Gender Dynamics in Russian Online Political Discourse
Elizaveta Savchenko, Michael Raphael Freedman
TL;DR
The paper addresses how gender shapes online political participation in Russia during the Russia-Ukrainian war by analyzing YouTube comments across 30 channels divided between pro- and anti-government camps. It introduces an AI-assisted, two-phase gender-prediction pipeline applied to roughly 2,168 videos and over 36,000 comments collected from January 2022 to February 2024, with temporal and lexical analyses comparing the two political alignments. Key findings show women are more active on anti-government channels, especially during peak conflict periods, and that online discourse reflects real-world events, underscoring YouTube's role as a barometer of public sentiment in an authoritarian context. The study contributes to understanding digital activism and gender dynamics under repression and suggests directions for qualitative follow-up and cross-platform comparisons to deepen insights into online political behavior.
Abstract
The digital landscape provides a dynamic platform for political discourse crucial for understanding shifts in public opinion and engagement especially under authoritarian governments This study examines YouTube user behavior during the Russian-Ukrainian war analyzing 2168 videos with over 36000 comments from January 2022 to February 2024 We observe distinct patterns of participation and gender dynamics that correlate with major political and military events Notably females were more active in antigovernment channels especially during peak conflict periods Contrary to assumptions about online engagement in authoritarian contexts our findings suggest a complex interplay where women emerge as pivotal digital communicators This highlights online platforms role in facilitating political expression under authoritarian regimes demonstrating its potential as a barometer for public sentiment.