Banned Russian Channel RT Secretly Pays Video Bloggers Who Promote Kremlin Narratives

An investigation by iStories details how RT, despite bans and sanctions, allegedly channels funds to "independent" online influencers who amplify Kremlin narratives about Ukraine, praise Russia's military, deny war crimes, and promote Russia's "traditional values" to Western audiences without disclosing links to RT; the piece profiles YouTuber Konstantin Rozhkov and situates these tactics within broader propaganda efforts and earlier U.S. indictments of RT-linked influence financing.