DISINFO: Kyiv residents want Russian social media platforms back
SUMMARY
The majority of Kyiv residents are against banning Russian social media sites and Russian films. According to a poll carried out for the Ukrainian Obozrevatel internet newspaper, the majority of Kyiv residents want the Russian social media network VKontakte back.
RESPONSE
The poll cited was not about Russian social networks or Russian films, but rather about Kyiv residents’ attitudes to Ukrainian sanctions against Russia. Obozrevatel’s original story states that a small majority of Kyiv residents do not support Ukraine’s sanctions against Russia, there is no mention of support for any particular social media site. The poll was conducted by a group called Ukrainian Democratic Circle, who have done previous polls for Obozrevatel. This particular group however is not certified by the Ukrainian Sociological Association, who omitted it from their 2014 list of trusted sources. Obozrevatel also has a poll of their own about the ban of Russian social media and search engines, the response is a resounding support for the ban. Zvezda TV, owned by Russia’s Ministry of Defence, is well known to spread disinformation https://euvsdisinfo.eu/dependent-media-russias-military-tv-zvezda/. Further debunking by Stopfake www.stopfake.org/en/fake-kyiv-residents-want-russian-social-media-platforms-back/, .