Russia asks Google to stop misinformation on Ukraine Special Ops

Russian telecom watchdog Roskomnadzor asked Google to stop promoting campaigns spreading misinformation about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on YouTube videos. Russia asks Google to stop inaccurate online ads with no age labels are being used to instill “protest moods” and circulating false information on the Russian Army ‘Special Operation” in Ukraine.

Russia demands Google to stop misinformation

Roskomnazdzor sent a letter to Google asking it to immediately stop spreading false information about the political situation in Ukraine and fake details on Russian Army. The Russian telecom company accuses Google of showing these misinformation videos on YouTube forcing a distorted perception of the events in Ukraine and triggering unnecessary confusion among the Russian internet audience.

Adding to Google, Roskomnadzor also demanded its media outlets to stop supporting this false information about shelling of Ukraine cities, as well as naming the events as attack, invasion or war. The media outlets requested include Dozhd, Svobodnaya Pressa, Mediazona, Ekho Moskvy, InoSMI, Krym, Novaya Gazeta, Lenizdatnot and Journaist.

Russia is planning to introduce a new law for spreading fake news about the Russian armed forces and their military operation in Ukraine with up to 15 years of imprisonment.

How is Google reacting to Russia’s claims?

Google has already taken measures to stop the misinformation spreading via its platforms. It took down multiple campaigns themed around Russian invasion with misinformation. Furthermore, Google blocked YouTube channels belonging to Russia Today (RT) and Sputnik across Europe as per the request of European Union.

Roskomnadzor has raised protest with Google for blocking Russian media accounts (RT and Sputnik) in Europe. Adding to the above complications and protests, Google has also demonetized Russian state-funded media across multiple platforms, which will restrict those accounts from running ad campaigns.

“When people around the world search for topics related to the war in Ukraine on Search or YouTube, our systems prominently surface information, videos and other key context from authoritative news sources,” Google said.

As of now, Google is still active in Russia for Search, YouTube, and Maps to provide Russians with access to global news, information and perspectives.

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