New Strategy Center publishes “(Con)Trolling the Russian Information Warfare Efforts: North Atlantic Fella Organization’s Digital Activism against Moscow’s Wartime Propaganda,” a study dedicated to one of the most unconventional phenomena of contemporary information warfare: the role of meme culture and digital activism in supporting Ukraine.
The study analyzes how the North Atlantic Fella Organization (NAFO) has emerged as a decentralized digital actor capable of combining humor, irony, and online visual culture with concrete objectives—challenging Russian propaganda and mobilizing international solidarity for Ukraine. The analysis examines both the offensive dimension of memetic activism—through ridiculing pro-Kremlin narratives—and its defensive dimension, by strengthening the legitimacy and informational resilience of the pro-Ukrainian camp.
By exploring the relationship between hybrid warfare, influence operations, and so-called “memetic warfare,” the study shows that NAFO is not merely a viral expression of internet culture, but also a relevant example of how digital communities can generate symbolic, political, and even material effects in conflict contexts. At the same time, the analysis highlights how such forms of online mobilization can function as tools of civic resilience, crowdfunding, and transnational support in a war marked by narrative competition and information confrontation.
The study thus offers a broader reflection on the transformation of digital activism in the context of contemporary conflicts, and on how new forms of online participation can influence both the information space and the broader architecture of democratic resistance in the face of hybrid aggression.
The analysis was conducted by Răzvan Ceuca, a cyber and international relations expert at New Strategy Center, and peer-reviewed by Iulian Popa, Senior Associate Expert at New Strategy Center.