Russian propaganda successfully influences Western media, replacing topics and distorting the perception of the aggressive war by blaming Ukraine. This is evidenced by the data of experts, as reported by Voice of America.
Experts have identified the advancement of Russian narratives, especially in the case of events in Crimea.
Western media actively quote Kremlin’s versions, not paying due attention to the essence of the conflict — Russia’s war against Ukraine. In particular, attention was drawn to the strike of American weapons on the Center for Space Surveillance and Communication in temporarily occupied Crimea.
Ukraine has stated the need to destroy important military infrastructure of the satellite communication and navigation system, which helped Russians target peaceful targets in Ukrainian cities. This was confirmed by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
However, leading Western media outlets, such as BBC, The Guardian, and CNN, have taken on the Russian interpretation of events, which focuses on civilian casualties who were vacationing on the beaches of occupied Crimea at the time of the strike.
German journalist Juergen Nauditt noted that Russia is changing its information to clear itself.
Initially, the Russian Federation claimed that it shot down an ATACMS missile with its air defense systems right above the Crimean beach, but then abandoned this version, accusing Ukraine of a deliberate attack.
Fabian Hoffmann, a research fellow at the University of Oslo, pointed out that the video does not indicate a deliberate attack and shows that the incident resulted from interception.
Journalist WGN Radio Joe Lindslie, who broadcasts daily from Ukraine, demonstrated in his video how English-language media repeat Russian headlines, focusing on the losses of people who were vacationing on sovereign Ukrainian territory captured by Russia, instead of highlighting the true essence of the event — the destruction of a strategic military object used by Russians to attack peaceful residents of Ukraine.
