Special Services

Russian state television remains the most important channel of propaganda influence on society. Its leading propagandists, who derive considerable income from their activities, daily consolidate the main narrative lines of Russian propaganda in the minds of Russians – they lie about the war in Ukraine, praise the imperialist ambitions of Vladimir Putin, spread false myths about history, attack and ridicule the European Union and NATO and at the same time build up a sense of threat in the Russian consciousness, and threaten Western countries, including Poland. Particularly active in this area are the hosts of political shows, broadcast with great frequency, who act on behalf of the Kremlin.

Below we describe those who are involved in spreading Russia’s lies.

Dmitry Kiselyov

One of the leading figures of Russian propaganda is Dmitry Kiselyov, who is also the head of the Russian news agency Rossiya Segodnya and the deputy director of the All-Russian State Television and Radio Company. Kiselyov hosts a news program on the first channel of state television, Vesti Nedeli, in which he summarizes the week's events. In it, he presents - in a particularly emotional way and in accordance with the Kremlin line - a false picture of reality, based on lies. Kiselyov openly glorifies the Russian authorities, president Putin, the Kremlin's power politics and plans for territorial conquests. At the same time, he displays an unfavorable attitude towards the West and its leaders. Due to his activities, he earned the nickname 'the Kremlin’s tube/mouthpiece'.

Vladimir Solovyov

Vladimir Solovyov stands out among the soldiers of the lie industry working for the Kremlin. In his programs, he aggressively pursues Russia's information goals. He is called Putin's media soldier, with whom he has a close relationship. Solovyov often meets with Putin personally, taking instructions from him as to the programs and lies that should currently be in the public domain. Solovyov has been hosting the political talk-show An Evening with Vladimir Solovyov on Rossiya 1 channel for years, as well as two other programs of a similar nature (Moscow-Kremlin-Putin, Who's Protiv?). Additionally, he contributes to Radio Rossiya and Vesti FM. Until recently, he was also present on the You Tube channel in the program Solovyov Live. In his programs, Solovyov usually appears as a moderator - an intellectual, arranging discussions on topics consistent with the official Kremlin narrative.

Anna Shafran

The narrative distributed by Solovyov and his media projects is duplicated by, among others, Anna Shafran, a political scientist and journalist of Ukrainian origin. She runs a program in the Orthodox Spas TV channel (Glavnoye s Annoj Szafran) and her own channel on the Internet (Na szag wpieredi). Previously, together with V. Solovyov, she hosted the program Priamoj kontakt on radio Vesti.FM. In her speeches Shafran presents an extreme anti-Western, anti-Ukrainian and anti-democratic attitude, disinforms the public and slanders Putin's opponents.

Mikhail Leontyev

Another active propagandist of the Kremlin in Channel 1 of the state television and radio stations is the host of the Odnako program, Mikhail Leontyev, who is also a spokesman for Rosneft. In the past, he was also associated with the editorial boards of pro-Kremlin dailies, i.e. Kommiersant and Nezavisimaya Gazeta. He is known for promoting content that goes with the Kremlin's narrative line, including content that questions the right to a free Ukraine, and for his tendency to make sharp remarks against foreign politicians who are unfavorable for Moscow.

Olga Skabeyeva & Yevgeny Popov

Among the Kremlin's TV propagandists, a couple of ‘journalists’ - Olga Skabeyeva and Yevgeny Popov - are particularly famous. They are the hosts of 60 Minutes, a popular political talk-show broadcast by the Rossiya 1 channel. Skabeyeva also sometimes replaces D. Kiselyova as host of Vesti Nedeli. In the past, Y. Popov was the author of the regular program Special Correspondent and a number of propaganda programs. Skabeyeva's and Popov's shows serve to achieve the objectives of the Russian government by spreading false information, creating an atmosphere of hatred and promoting great state chauvinism.

