Russian state media still publish on TikTok a month after the restriction

In early March, the social network banned the publication of new content from Russia in response to a new Russian law criminalizing “fake news” about the invasion and setting long prison terms for it. Nevertheless, several Russian state media outlets continue to operate on TikTok.

To identify the posts of 49 Russian media accounts, the social network added tags – translucent gray squares at the bottom of the screen. However, despite the labels “Russian-controlled state media”, some of the pages still publish a lot of new content.

For example, RIA Novosti is still spreading a mix of news about the war and current events. One of the last videos they published was accusing Ukraine of the tragedy in Bucha.

Another state propaganda channel, Sputnik Video, last posted on March 29, and its Spanish version three days ago warned of neo-Nazi plans to blow up a chemical plant in Donetsk. The infamous Russia Today continued to publish military propaganda until March 28.

TikTok probably controls the flow of new content from Russia, tracking the location of users. It remains unclear why the company does not impose restrictions on accounts it has already linked to the Russian government – even if they have found an alternate path and hid their location. The company declined to comment.