How to circumvent the absurd censorship of Russia Today and Sputnik?
The purpose of this article is not to pass judgment on Russia Today (RT) or Sputnik. These two media have never hidden the fact that they are subsidized by Moscow. It is more a question of knowing whether this “hasty” ban is not counter-productive in this context of information warfare. Because RT and Sputnik are accused of being Kremlin propaganda tools.
Let’s assume that is the case.
So why not banish these news channels before that? Arcom (the new name of the CSA) had however granted a broadcasting license in 2017 which was renewed in 2020.
The smiling Ursula from Hell
Yesterday’s decision by the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the Governments of the Member States of the European Union (COREPER) was sweeping as RT was suspended from ISP bouquets, satellite programs and streaming platforms at a time. record. The very sympathetic Ursula Von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, was very clear: “Russian state-owned media RT and Sputnik, and all their affiliates, will no longer be able to spread their lies to justify Putin’s war.”
You don’t know this smiling lady? It’s normal, you never voted for her. However, she speaks for you and has just censored two media followed by millions of people. Once again: even if RT and Sputnik were just talking nonsense, censorship is unacceptable.
Why ? We will explain to you.
Image broadcast at the moment on the video stream of RT France: pic.twitter.com/63VhHKbTdJ
— marc rees (@reesmarc) March 2, 2022
Putin will not sit idly by
We are not even going to talk about the 176 employees who will find themselves unemployed, because they are “collaborators”, right? Yet RT had given the floor to the yellow vests when the social-traitors of the well-meaning left called them a small group of the far right. RT also gave a voice to those who fought against the “corona-circus” and the draconian measures of the French government. A different story.
So yes, RT downplays the Russian attack on Ukraine and portrays Ukrainians as a belligerent people, but with every action there is a reaction. How long before Putin bans RFI, Euronews and France 24 which are present on Russian territory? Putin’s weakness is his people’s potential anger at western restrictions. Without this “dissident” information, for the moment still authorized in Russia, how could the local population form a different opinion than that provided by the first Russian national channel, “Putin TV”?
But hey, censorship is fine when it’s “the good side” that practices it… The others are despots.
The National Union of Journalists reacted nicely: “You never defend freedom by attacking journalists”. It is however obvious.
In Ukraine, in Russia, as elsewhere, the political reprisals directed against the newsrooms are worrying.
SNJ press release: “We never defend freedom by attacking journalists” 👇https://t.co/yrV5NL4VNz@IFJGlobal @EFJEUROPE pic.twitter.com/qdAudcgL9c– SNJ – first union of journalists (@SNJ_national) February 28, 2022
How to watch Russia Today and Sputnik then?
For those who want to, it is possible to bypass censorship through a VPN and watch RT France and Sputnik, although the amount of original programming is likely to dwindle over time (RT still has a live that works). Before Ursula decides that you are on the side of the bad guys and asks for the removal of Gulli, Cnews or Equidia (horses = fascist), you too should perhaps consider taking a look at our page dedicated to vpn. Right now, CyberGhost is on sale at €1.99.
