The RT, the biggest Russian state-controlled international television network, can no longer monetize its content on western-owned platforms. Meta has announced that it will prevent Russian media from running ads and making money from content in all countries where the social platform is available. “We are now prohibiting Russian state media from running ads or monetizing on our platform anywhere in the world. We also continue to apply labels to additional Russian state media. These changes have already begun rolling out and will continue into the weekend.” Meta’s head of security policy Nathaniel Gleicher noted. In a similar reaction, Twitter said it is “temporarily pausing advertisements in Ukraine and Russia to ensure critical public safety information is elevated, and ads don’t detract from it.” Of course, Twitter has banned ads from state media since 2019. The Russian state-affiliated media are also blocked from YouTube, and they can’t make money through ads. Moreover, those channels will no longer appear in the recommendations. Ukrainian users also can’t watch the Russian state media anymore.
Attacking Ukraine was costly for the Russian-affiliated media
As Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine continues, more Russian companies and media may be added to the blocklist of the United States. Besides blocking the media channels, Meta reported about opening a Special Operations Center to be able to respond to the crisis in real-time. Facebook also allows Ukrainian users to lock their profiles with a single click. Large technology companies have imposed these restrictions to put pressure on Russia. Moreover, Conferring with the misinformation that Russian-affiliated media may also be spreading is crucial for Big Tech. In this regard, Google announced that it would minimize misinformation and help Ukrainian users stay safe online. The Russian government has repeatedly faced US technology companies with heavy fines. These platforms have also been frequently asked to restrict specific content.
