According to Russian propaganda, riots are a crime against the public and its security, which consists in organizing rallies against the government and its decisions. That is, a peaceful rally turns into a “mess” if the Russian authorities do not like the topic of protest raised.

Propagandists use the term “riots” to keep the Russians associating that a rally is something undesirable, and it’s generally uncharacteristic to express one’s opinion, because it can harm the “general order” in society. That is, order “needs to be restored” and to get rid of any dissent. This term exists at the national level. The Criminal Code of Russia provides for liability for the so-called creation of riots. In Ukraine and in the rest of the civilized world, the term “mass riots” is used, which directly alludes to hostile (sometimes armed) actions against people and authorities.

“Riots” concerns not only Russia, but the whole world. In pro-Russian and Russian media, for example, news about recent protests in Georgia or France is tagged with the tag “riots in the world”. Moreover, the search engine has more answers if you search for information specifically on the keyword “riots”.

Thus, Russian propaganda instills in Russians indifference to public opinion, deprives them of the opportunity to be heard and understood. This is beneficial for Moscow, which is afraid of public condemnation of its actions, and therefore is trying in every possible way to settle these processes and avoid protests.