Rights Group of the Week: Planet of Hopes
On 4 April 2016, French authorities granted Russian rights defender Nadezhda Kutepova, founder and long-time head of the NGO Planet of Hopes, and her children political asylum in France.
The Kremlin’s latest propaganda bogeymen: cartoon Scottish wizards and rip-off Harry Potters
Meet the latest bogeymen in the Kremlin's propaganda war against the West: cartoon Scottish wizards. A major new animated feature, backed by the Russian government and church, is under production, putting…
Russian Propaganda Trying To Destabilize Germany
✓ “If you watch Russian television in Germany you really get the impression that Germany is nearly a failed state and that Europe is sinking down under this massive aggression of the refugees;” ✓ “Germany…
Behind the Dutch Terror Threat Video: The St. Petersburg “Troll Factory” Connection
At 13:30:09 GMT on 18 January 2016, a new YouTube channel called ПАТРИОТ (“Patriot”) uploaded its first video, titled (in Ukrainian) “Appeal of AZOV fighters to the Netherlands on a referendum about EU – Ukraine.
Who really rules the airwaves in Moldova?
"With public trust at all time low, we need to examine how murky media ownership threatens pluralism and freedom of speech in Moldova," - Nadine Gogu wrote for Open Democracy: Last year, Moldova underwent a deep political and social crisis.
Bild: Putin’s shadow government for Donbass exposed
BILD has obtained a document containing the true plans by Russia for the occupied territory of the Donbass. The records of the "Inter-ministerial Commission for the Provision of Humanitarian Aid for the…
Latvia Blocks Russian Sputnik Site As Kremlin ‘Propaganda Tool’
Latvian authorities shut down Russia's pro-Kremlin news site Sputnik on March 29, calling it a "propaganda tool" and drawing an immediate rebuke from Moscow.
Moscow Police Banned From Discussing Work Matters on Social Media
Police officers in the Russian capital are now officially banned from exchanging work-related information on social networks and messaging apps.
Russian Censors Target Public Wi-Fi Spots in Crusade Against Blocked Websites
Russian censors have begun policing public wireless Internet in cafes, shopping malls and public libraries, in what they say is an effort to ensure ISPs are blocking websites that are officially banned in Russia.
Center for Monitoring Propaganda and Disinformation Online Set to Open in Russia
In December 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin took part in the Internet Economy Forum, where he suggested Russian federal security service and other state agencies should make “information threats” their top priority and seek out tools for monitoring such threats online.