Meta banned RT and other Russian state media from its platforms, including Facebook and Instagram. “After careful review, we have expanded our ongoing enforcement actions against Russian state media,” the company said in a statement to Engadget. “Rossiya Segodnya, RT and other related entities are now globally banned from our apps due to foreign interference activity.” Meta shared the briefing materials with Reuterswhere the company said it found evidence that Russian agencies had taken steps in the past to prevent online detection of foreign interference activities. He said he expects outlets to continue their deceptive practices. The ban will be implemented in the coming days.
The company’s announcement comes just days after the Biden administration publicly accused RT Spreading propaganda and disinformation on the Internet. Authorities said RT used media outlets that catered to local populations, such as those targeting Africa and France, to spread propaganda and information to justify and support its aggression against Ukraine.
Meta is restricted Russian state media access to Facebook in Ukraine as early as 2022 at the request of the government to limit the distribution of the content of those sites. In response, Russia Blocked Facebook a few days later, he opened a criminal case against the country and the company. The judge later found Facebook and Instagram convicted of “extremist” activityeffectively banned Meta from opening offices and doing business in Russia.
