DOJ alleges Russia funded US media company linked to right-wing social media stars
By Zachary Cohen, Donie O’Sullivan, Evan Perez and Sean Lyngaas, CNN
(CNN) — The unnamed Tennessee-based company that the Justice Department alleges was being funded by Russian operatives working as part of a Kremlin-orchestrated influence operation targeting the 2024 US election is Tenet Media, which is linked to right-wing commentators with millions of subscribers on YouTube and other social media platforms, according to a US official briefed on the matter.
The indictment unsealed in New York’s Southern District accused two employees of RT, the Kremlin’s media arm, of funneling nearly $10 million to an unidentified company, described only as “Company 1” in court documents.
CNN has independently confirmed that “Company 1” is Tenet Media, which is a platform for independent content creators. It is self-described as a “network of heterodox commentators that focus on Western political and cultural issues,” according to its website, which matches language contained in the newly unsealed indictment.
The goal of the operation, according to prosecutors, was to fuel pro-Russian narratives, in part, by pushing content and news articles favoring Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and others who the Kremlin deemed to be friendlier to its interests.
The indictment also says that Company 1’s website identifies six commentators.
Among the commentators listed on Tenet Media’s website are right-wing personalities Benny Johnson and Tim Pool. Both have millions of subscribers on YouTube and other social media platforms. Pool interviewed Trump on his podcast in May.
In separate statements released Wednesday, Johnson and Pool said they were victims of the alleged scheme and said they maintained editorial control of the content they had created.
“We are disturbed by the allegations in today’s indictment, which make clear that myself and other influencers were victims in this alleged scheme,” Johnson wrote in a post on X.
“Should these allegations prove true, I as well as the other personalities and commentators were deceived and are victims,” Pool said on X. “The show is produced in its entirety by our local team without input from anyone external to the company,” he added.
On Wednesday, the Biden administration announced a sweeping set of actions to tackle a major Russian government-backed effort to influence the 2024 US presidential election, including sanctions on 10 individuals and entities, and the seizure of 32 internet domains.
At Russian President Vladimir Putin’s direction, three Russian companies used fake profiles to promote false narratives on social media, US Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said in a statement. Internal documents produced by one of those Russian companies show one of the goals of the propaganda effort was to boost the candidacy of Trump or whoever emerged as the Republican nominee for president, according to an FBI affidavit.
Taken together with the indictment of the RT employees, the actions represent the Biden administration’s most significant public response yet to alleged Russian influence operations targeting American voters. After the US accused Iran of trying to hack both the Trump and Biden-Harris campaigns last month, Wednesday’s actions are a reminder that US officials continue to see Russia as a prominent foreign influence threat to November’s election, sources familiar with the matter told CNN ahead of the announcements.
This story has been updated with additional details.
The-CNN-Wire
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