In recent years we have been experiencing a pressing need for a comprehensive reevaluation of the USSR legacy and a reassessment of the role that Soviet practices and value systems play in the realm of offi cial historical policy. The article has been designed to present an analytical review of the collective monograph titled “Mediatized Model of Soviet Society in the Magazines ‘Pioneer’ and ‘Koster’ (1970–1980s)”, prepared under the guidance of Tatyana V. Dubrovskaya, Doctor of Sciences (Philology), Professor. The authors of this monograph explore the multifaceted nature of the Soviet society model, focusing on the socio-cultural specifi cs, as well as political and legal aspects of the media landscape in the USSR. By examining the magazines Pioneer and Kostyor, the researchers identify and analyze the features of mediatization in both internal and foreign policy during the late Soviet period. They also defi ne the discursive strategies, linguistic tools, axiological foundations and moral guidelines used to construct and represent the model of Soviet society within the context of children’s media. Particular attention is given to the discursive tactics and linguistic means employed to actualize and disseminate the offi cial policy regarding the memory of the Great Patriotic War within these children’s periodicals. The analysis reveals that Pioneer and Koster can be regarded as mnemonic actors that shaped and implemented the offi cial discourse surrounding the memory of the Great Patriotic War, specifi cally adapted for a young audience. In conclusion, the Soviet children’s press of that time served not only as an informational and educational resource, but also contributed to formulating the conceptual fi eld of Soviet identity, as well strengthening the historical and cultural sovereignty of the USSR.

The article describes the potential digital storytelling within the discursive framework of fostering critical thinking among youth, specifi cally focusing on civic identity development. The study aims to design and implement a digital storytelling project grounded in a dialogic-discursive approach to critical thinking, considering the ethno-regional characteristics of youth social development to address challenges in shaping their civic identity. The Republic of Bashkortostan, known for its multicultural landscape with over a hundred nationalities, infl uences the unique development of regional culture, including electoral culture. Notable, the rise of the religious sector and the emergence of new religious movements have transformed political beliefs which affects how citizens identify with various social groups. The study employed a sociological experiment involving Generation Z respondents from the city of Ufa (Republic of Bashkortostan, Russian Federation). Participants were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups, where they created their digital photo stories. The incorporation of interpersonal dialogic discourses, supported by digital media, provided new opportunities for cultivating youth citizenship within the context of critical thinking through digital storytelling technology. The fi ndings of the study explore how digital narratives can infl uence youth civic identity development among Generation Z. Digital storytelling serves as a practical model for digital production aimed at enhancing critical thinking within the realm of civic identity. Results from the randomized experiment indicated that participants in the intervention group exhibited decreased ethnocentrism and increased civic engagement, allowing for a more fl uid construction of their civic identity. In contrast, participants in the control group showed persistent cognitive closure.

This article is devoted to the study of the causes of the strengthening of patrimonial and neopatrimonial trends in the modern world. The author focuses on the content of M. Weber’s concept of patrimonialism and the possibilities of its modern interpretations. The article examines the features of various forms of patrimonialism and the mechanisms of “routine charisma” that contribute to the emergence of modern neopatrimonial regimes. The author analyzes various definitions of the concept of “neopatrimonialism” and classifications of neopatrimonial systems developed by modern scientists. Special attention is paid to the differences between “regulated” and “predatory” forms of neopatrimonialism, as well as the concept of “developmental neopatrimonialism”. The author proves that the modern patrimonial “wave” is caused, fi rst of all, by the global crisis of the capitalist system and the unprecedented growth of socio-economic inequality. It was the awareness of these problems that led to the growth of political traditionalism and increased support for charismatic leaders embodying this global trend. In this regard, many authors note the growth of “authoritarian populism” even in countries with developed liberal democratic systems, including the United States, Great Britain, Israel and others. However, to describe these processes, the opposition “authoritarianism-democracy” must be supplemented by the Weber dilemma “traditional – rational”. This approach, in our opinion, is the most appropriate for understanding the causes and direction of the ongoing political transformations. A striking example of the effective application of neopatrimonial practices is modern Russia, whose experience is actively used today by other countries in solving complex problems of state and national construction.

