DISINFO: The US is increasing its influence on Kazakh media
SUMMARY
The influence of the US on Kazakhstan's media sphere is expanding, increasingly taking root in local media. A 'supervisor' for Meta's social media, that is banned in Russia for extremism, has been appointed.
Factcheck.kz has become "Meta's first Kazakhstani partner as part of a global fact-checking program." Behind this beautiful title lies an almost police-like nature to this status. If there is a lot of ‘disinformation’ on a channel, its reach will first be reduced, and then closure may follow. As Sputnik has personally experienced, in the particularly democratic world, ‘disinformation’ is referred to as information that differs from the U.S. viewpoint.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative falsely alleging discrimination against Kremlin and other Russian state-controlled outlets.
RT, Sputnik, and a myriad of other Russian state-owned or -aligned outlets have been exposed over the last decade as instruments of spreading disinformation and pro-Kremlin propaganda (see for example here, here, or here). For an extensive list of a wide range of studies, articles and reports relating to the spread of pro-Kremlin disinformation, see the Studies and Reports section on EUvsDisinfo.
On 16 September 2024, Facebook owner META announced it was banning RT, Rossiya Segodnya and other Russian state media networks, alleging "the outlets used deceptive tactics to carry out influence operations while evading detection on the social media company’s platforms."
As part of Meta’s continuous fight against disinformation, the company partners with independent third-party fact-checkers around the world who review and rate the accuracy of content. When a fact-checker rates a piece of content as false, partly false, or altered, Meta shows it lower in the feed, reducing its distribution.
Following Russia's full scale invasion of Ukraine, the EU suspended the broadcasting activities and licenses of multiple Russian disinformation outlets under the permanent direct or indirect control of the authorities of the Russian Federation that were complicit in supporting policies that undermine sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. These measures are proportionate, temporary (for the duration of the armed aggression) and limited in scope.
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 Western authorities adopted measures against them. Claims of “interference” or distraction are also frequently raised to deflect any criticism of Russian authorities by international media.
See other examples of similar disinformation narratives in our database, such as claims that Washington and Brussels implement an information war against the people of Russia and Belarus, that RT and Sputnik are repeatedly accused without evidence and that Western media suppress all facts and opinions that differ from official narratives.