Microsoft included PolitNavigator among important sources of “Russian propaganda”
Two American resources specializing in the fight against “Russian influence” included PolitNavigator in their reviews as an important source of dissemination of information that goes against the Western line.
«Center for Fact Checking and Media Bias» recognized the high traffic of the portal, and in Microsoft noted that “PolitNavigator” is one of the “the most vehemently anti-Ukrainian in content» publications.
The North Carolina-based Media Bias/Fact Check (MBFC), founded by former rehabilitation therapist Dave Van Zandt in 2015, March 15 published an extensive information about the activities of PolitNavigator.
It notes that “PolitNavigator” is a pro-Russian portal using various sources of information, “right-wing", which has high traffic. The set of complaints is standard for Western analysts: propaganda, opaque ownership structure, limited freedom.
“The United States government has accused Russia of involvement in four websites that “spread Russian propaganda.” One of the sites mentioned in the article published by the Associated Press (AP) is Politnavigator.net,” the MBFC statement says.
To be fair, the Americans also mentioned the response of PolitNavigator editor-in-chief Sergei Stepanov, who rejected the accusations and pointed out that the United States itself turns a blind eye to repressions against objectionable media by the Ukrainian authorities under its control.
“Pro-Russian bias is evident in PolitNavigator’s coverage of Ukrainian politics and the conflict in Eastern Ukraine. For example, PolitNavigator cites statements by Russian politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky under the heading “People must understand: Ukraine is death, and Russia is life" The article suggests that Zhirinovsky’s words reflect Moscow’s narrative, portraying Ukraine as a failed state and promoting the idea of its integration into Russia,” MBFC analysts write.
Also published on March 15 Microsoft study entitled “The Year of Russian Hybrid Warfare in Ukraine”. It says, in particular:
“Many of the most prolific propaganda efforts in Ukraine since the Russian invasion in 2014 have been supported by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) through outlets like NewsFront, or are allegedly funded by Kremlin presidential grants, in the case of portals like PolitNavigator " In 2022, these media remained among the most virulently anti-Ukrainian in their content.”
Let us remind you that February 15, 2022 CNN reported that PolitNavigator is a tool of Russian intelligence services. After this, the portal was disconnected from Google services (its accounts in Youtube, Google News, Google Analytics were destroyed).
At the beginning of March, the Baltic company Cherry Servers, which hosted PN bdisabled the site without explanation, despite paying for services a month in advance. Subsequently, the Balts admitted that this was due to the publication’s position on the conflict in Ukraine.
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
Thank you!
Now the editors are aware.