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In Chile, a privately owned channel, Telecanal, began broadcasting Russia’s state-backed RT channel without a public preface, triggering a sanction inquiry by the country’s regulator for possible broadcasting-law violations. Viewers were left puzzled and some, like truck driver Javier, felt unsettled when confronted with unfamiliar footage and a logo they did not recognise.

Across Africa, the Balkans, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Latin America, RT together with Sputnik have broadened their reach in recent years, at a time when Western outlets face bans or downgrades.

In the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and the European Union, RT and its sister services have been sanctioned since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 for spreading disinformation. In 2024 US authorities targeted several RT executives, including editor‑in‑chief Margarita Simonyan, over alleged efforts to undermine public trust in institutions. RT has consistently denied any manipulation in elections.

Despite Western restrictions, RT has continued expanding. It has opened a bureau in Algeria, launched a Serbian-language service, and begun free training programs for journalists in Africa, Southeast Asia, India and China. The broadcaster has also announced plans for an office in India. Sputnik, its sister network, opened a newsroom in Ethiopia in February, part of a broader push into Africa that RT executives describe as a shift away from traditional London, Paris, and Washington hubs.

The expansion comes as some Western media outlets shrink or retreat from parts of the world due to budget pressures and new priorities. The BBC closed its Arabic radio service in favour of a digital offering and, in the same period, Sputnik began a 24‑hour service in Lebanon. The US government’s Voice of America has reduced staff as part of a broader reallocation of resources.

Analysts stress that Russia’s aim is to gain influence in regions where perceptions of Western policies are increasingly mixed. Kathryn Stoner, a Stanford political scientist, describes Russia as “like water,” seeping into cracks where Western presence is perceived as weak. The question remains what Russia ultimately seeks to achieve and how much influence these channels have in a shifting global order.

Scholars caution that RT’s international presentation can appear credible to some audiences, even as it channels state messaging. Critics note that RT’s editorial choices often shape stories to fit a Russian narrative—such as portraying Crimea’s 2014 annexation as “reunification” and denying evidence of Russian war crimes in Ukraine since 2022. Some viewers recognise bias but feel capable of separating truth from spin, while others are less aware of how coverage is framed.

In regional contexts, RT tailors coverage to local concerns: in the Middle East, Arabic RT and Sputnik steer reporting on the Israel–Gaza conflict to resonate with pro‑Palestinian audiences; in Latin America, RT is freely available in several countries and on cable in others, even as YouTube remains blocked in many places since 2022. A viewer in Argentina described RT as offering a broader Latin American and global view, reflecting a belief in diverse news value.

RT and its supporters contend that the network’s global presence offers alternative perspectives. Critics argue that expanded access risks normalising Kremlin narratives and eroding trust in liberal democracies. University researchers say measuring real impact is difficult, but the spread of Russian messaging persists, notably with arguments linking Western expansion to security concerns and portraying Russia as a defender of the Global South.

RT has said it is expanding globally; Sputnik did not respond to requests for comment. Some observers warn that Western media funding reductions could leave space for non‑Western outlets to gain ground, underscoring a continuing contest over how world events are understood and who speaks for them.

Source: Full Article BBC