- summary
- CRTA and Istinomer publish "The government's propaganda architecture in Serbia: Who's who in Vučić's ensemble?" — a primary source study mapping the full institutionalized propaganda system active January–June 2025. Key findings directly relevant to Playbook: 54 actors mapped across six functional roles: Grand Viziers (Brnabić, Vučević, Mali), Spokespeople/Proxies (Đukanović, Bakarec, Vulin, Hrkalović et al.), Legitimizers (academic/expert cover — Antić, Petrov, Vuletić et al.), Ideological Guardians (Vulin, Šešelj, Drecun et al.), Promoters of Success, Moral Arbiters. Eight dominant narratives recycled continuously: (1) Internal enemies — NGOs/opposition as destabilizers [present in 49/51 actors]; (2) Protests are violent [37 actors]; (3) National unity under threat [28 actors]; (4) Foreign enemies destroying Serbia [25 actors]; (5) Golden age/economic success [21 actors]; (6) Color revolution [18 actors]; (7) Moral superiority of government [15 actors]; (8) Vučić as savior and rational leader [12 actors]. Key structural finding: "The regime invests most heavily in those who appear expert and neutral, since it is precisely through them that the propaganda message is disguised as a depoliticized stance." Propaganda follows crisis-driven rhythm — escalation peaks March and June 2025 align with major protest moments; de-escalation phases April-May use affirmative narratives. Confirms two-way echo chamber: proxies launch radical trial balloons; Vučić selects which to legitimize. Brnabić identified as "first line of defense" — primary CSO delegitimizer. Vučević drives "protests are violent" narrative. Mali drives "golden age" economic narrative. Vulin and Šešelj are primary "foreign enemies" and "color revolution" drivers. Study period January–June 2025 directly covers SRB-CAMP-006 execution and SRB-CAMP-007 conclusion. Updated February 23, 2026.
- country
- Serbia
- date text
- 21/02/2026
- campaign id
- SRB-CAMP-003
- civic actions
- CRTA and Istinomer jointly publish — major public interest research; translated to English with AI assistance and reviewed
- id
- SRB-068
- notes
- COUNTER-NARRATIVE / RESEARCH RESOURCE. Primary source validation of Playbook database architecture. Their 8-narrative taxonomy maps directly to Playbook NF codes: NF-01 (foreign agent/foreign enemies/color revolution), NF-06 (destabilization/internal enemies/violent protests), NF-09 (political interference). Two narrative types not currently in Playbook taxonomy: "Golden age" (positive legitimization frame) and "Moral superiority" (religious/ethical self-justification). STRUCTURAL ENABLER IMPLICATION: Legitimizer network (academics, analysts providing expert cover) constitutes standing infrastructure serving multiple campaigns — candidate for new structural enabler entry. Cross-ref: SRB-041 (Brnabić Dec 22 2023 — confirmed as opening authorization signal in this study's framework); SRB-CAMP-003 (sector-wide authorization cascade Jul–Dec 2025 — this study covers the escalation run-up Jan–Jun 2025). ACTOR REGISTRY GAPS IDENTIFIED: Miloš Vučević, Siniša Mali, Milenko Jovanov not in registry — all in study's top-tier actors. KEY QUOTE for ingestion layer classifier: "The propaganda is not spontaneous — it is an institutionalized communication mechanism that sustains constant tension and the illusion of threat."
- outcome
- Research / documentation
- responders
- CRTA; Istinomer
- source
- CRTA/Istinomer: "The government's propaganda architecture in Serbia: Who's who in Vučić's ensemble?" February 21 2026 (updated February 23, 2026). Primary source: continuous Istinomer monitoring data Jan–Jun 2025. 1,238 recorded public communications across 54 actors.
The public research collection