A global ban on many Russian state media networks has been declared by Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. The firm has accused the networks of adopting deceptive strategies to carry out influence operations and avoid detection on its platforms.
“We extended our ongoing enforcement against Russian state media outlets after giving it some serious thought. Due to foreign interference activity, Rossiya Segodnya, RT, and other associated entities are now prohibited from using our apps worldwide, according to Meta.
Targeting networks like Rossiya Segodnya and RT (formerly Russia Today), the ban is anticipated to go into effect in the next several days.
Nevertheless, the proprietor of the Sputnik news agency, Rossiya Segodnya, and the Russian embassy in Washington, RT, did not promptly reply to inquiries from the BBC.
Allegations that Russian official media networks have tried to sway political outcomes in Western nations have drawn more attention to them.
After imposing restrictions on the advertising and distribution of Russian state-run media in the past, Meta has now moved more firmly to stop the media’s propagation.
Following the start of the conflict in Ukraine, the corporation complied with requests from the EU, UK, and Ukraine to block specific Russian official media. This led to an increase in activity.
The US accused state broadcaster RT earlier this month of paying a Tennessee company $10 million to produce and disseminate video that included covert Russian government messaging intended for American viewers.
Employees of RT were in charge of producing, uploading, and editing videos that supported right-wing narratives on issues including immigration, gender, and the economy, according to an indictment.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken imposed additional penalties against RT in a subsequent development, calling it a “de facto arm of Russia’s intelligence apparatus.”
Blinken stated that RT “is part of a network of Russian-backed media outlets that have sought to covertly undermine democracy in the United States” and that “a unit with cyber operational capabilities and ties to Russian intelligence” had been embedded by the Russian government within RT.
In response to Blinken’s comments, RT called the statement the “US’s latest conspiracy theory” and live-streamed it on X, a platform that was originally Twitter.