With the US presidential elections approaching in November, concerns in the US about foreign interference are growing — as are the raft of accusations against Russian-backed agents for meddling.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) says it’s charging two employees of a Russian state media company, claiming they paid millions of dollars to slip covert Russian messages into online videos made by conservative US influencers.
But what does it actually mean, and who has been charged?
Who is involved?
The DOJ alleges two employees of a state-run Russian media company called Russia Today (RT) were involved in an elaborate scheme to commission a US-based company to make and distribute content with “hidden Russian government messaging”.
Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, Russian nationals working at RT, have been charged with conspiracy to violate a foreign agent registration law and money-laundering offences.
The US government said both worked to introduce disinformation on social media targeted at US citizens, by commissioning a Tennessee-based company to create videos containing pro-Russian propaganda.
As an offshoot of an “entire empire of covert projects” designed to shape public opinion in Western democracies, the DOJ alleged RT’s handiwork was designed to weaken US opposition to Russia’s war in Ukraine, alongside other topics.
The US company is not accused of wrongdoing.
The DOJ alleges wire transfers totalling $US10 million ($14. 87 million) from shell companies in Turkey, the UAE and Mauritius alongside fake identities used by the two Russians were used to hide the truth — that the defendants were encouraging and directing Russian interests in commissioning the content.
The money-laundering charges carry a maximum 20-year prison sentence if convicted, but it’s unlikely that either will be tried as both Kalashnikov and Afanasyeva are designated as “at large” in Russia.
What did the $US10 million pay for?
The DOJ argues in its charge sheet that the RT employees were paying content creators to make videos designed to “amplify domestic divisions” in the US.
The English-language videos commented on topics such as immigration, inflation, and US domestic and foreign policy.
More than 2,000 videos were posted across TikTok, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube, according to the DOJ indictment, with a total of 16 million views since November 2023.
A conservative US political commentator, Benny Johnson, identified himself and the right-wing network Tenet Media as targets of the Russian operation in a statement on X.
“A year ago, a media startup pitched my company to provide content as an independent contractor,” Mr Johnson said.
“Our lawyers negotiated a standard, arms-length deal, which was later terminated.
“We are disturbed by the allegations in today’s indictment, which make clear that myself and other influencers were victims in this alleged scheme,” he wrote.
Mr Johnson has 2.7 million followers on X and 1.6 million on Instagram, and posts regularly about US politics in support of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
Tenet Media’s website describes itself as a “network of heterodox commentators that focus on Western political and cultural issues”.
The FBI separately sought court permission to seize 32 internet domains it said were part of Russia’s foreign influence effort.
RT responded saying: “Three things are certain in life: death, taxes and RT’s interference in the US elections.”
The media outlet stopped operating in the US after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Emma Briant, an expert on propaganda and information warfare from Monash University, said the sophistication of the Russian operation was concerning.
“It essentially is the evidence that we have been waiting for, which really proves the Russian backing behind an awful lot of influencers that have been pedalling and super-spreading disinformation on the internet,” she said.
Dr Briant said the influencers paid by RT were “given deniability” but were “doing Russia’s bidding with little regulation stopping them”.
The director of the FBI, Christopher A Wray, said covert attempts to trick Americans into “unwittingly consuming foreign propaganda” was an attack on US democracy.
Is this happening in Australia?
The US has focused its efforts on Russian and Iranian-backed actors as the 2024 presidential election draws closer.
But it’s an issue in Australia too: in July, the head of the Department of Home Affairs ordered a sweep of all government technology for foreign cyber threats.
The Counter Foreign Interference Taskforce, set up in 2020, was also made a permanent feature of the department.
Countries like China, Cambodia, Rwanda and Iran are all noted as sources of foreign interference.
Australia’s foreign intelligence agency, ASIO, released its 2024 threat assessment in February which identified espionage and foreign interference targeting Australia being at the highest rate ever.
ASIO director-general Mike Burgess at the time detailed a foreign operation to recruit a former Australian politician, who was not named, to “advance the interests of the foreign regime”.
In July, a Russian-born Australian citizen serving in the Australian military and her husband were arrested and charged with espionage after being accused of spying for the Kremlin.
The pair are alleged to have gained access to classified defence material with the intention of sharing it with Russian authorities.
And while Australia’s next federal election is just over the horizon, ASIO and the government warn more attempts from foreign actors to introduce disinformation are likely.