The primary objectives of this article are to demonstrate that strengthening of the strategic partnership between Russia and China in the fi eld of education serves as a crucial instrument for enhancing the soft power of intergovernmental organizations such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (the SCO) and the BRICS alliance (comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa). This study formulates key tasks that need to be addressed in the near future; it examines basic theoretical approaches to studying soft power in Russian-Chinese educational cooperation, and framework documents from the SCO and BRICS covering both issues of education and intergovernmental relations. In addition to that, the study further investigates the activities related to academic exchanges, educational integration, and inter-university programs, implemented within strategic educational projects of both the SCO and BRICS; it carries out an analysis of a new university ranking initiated by BRICS, which is based on the “Mission of the Three Universities” project. The main tasks identifi ed for strengthening the strategic partnership in the educational sphere between the SCO and BRICS members include: 1) the continuation of theoretical research aimed at developing a concept for enhancing the educational soft power of the SCO and BRICS member countries; 2) given the emergence of a new geopolitical landscape marked by intensifi ed competition between “the collective West” and those advocating for a multipolar world, special attention should be given to developing alternative soft power rating models for the SCO and BRICS states; and 3) one of the primary strategic directions for coordinating the SCO and BRICS activities should be the establishment of a unifi ed informational and digital system for both alliances. The methodologies employed in this research include a comparative approach, axiological approach, content analysis, classifi cation and ranking methods, and forecasting methods.

The multidimensionality, dynamism, and interconnectedness of the socio-political processes of our time encourage us to take into account the specifics of participation in them and the real contribution of government and non-governmental institutions. The article is focused on the study of program guidelines and project activities of public associations of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus in the patriotic plane. The deepening of integration cooperation within the Union State under the influence of a combination of challenges and threats stimulates interest in the specifics of their involvement in the formation and promotion of the national and Union patriotic agenda. In internal and integration dimensions, they can contribute to the convergence of “state” and “grassroots” patriotism, increase socio-political support for integration and the idea of a “common Homeland”. The purpose and objectives of the study were achieved based on the methods of case study, document study, comparison, and analysis of event data. The focus groups for the study have been identified, primarily the All-Russian National Front and the Republican Public Association “Belaya Rus”. The aspects of the creation and functioning of a number of other patriotic public associations that are fundamentally important from the perspective of the problem posed are analyzed. The coincidence of many plots of the patriotic agenda they broadcast has been revealed. The emphasis is on an active and broad-based interpretation of patriotism. Projects have been formulated to preserve and strengthen historical memory and truth. Other projects also involve the presence of a patriotic component in sports, economic, tourism and other areas. The materials of the official websites of the reviewed associations are representative, but the justification and information support for cooperation seem insufficient. The changes in the institutional design of the patriotic forces of Russia and Belarus at the current stage are shown. Various communications are being built in the Union State, primarily involving youth, children’s and youth associations. The practice of concluding agreements, developing and implementing joint projects is becoming widespread. However, as in other vectors of bilateral integration, additional union-level measures are required here.

Positioning is a special form of communication process that includes marketing and advertising activities to provide a company or product with a certain place (i.e. position) on the market. At the same time, companies actively use different marketing communication strategies in social media. The concept of positioning was developed in the 90s of the 20thcentury and it still remains one of the most popular marketing theories, however there is certainly ambiguity in understanding how the process of positioning is performed and what are the mechanisms of its analysis in terms of discursology. On the one hand, positioning is considered as a result of interaction between levels, i.e. between a creator, a referent and a recipient and their mutual influence, and on the other as positions applied by subjects. Therefore, the goal of this paper is to determine a discursive mechanism of positioning. The research was based on methodological principles of discoursology, which made it possible to identify positions of participants in communicative interaction and thereby describe the main forms and mechanisms of positioning in marketing discourse. The analysis shows a certain dynamics of positioning regarding a possible change in positions taken by positions, both due to their own intentions and influenced by the opinions of other subjects within interaction. Facebook, Instagram3 and Twitter4 offcial accounts of the companies were used to present such communication strategies as establishing contact and coordinating positions, which are implemented in the process of intersubject interaction. The conducted analysis of interaction between different levels, i.e. a subject, an object and other subjects, revealed that positioning seems to provide a subject of speech with the position to an object and other subjects, as well as it seems to determine a subject’s attitude to the actions of others and their opinion about an object of positioning.

The article focuses on reasons for the failure of the Color revolution in the Republic of Belarus (known as the Cornflower revolution) that happened in the spring of 2006. Apart from successful coups d’état that took place in Eastern Europe, South Caucasus and Central Asia at the beginning of XXI century, it is very essential to investigate those unsuccessful attempts to change a political regime in the same period of time and also based on destructive soft power technologies. The article relies on systematic, institutional and comparative approaches in research of political technologies implemented in the Cornflower revolution and countermeasures taken by the official authorities headed by the President A. Lukashenko. A comparative analysis is carried out in relation to the technologies implemented in the Color revolutions in the Republic of Belarus, on the one hand, and the Bulldozer revolution in Serbia, the Rose revolution in Georgia, the Orange revolution in Ukraine and the Tulip revolution in Kyrgyzstan, on the other hand. Common characteristics of these coups d’état are identified, including significant support that opposition received in these cases from abroad, as well as a number of serious differences between the successful coups of 2000–2005 and the Belarusian case in 2006. The authors conclude with the idea that the Cornflower revolution mainly failed due to lack of socioeconomic reasons and preconditions for civil disturbances, as well as due to the political regime being monolithic in nature. The regime was ready to use its own right to legitimate violence in order to suppress illegal actions performed by the opposition and to protect the constitutional order in the Republic of Belarus.

