Social media gives women powerful ways to connect, organize, and speak out. But foreign governments are using these same platforms to attack women’s movements and silence female voices. A fascinating study examined thousands of tweets from Russia, Iran and Venezuela to reveal their playbook.
Here are the key findings:
The Russians Play Both Sides
Russian operations didn’t just pit men against women. They worked to fracture feminist movements from within by:
- Amplifying divisions between White feminists and women of color
- Driving wedges between liberal and conservative women
- Highlighting class tensions between wealthy and poor feminists
This divide-and-conquer strategy aims to prevent women from building the collective identity needed for effective organizing.
High-Profile Women Face Coordinated Attacks
Rather than direct harassment, foreign actors used more subtle tactics to discredit prominent female voices:
- Character assassination through false claims
- Using viral hashtags to spread disinformation
- Islamophobic attacks against Muslim feminist leaders
- Clickbait and sensational stories targeting celebrities
The Scale is Staggering
Just 10 accounts – 9 of them Russian – were responsible for over a third of all anti-feminist content identified in the study. These “amplifier accounts” worked overtime to flood social media with attacks on women’s movements.
Different Countries, Different Tactics
Each country had its own approach:
- Russian accounts focused on demobilizing feminist movements
- Iranian accounts hijacked feminist hashtags to push unrelated propaganda
- Venezuelan accounts used sensational clickbait about feminism to generate viral content
What This Means for Women Online
This research shows that much of the hostility they face online is part of coordinated foreign influence campaigns. The goal isn’t just to harass individual women, but to undermine women’s movements and prevent effective organizing.
But understanding these tactics is the first step to countering them. By staying aware of how foreign actors try to divide women’s movements, we can work to maintain solidarity and keep building momentum for positive change.
Remember – the internet can still be a powerful tool for women’s voices and activism. We just need to be smart about recognizing and resisting attempts to silence and divide us.
Have you noticed these kinds of tactics being used against feminist content online? Share your experiences with us on Bluesky.
THE INTERNET IS SCARY 