Yekaterina Strizhenova

The formula of a political talk-show is also used by another employee of Russian state television, Yekaterina Strizhenova, who together with Artyom Sheynin (former soldier, veteran of the war in Afghanistan) hosts a program on Channel 1, Vremya pokazhet. The program spreads lies and promotes chauvinism and hatred towards Western societies. The content is oriented towards building a positive image of V. Putin and his policies, including policy towards Ukraine. 

Anatoly Kuzichev, Artyom Sheynin

The face of Vremya pokazhet, apart from Sheynin and Strizhenova, is also Anatoly Kuzichev - a radio and television journalist associated with Channel 1 TV, Carygrad TV and the stations Vesti.FM, Mayak and Kommersant FM. In his media appearances, Kuzichev propagates Kremlin propaganda, including open support for  Russian aggression against Ukraine.

Andrey Norkin

 

Similar in format to Vremya pokazhet is Andrey Norkin's socio-political talk-show Mesto vstrechi, broadcast daily on NTW television. Norkin is also associated with the state-owned radio Komsomolskaya Pravda, where he hosts 120 minutes and War and Mir programs. In the past, he was the head of the information service of the Orthodox TV channel Carygrad. Repeatedly awarded by the authorities of the Russian Federation for ‘outstanding achievements’ in the field of media. Andrey Norkin is an outspoken supporter of the Kremlin's policy, famous for his heated debates on controversial aspects of Russian history and current domestic and foreign policy of the Moscow authorities. 

Nailya Asker-Zade

One of the more distinguished figures in Kremlin propaganda is Azerbaijani-born Nailya Asker-Zade, who hosts a journalistic program Dieystwuyushchiye lica on TV Channel 1. Asker-Zade is also the moderator of one of the annual meetings of the Russian president with the people held through the media. She actively supports the Russian Federation's military actions in Ukraine, and in her reports for the Rossiya-1 TV channel she takes an anti-Western stance.

Andrey Dobrov

Kremlin propaganda is also spread in his media activity by Andrey Dobrov, associated with the REN TV channel, where he hosts the program Dobrov w efirie. Dobrov publicly supported Russia's aggression against Ukraine. He is a follower of the implementation of Putin's superpower policy.

Roman Babayan

The Kremlin's propagandists also include Roman Babayan, a deputy to the Moscow City Duma and editor-in-chief of Radio Moscow Speaks. On the air of NTW TV, he hosts a political and social talk-show Svoya pravda. He criticizes the anti-Putin opposition and likes to raise issues imposed by the administration of V. Putin. He often goes so far as to make aggressive behavior and statements on air.

Konstantin Malofeev

Carygrad TV, owned by Konstantin Malofeev's private mediaholding, is also involved in achieving the Kremlin's propaganda objectives. Malofeev has been sponsoring the Russian Federation's military actions in Ukraine since 2014. Carygrad TV presents an untrue picture of events, propagates extreme and xenophobic attitudes as well as hostility towards Putin's opponents.

Margarita Simonyan

The Kremlin's propaganda message to audiences abroad is the responsibility of, among others, Margarita Simonyan - editor-in-chief of RT television (formerly Russia Today) and the Sputnik news agency. She is one of the most aggressive propagandists active in the Russian media. The media under her direction are a disinformation base for the authorities, supporting their foreign policy and spreading a false image of reality among the citizens of other countries. M. Simonyan with full awareness realizes the assumptions of the information war between Russia and the West. She openly supports Putin and his policy and is the author of a number of texts that are paeans to the president of the Russian Federation. Simonian is a scriptwriter of the satirical show Mezhdunarodnaya pilorama on the NTW TV channel, in which she appears together with her husband - Tigran Keosayan. The show is famous for its humorous depiction of major international events, including the war in Ukraine.

Russia's censorship, limited access to information sources other than those controlled by the state, as well as fears, prejudices and myths that have been fueled for decades - all of this means that the effectiveness of Russian propagandists in influencing Russian society remains high. Unfortunately, Russian lies also permeate public opinion in the West. It remains an important task for Western countries to expose the modus operandi of the Russian propaganda apparatus and its main actors - Putin's media puppets.

Spokesperson of the Minister-Special Services Coordinator