YouTube this week confirmed the closure of five right-wing political channels believed to be linked to the Justice Department's indictments of US media outlets linked to Russia. The platform removed the Tenet Media channel, which CNN reported This is the unnamed company implicated in the indictment. The Justice Department accused Russian agents of paying the media organization to spread disinformation designed to influence the 2024 U.S. election.
A YouTube spokesperson confirmed the removal and sent a statement to Engadget: “Following an allegation from the U.S. Department of Justice and after careful review, we are terminating the Tenet Media channel and four channels operated by its owner Lauren Chen as part of our ongoing efforts to combat coordinated influence operations,” the company’s statement reads.
According to YouTube, the investigation into the situation is ongoing and the company will assess whether further action is warranted as new information emerges. The company says it shut down more than 4,000 YouTube channels in the second quarter of 2024 as part of investigations into influence operations linked to Russia. YouTube is working with Google Threat Analysis Group (TAG) to identify bad actors and remove their channels and accounts accordingly.
On Wednesday, the Justice Department charged two employees of RO (before All Russiaand), a Kremlin-backed media outlet. They were accused of illegally funding a Tennessee-backed media organization, now all but officially confirmed as Tenet Media. Justice Department prosecutors allege in the indictment that the media company’s founders knew their funding came from the Russian government. Tenet Media is owned by Chen and her husband, Liam Donovan.
The Washington Post technology/2024/09/05/youtube-takes-down-tenet-lauren-chen-tenet-russia-doj/” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:reports;elm:context_link;elmt:doNotAffiliate;cpos:5;pos:1;itc:0;sec:content-canvas”>information YouTube was Tenet’s preferred platform for spreading propaganda videos targeting American conservatives and featuring popular right-wing pundits. Those working with the organization included Benny Johnson, Tim Pool, and Dave Rubin. The channels have even featured appearances by former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and RNC chairwoman Lara Trump. Pool and Rubin have reportedly denied any knowledge that the Russian government was behind Tenet’s funding.
