ALAN SUDERMAN and GARANCE BURKE at AP:
The Kremlin could not have asked for better publicity at a better time when Ben Swann, a self-described independent journalist who promotes conspiracy theories, released a 12-part video series he promised would reveal dark truths about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Swann’s flashy documentary-style videos were filled with innuendo, attacks on Zelenskyy’s character and commentary from guests sympathetic to Russia in its two-year war with Ukraine.
The series, titled “Zelenskyy Unmasked,” launched in April as Congress was debating increasing military assistance to Ukraine, and it quickly caught the attention of conservative social media influencers who hyped the project to their millions of followers.
Among those who promoted the series was Donald Trump Jr., the former president’s eldest son.
“Curious about the billions of dollars and weapons Congress sent Ukraine?” Trump Jr. posted on X, Truth Social and Threads. “You need to watch the first episode of the explosive 12-part series.”
Unlike other conservative media personalities who last month expressed shock upon learning they may have been secretly financed by the Kremlin, Swann has no such qualms. He’s worked for Russia’s state-owned media empire for years, with one of his companies earning millions of dollars for producing Kremlin-friendly shows.
The creation of “Zelenskyy Unmasked” and its viral spread reveal how widely Russia-backed talking points are traveling on social media — a trend that concerns current and former U.S. intelligence officials and disinformation experts.Alia Shoaib at Newsweek:
An investigation by The Associated Press also provides insights into the shadowy and profitable world of political influencers who are not required to disclose who is paying them, raising transparency concerns about their political endorsements in the largely unregulated realm of social media
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said under oath that Tucker Carlson is funded by a Russian state-owned media outlet, without providing evidence for the claim.
Trudeau made the allegation about Carlson and fellow conservative media personality Jordan Peterson while testifying at a public inquiry into foreign interference on Wednesday.
The Canadian prime minister was addressing alleged Russian influence in spreading anti-vaccine messaging in the media and on social media during the "Freedom Convoy," a protest against COVID-19 vaccines and restrictions in Canada in early 2022.
"We have seen that anti-vax messages during the convoy, during the pandemic, were amplified by Russian propaganda, especially in the media of the right," Trudeau said, per a translation from French by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
He added that after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, several of these channels began spreading "pro-Putin propaganda."
"We've recently seen that RT is currently funding bloggers and other YouTube personalities of the right, such as Jordan Peterson. Other names that are well known, Tucker Carlson as well, in order to amplify messages that are destabilizing democracies," Trudeau said, naming the Russian state-controlled network.
