DISINFO: Removal of RT channels on YouTube is an obvious manifestation of censorship
SUMMARY
The removal of German RT channels is unprecedented information aggression and an obvious manifestation of censorship by YouTube, committed with the obvious tacit consent of Germany, if not at its insistence.
RESPONSE
YouTube deleted RT's German-language channels on 28 September 2021, saying it had breached its COVID misinformation policy. The claims in this article attempt to frame YouTube's actions as motivated by censorship and anti-Russian sentiment, without ever mentioning the official reason - as stated above - why the two channels were disabled.
In August 2021, YouTube said that it erased 1 million videos in line with its anti-misinformation policy, and on 29 September 2021 it expanded the ban to all misinformation on vaccines.
With these rules in place, YouTube decided to suspend RT DE, the German service of the Russian TV channel, for one week, given the prominent space and amplification that it provided for the so-called “Querdenker”, members of the coronavirus-sceptic movement. After that, RT DE tried to used a second YouTube channel, Der Fehlende Part, to circumvent the suspension, which led to YouTube closing both channels for breaking its Terms of Service. For this reason, the decision cannot be considered an “act of censorship” or an “attack on freedom of expression”.
Accusations of censorship and attacks against freedom of expression are a recurring pro-Kremlin technique to defend the illicit actions of Russia’s state-sponsored disinformation outlets after local authorities adopt measures against them. Claims of “interference” are also frequently raised to deflect any criticism of Russian authorities by international media.