“The Department of Defense Office of Naval Research has awarded nearly $1.7 million across two grants to School of Journalism and Media Professor and Director of the Information Integrity Institute Catherine Luther to research Russian disinformation campaigns and their influence on Russian diasporas.

Luther and U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Jahara Matisek of the U.S. Naval War College created a proposal for a Defense Education and Civilian University Research (DECUR) Partnership grant focused on Russian disinformation and propaganda targeting Romania, which is a former Warsaw Pact country, and Moldova, a former Eastern Bloc country.

Luther said the grant allows her and members of her research team to visit experts at several institutions that have insight into the ongoing battle against disinformation, including U.S. and NATO installations. They will also visit the U.S. Naval War College to conduct workshops for both cadets and officers there. Then, in the summer of 2025, two cadets from a military institution will come to Knoxville campus to work as research assistants on the project.

Luther said they’re hoping to have several deliverables come out of the research, including whitepapers, academic journal articles, and articles for military magazines. They will also create best practices for teaching military cadets and officers about Russian disinformation campaigns and strategies. The two-year grant is being funded at nearly $1.3 million through the Minerva Expansion Award.”