Euro-Atlantic Standards of Strategic Communications: Theoretical Foundations and Journalistic Approaches to Interpretation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17721/2522-1272.2025.87.12Keywords:
Euro-Atlantic integration, strategic communications, NATO standards, information policy, media and journalism, interpretation and discourse, communication strategies, democratic values, information securityAbstract
The purpose of the article is to clarify the Euro-Atlantic standards of strategic communications and to identify journalistic interpretative models within this process. The study is based on a combination of theoretical and methodological approaches to strategic communications and practical models of journalistic interpretation, such as rationalist, critical, and narrative, which made it possible to reveal the specifics of Ukraine’s integration into the Euro-Atlantic communication space. The application of content analysis made it possible to single out the key principles of NATO and EU strategic communications–credibility, transparency, institutional coordination, and democratic accountability. The comparative method enabled the juxtaposition of Euro-Atlantic standards with Ukrainian practices and revealed both positive trends (the development of fact-checking, the use of digital platforms, journalism of public diplomacy) and problem areas (institutional fragmentation, dependence of part of the media on political groups). The research systematizes conceptual definitions of strategic communications in the works of Western and Ukrainian authors, as well as in NATO and EU normative documents; identifies the role of journalism as a mediator and legitimizer in the process of strategic communications, with an emphasis on its functions in building trust and ensuring public dialogue; explores the challenges for Ukraine, in particular Russia’s disinformation campaigns, institutional weakness, and the need for harmonization with Euro-Atlantic standards; analyzes the integration of journalistic practices (fact-checking, narrative strategies, digitalization, journalism of public diplomacy) into the sphere of strategic communications; substantiates the effectiveness of the applied methods, which made it possible to consider strategic communications as a multilevel system combining political, media, and societal dimensions. It is concluded that journalism functions not only as a channel for disseminating strategic messages but also as a factor of their interpretation and legitimization in a democratic society.
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