So today I came across a Ukrainian propaganda channel on Youtube called 'United24'. Searching this outlet shows that it's run by the Ukrainian government. It appears to be algorithmically boosted on Youtube, racking up over 1 billion views since the Russia-Ukraine War started in 2022.
State-funded news channels on Youtube generally have a disclaimer that says "this channel is funded in whole or in part by X government". X being whatever country owns the station. For example, the BBC's channel has a disclaimer from Youtube saying it's funded by the UK government. Yet curiously, United24 has no such disclaimer about it being owned by the Ukrainian government despite this being on public record.
So Ukrainian propaganda is both algorithmically boosted and doesn't have to label itself as Ukrainian media on Youtube. This is a unique privilege I haven't seen any other media get.
It should also be noted that all of Russia's state media was purged from Youtube in 2022, even for American users. RT used to have many Youtube channels but they all disappeared when Youtube wiped them out. Hearing the Russian point of view is illegal, but the Ukrainian point of view is protected?
So if you want to know why public opinion in Western countries is more pro-Ukraine than pro-Russia, it isn't because Ukraine won any intellectual debate. Rather, there has been a massive, top down propaganda campaign to shove Ukraine down the public's throat.
