A Warning from Above: How Authoritarian Anti-Protest Propaganda Works

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-2025

Publisher

Johns Hopkins University Press

Source Publication

World Politics

Source ISSN

0043-8871

Original Item ID

DOI: 10.1353/wp.2025.a957997

Abstract

When faced with unfolding protests, autocrats frequently respond with anti-protest propaganda loaded with negative narratives about protesters. Although a substantial body of literature has suggested that anti-protest propaganda can effectively alter the way the public views protests, few researchers have examined the mechanism through which propaganda negatively affects public support for protests. In this article, the authors explain the role that anti-protest propaganda plays in weakening public support for protests. Using an innovative experiment involving mediation analysis, the authors administered a survey to 950 Vietnamese respondents. The experimental results showed that anti-protest propaganda may deter support for protests more by influencing the audience's beliefs about the intention and capacity of the government than by shaping perceptions of the protesters' legitimacy. This evidence suggests that even when it fails at discrediting protesters, anti-protest propaganda still serves as an effective warning, credibly signaling the commitment and ability of the government to punish protesters and their supporters.

Comments

World Politics, Vol. 77, No. 2 (April 2025): 338-381. DOI.

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