The Department of Justice (DOJ) has indicted two employees of the Russian state-owned broadcaster RT, Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, for allegedly being involved in a pro-Russia influence scheme on various social media platforms. The employees are accused of paying an unnamed Tennessee company nearly $10 million to spread thousands of videos containing disinformation and/or pro-Russia propaganda across platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and others, with the videos garnering over 16 million views on YouTube alone. Attorney General Merrick Garland stated at a press conference that RT had built an “entire empire of covert projects” aimed at shaping public opinion in Western audiences, with the defendants implementing the scheme to fund and direct the Tennessee-based company. The DOJ unsealed the indictment as part of a crackdown on Russian propaganda and disinformation, seizing 32 websites used in a covert campaign to interfere with US elections, known as “Doppelganger.” The Treasury and State departments also announced actions against individuals and entities involved in these activities to counter Russian influence over American elections.
