The social media platform TikTok has announced that it has taken down accounts associated with two Russian media groups for trying to exercise what is being called “covert influence” on the country’s presidential elections, which is against TikTok’s guidelines.
The accounts were linked to Rossiya Segodnya and TV-Novosti, the organization behind two of Russia’s biggest news agencies, Sputnik and RT. Both of these news agencies are considered state-owned by the States and the West. Meta did the same last week when it banned both the channels and several accounts associated with them from its network globally to reduce “foreign interference activity” in the 2024 Presidential elections.
Earlier this month, the authorities announced charges against two RT employees for funnelling $10 million into a US company, Tenet Media, to create and amplify the distribution of content aligned with the Russian government’s state interests. According to government officials, this covert influence campaign was aimed at the people of the United States to manipulate narratives and play those people to their own advantage.
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Tenet Media, through which the money was being funnelled, boasts a roster of some really high-level people, mostly right-wing and pro-Trump. All of them released statements explaining that they were a victim of the alleged Russian Scheme.
Meanwhile, TikTok has been scrutinized regarding concerns about the potential for the Chinese government to control its algorithm in a way that could sway the American audience. This platform, utilised by 170 million Americans for content on topics like sports, fashion, and politics, is owned by the Chinese firm ByteDance.
In April, President Joe Biden enacted legislation that could prohibit TikTok in the United States nationwide unless the app secures a new owner, a decision that the company has subsequently challenged in court.
