts “national leader”, “unity of Russians”, and “imitative parliamentarism — parliamentary unanimity” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 39#

Pic. 40#

Pic. 41#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 38. National leader#

Diag. 39. Unity of Russians#

Diag. 40. Imitative parliamentarism#

Sign 14. Usage of Newspeak / Использование новояза#

Table 29#

Table 30. Frequency of concepts “negative growth (decrease)”, “clap / explosion”, and “smoke (fire)” by year (number of relevant documents)#

Examples of the relevant documents#

Pic. 42#

Pic. 43#

Pic. 44#

Relative frequency of concepts#

Diag. 41. Negative growth (decrease)#

Diag. 42. Clap (explosion)#

Diag. 43. Smoke (fire)#

Words related to Newspeak have been increasingly used in the passive voice.

Table 31. Number of relative documents and relative frequency of found documents with passive voice (“зафиксированы прилеты”)#

Diag. 44. Passive voice: зафиксированы прилеты#

Appendix 2. Main events 2011–2023 according to RIA Novosti#

Table 32#

DOI: 10.55167/77a2df541ae0