News Highlights:
- Meta has enacted a global ban on Russian state media outlets like RT and Rossiya Segodnya across its platforms.
- Meta alleges that Russian state media has been engaging in deceptive tactics to evade detection and carry out influence campaigns.
Meta has introduced a global ban on Russian state media outlets on its social media platforms, citing “foreign interference activity.”
Digital TimesNG understands that the move is fueled in part by concern about attempts by Russia to influence the 2024 US presidential election.
The ban, which is coming into force over the next few days, means that the likes of RT (formerly Russia Today) and Rossiya Segodnya will no longer have access to Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Threads.
Meta shared details of its decision with Reuters, alleging that Russian state media has been using deceptive tactics to carry out influence campaigns while trying to evade detection.
RT says that “@Russia as a whole denies the accusations that have been coming en masse against this channel and others in the past number of days”.
In a statement, Meta says: “After careful consideration, we expanded our ongoing enforcement against Russian state media outlets.
“Rossiya Segodnya, RT and other related entities are now banned from our apps globally for foreign interference activity.”
Russia is seen by many countries as being much like China in its use of the internet in general and social media more specifically to try to sway opinion.
Last week, Antony Blinken denounced RT as a @de facto arm of Russia’s intelligence apparatus”.
Moscow branded Meta an “extremist” organisation in 2022 and blocked Instagram and Facebook, objecting to changes in Meta’s hate speech policy designed to allow users to vent their anger over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
