Information Interference as a Phenomenon of the Contemporary International Policy Subjects Activity

Abstract

Introduction. The author aims to analyze the phenomenon of information interference with national political processes in the conditions of the contemporary information society and the evolution of the Internet as a space of political communications. The article shows that the digital information intervention is relevant and at the same time, a complex multidimensional phenomenon of contemporary politics. In many respects, the potential of the digital interference phenomenon is closely related to the essential features of functioning and the transformation of the contemporary Internet, which has been actively used when changing political regimes in many countries. The problem of information security and sovereignty of the present state on the Internet is becoming one of the most urgent in the conditions of the rapid development of information and communication technologies. Methods and materials. The issues identified in the article are investigated using the methods of comparative, structural-functional and normative analysis, included observation, as well as the case-study method. The method of scientific forecasting and scripting techniques has allowed to form a scenario for the effective settlement of international conflicts in the field of information security. The empirical base of the study is reports of foreign experts, official materials of state authorities of the Russian Federation and foreign countries, reports of Freedom House international organization, official speeches and statements by the heads of state on the issues outlined in the work. Analysis. Countering external information expansion is becoming one of the most critical tasks of effective political governance at the state level to preserve the sovereignty of the national political communication space, including domestic segments of the Internet. The initiatives of states to form the sovereign national segments of the Internet space are, on the one hand, an attempt to protect their political systems from external influence and invasion, to ensure their own political stability, and on the other hand, they create risks for the democratic potential of the Internet. The article substantiates the thesis that the phenomenon of interference in elections in actual practice often becomes not so much an objective process as an instrument of information warfare, mass political propaganda and discrediting political opponents, a manipulative tool that can be actively used not only by authoritarian regimes with a low level of democratic development. Results. The study shows that differences in understanding and defining the essence of the Internet by various countries give rise to a significant potential for political conflicts on a global scale. This circumstance leads the author to the conclusion that it is necessary to form international institutions capable of preventing and regulating information conflicts in the Internet space, as well as reducing global political risks (including risks associated with potential interference in the electoral process of sovereign states). The implementation of this scenario will allow forming a collective responsibility in the functioning of the global Internet.