Doctoral Defence: Michael Cole “The people, the elites and the Russia factor: a comparative study of populist discourses in Georgia and Ukraine”

On 7 October at 15:00 Michael Cole will defend his doctoral dissertation "The people, the elites and the Russia factor: a comparative study of populist discourses in Georgia and Ukraine" for obtaining the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (in Political Science).

Supervisor:

Professor Andrey Makarychev, University of Tartu

Opponent:

Associate Professor Helge Blakkisrud, University of Oslo (Norway)

Summary:

This thesis examines populist discourses in Ukraine and Georgia, highlighting their unique features. Study I analyses the discourse of two prominent far-right populist actors in Georgia – Alliance of Patriots of Georgia (APG) and Georgian March (GM). Study II compares APG’s discourse with Ukrainian far-right populist party Svoboda’s. Study III analyses Volodymyr Zelensky’s visual discourse on Instagram, before and after Russia’s full-scale invasion began.

Conceptually, this thesis offers a definition of populism more suitable for application in Georgia and Ukraine. It is critical of common definitions of populism as a ‘thin-centred ideology,’ instead understanding it as a way of doing politics that involves presenting the world through a specific discursive frame. Study I and Study II also distinguish between the concepts ‘radical right’ and ‘extreme right’ in ways more suitable for these cases.

Using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and Multi-Modal Discourse Analysis (MMDA), this thesis examines Georgian and Ukrainian populist actors’ online written and visual discourses. Study I found APG’s and GM’s discourse has enough similarities with their Central and Western European counterparts to position them in a broader far right populist ‘family.’ Populist politics’ prevalence in Georgia, ‘traditional values’ promoted by the Georgian Orthodox Church and Russia’s influence, were identified as three factors contributing to a uniquely Georgian form of populism.

Study II found while Ukraine’s Svoboda clearly place Russia as the Ukrainian people’s main enemy, Georgia’s APG advocate a ‘pragmatic’ approach to Moscow, focusing more on internal enemies. Svoboda’s visual discourse was heavily militaristic, reflecting the state of war between Ukraine and Russia since 2014. APG emphasised Orthodox Christianity’s fundamentality to Georgian identity. Svoboda foregrounded youth in its construction of the ‘people,’ while APG highlighted tradition.

Study III found under full-scale war conditions, Zelensky skilfully used populist stylistic features on Instagram, reinforcing his credentials to lead Ukraine and successfully convey his message to international audiences. It also emphasised visual aspects of Zelensky’s communication and challenges understandings of populism as an inherently divisive way of doing politics.