The purpose of this article is to identify the fundamental cyberpsychological aspects of political and state activity in the context of managing mass consciousness. The author argues for the relevance of applying the concept of mass consciousness in relation to the digital environment of contemporary states, and refines this concept based on recent findings in neuroscience and cyberpsychology, highlighting its academic significance. Employing the PRISM guide, the author conducts a systematic review of the literature from the last five years to uncover the primary factors influencing the formation of mass consciousness in the era of digitalization. These factors include the interplay and blending of material, virtual, and augmented realities; the unique relation between two opposing types of mental activities – mediated and mediating – during the use of information and communication technologies; and the design of these technologies as crucial elements in radically transforming the mediation process, giving rise to new forms of mental activity and social interaction. The article also emphasizes the specific characteristics of mass consciousness as it is transformed by digitalization, such as a blend of heightened consumerism attitude focused on personal positive emotions with a less apparent altruistic orientation towards socially beneficial activities; a rational approach to behavioral strategies influenced by cyber tools and conscious emotional regulation; the fragmentation and polarization, leading to greater homogeneity, isolation, indifference towards opposing news, and biases among their members; cyber addiction and propensity for manipulation and susceptibility to such influences. The conclusion, which holds practical implications, asserts that the essential cyberpsychological aspects of political and state activity in mass consciousness management involve identifying and diagnosing mass consciousness issues in cyberspace, introducing technological solutions aimed at correcting mental processes, and creating specific mental states throughout the state’s cyberspace, and evaluating the effectiveness of these interventions.

The article explores the phenomenon of alienation in the context of human historical self-realization. The goal is to praxeologically elucidate the matter of self-awareness with a conceptual foundation in the notion of “alienation”. The specificity of contemporary assessments of alienation in both domestic and foreign science is considered, providing insight into the level of societal consciousness. The author notes that research in the field, both domestic and international, is frequently examined from the perspective of either conservative scholastic interpretation of Hegelian-Marxist ideas or a vulgarized manner involving moral and psychological reduction of the substance of alienation to simpler phenomena of everyday subjectivity. The first approach displays a pronounced exegetical representation of a quasi-religious type, while the second one shows ideologically neutral yet ontologically impoverished content. Both options commonly overlook the inherent complexity of the issue of alienation itself, as well as the accompanying topic of the historical essence of humanity and self-awareness. According to the author, continuation of studying alienation and issues of human self-knowledge, conducted within the framework of the critical-dialectical approach and entering philosophical gnostical practice through logical notional specification, can be scientifically productive. Taking into account the social-historical transformations over the last century-and-a-half can provide the necessary and reasonable specificity to the initial definitions, allowing overcoming the academic rigidity and scholasticism found in other philosophical studies. Recognizing this, in turn, can facilitate the constructive actualization of the genuinely existential problems of human self-knowledge in the future.

The aim of this article is to analyze China's environmental policy in the Arctic region. The interests of the PRC are studied, they are divided into three groups: economic, geopolitical, and environmental. It is emphasized that economic interests disguised as environmental ones prevail among them. The primary source is the White Paper "China's Arctic Policy" - the first Chinese document on Arctic policy issued by the State Council Information Office in January 2018. The document provides a brief description of the region, establishes the goals and principles of China's Arctic policy, and lists the main areas of activity. The article pays special attention to the provisions of the White Paper which are devoted to environmental policy and environmental protection. In addition, the activity of the authorities empowered to conduct environmental policy in the Arctic is characterized. The environmental activities in the Arctic territories are analyzed. It is noted that they mainly include expeditions to study changing climatic conditions and environmental monitoring, as well as the establishment of scientific centers specializing in Arctic research. The author comes to the conclusion that China's environmental policy in theArctic is currently reduced to a research component. The White Paper, which defines the goals, objectives, principles and directions of the PRC's activities, is mainly declarative, but its adoption indicates activation of the Arctic vector in Chinese foreign policy and long-term plans for this region.