The Russian media regulatory agency Roskomnadzor said it has “limited access”–Putinspeak for banning–at least ten Western websites from being accessed in Russia in an effort to prevent people from learning unbiased news about the war in Ukraine, Radio Free Europe reports.
Besides the Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty sites, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, the BBC, German news outlet Deutsche Welle, and the Apple and Google app stores were all blocked from access by residents of Russia, as reported by web monitor group GlobalCheck. The total extent of the censorship is unknown.
“Putin is feeding Russians a steady diet of lies about the scope and costs of the war in Ukraine,” RFE/RL President Jamie Fly said Friday. “RFE/RL refuses to censor our content at this critical moment for our Russian audiences. They deserve the truth and we will continue to provide them with factual information about their government’s actions and the consequences that they must now endure.”