71% of Russians have negative associations with the phrase “foreign agent”

The attitude of Russians towards foreign agents has worsened – this is evidenced by the results of a survey by the All-Russian Center for Public Opinion Research (VTsIOM). During the study, 71% of respondents said they had negative associations with the phrase “foreign agent,” compared to about 56% last year. Russian Field sociologists suggested that the change in citizens’ attitudes towards foreign agents may be due to the way their activities are covered in the media – on television, as well as in Telegram channels that support the SVO. Part of the increase in negative responses may have come from respondents who previously had no opinion or found it difficult to answer. In addition, sociologists talk about a strong decline over the past year in the willingness of Russians to communicate with sociologists, which may influence the real picture of public opinion.

On September 9, VTsIOM asked 1,600 Russians who foreign agents are and what their attitude is towards them. Every fifth Russian reported a negative view of foreign agents and unpleasant associations with this phrase (last year there were 15%), another 18% said that they associate foreign agents with “traitors to the Motherland” (7% in 2022). The options “enemy of the people” and one who “acts against Russia” were chosen by 5% of respondents each, while the number of respondents linking the activities of foreign agents with espionage decreased (9% versus 14% in 2022). “There are also such associations as ‘opposition’, ‘intelligence officer’, ‘those who left the country’, ‘receives money abroad’ (3% each),” the study says. 2% of Russians reported a good attitude towards foreign agents.

“The attitude of respondents towards foreign agents has really worsened compared to last year’s VTsIOM survey: if in 2022 negative answer options totaled just under 56%, now it’s already 71%,” Russian Field sociologist Ilya Dorkhanov commented on the results of the study. “However, for the majority There are no significant changes in negative characteristics, literally 1–2 percentage points. Most of the increase is accounted for by the two most popular answers – “negative attitude” and “traitor” (their total was 22%, now 38%).”

Answering the question about who foreign agents are, more than 60% of respondents preferred the option “more likely traitors who, for the money of unfriendly countries, spread lies about our country,” and only 16% preferred “more likely fighters for civil rights and freedom of speech in Russia, whom the authorities are trying to punish in order to intimidate others.” Moreover, the younger the respondent, the less often he chose the option “traitors” and the more often he chose “fighters for civil rights.” 4% of Russians said that foreign agents belong to both the first and second categories, 18% found it difficult to answer, and 1% refused to answer. At the same time, Mr. Dorkhanov notes that VTsIOM offered Russians two “very value-laden statements”: “In this formulation, the question is leading and may raise concerns: not everyone will dare to agree with the direct accusation of the authorities in persecuting “fighters for rights and freedoms” and “ intimidation of citizens.”

It should be noted that in August, Russian Field conducted its own survey on attitudes towards foreign agents, using an open-ended question for measurement, as did VTsIOM in the question of associations: according to Mr. Dorkhanov, this is a standard methodology. Russian Field asked how respondents would characterize people recognized as foreign agents – and received the leading option “traitors.” In second place by frequency of mention were “bad people”; In total, 41% of respondents gave negative characteristics to foreign agents – a difference from VTsIOM’s 38%, Ilya Dorkhanov considers “virtually insignificant.”

The general attitude of Russians towards foreign agents is ambiguous: 33% of VTsIOM respondents have a rather negative attitude towards them, 6% have a rather positive attitude, the rest chose the options “indifferent” (22%) and differently (34%). Only 5% of respondents found it difficult to answer.

VTsIOM notes that the status of a foreign agent “has a certain influence on our fellow citizens.” Thus, 40% of respondents said that they would reconsider their attitude towards the media they are interested in if it is included in the register of foreign agents: 24% will stop contacting it altogether, 14% will contact it less often, 2% – more often. However, 46% of respondents said that the new status would not affect their interest in such media. VTsIOM obtained similar results regarding foreign agents among singers and actors: assigning foreign agent status to a favorite artist will change the attitude towards him among 49% of Russians. 34% will completely stop watching or listening, 13% will do it less often, and, on the contrary, the same 2% will do it more often. At the same time, the artist’s foreign agency status will not affect the preferences of 42% of respondents in any way.

Experts at Russian Field associate the trend towards a deterioration in Russians’ attitude towards the media, public organizations and individuals with foreign agent status with the activities of the media – “primarily television, as well as Telegram channels that support the SVO. Also, part of the increase in negative attitudes may be coming from those who previously had no opinion or were undecided—both of which scored lower in 2023 than in 2022.”

Sociologist Maria Vasilevskaya also notes a decrease in the number of Russians who agree to take the survey compared to 2022: over the year, she says, the minimum response rate and the accessibility rate fell by 30%: “This is a much more serious drop than the 5% in the results surveys. The cooperation rate, which reflects people’s willingness to talk when they already know what the survey is about, fell by 67%.” In just a year, Russians have become much less likely to agree to speak, Ms. Vasilevskaya sums up. She believes that some people are not ready to talk to anyone on the phone about foreign agents, including out of fear: “I don’t think the attitude towards foreign agents has changed. I think the attitude towards surveys has changed even more. The decline in trust is a long-standing trend.”

Emilia Gabdullina