Voice of America: Russia successfully pushes its narratives in Western media

Russia successfully promotes its narratives about Ukraine in Western media, reports Voice of America, citing Western experts. Propagandists manipulate information and distort perceptions of their aggressive war to blame Ukraine in it. 

Several commentators observed that coverage of the American weapon strike on the Space Surveillance and Communications Center in temporarily occupied Crimea was skewed. Western media focused on quotes from pro-Russian “officials” in Crimea, rather than addressing the core events of Russia’s war against Ukraine.

“The strike, confirmed by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, allowed the Ukrainian Armed Forces to neutralize a significant military component of the satellite communication and navigation system, which helped the Russians target civilian sites in peaceful cities. Instead, several leading Western media outlets cited the Russian side, emphasizing casualties among people who were supposedly relaxing on beaches of the Russian-occupied Ukrainian peninsula,” the text reads. Such publications appeared on BBC, The Guardian, and CNN websites.

At the same time, Russia changed its statements, contradicting itself, noted German commentator Jürgen Nauditt. Initially, the occupiers claimed to have shot down an ATACMS missile, but then abandoned this version and accused Ukraine of a deliberate attack.

“One rule always applies – the Russians always lie,” writes Nauditt.

English-language media, mirroring Russian headlines, focused on casualties among individuals on sovereign Ukrainian territory occupied by Russia. This overshadowed the primary event: the neutralization of a strategic military target that enabled the Russians to kill Ukrainian civilians daily, says journalist Joe Lindsley of Chicago’s WGN Radio. “The negative story dominated the headlines. This is how Russia manipulates mindless media,” writes Lindsley.

Lindsley emphasizes that people were killed by remnants of Russian air defenses, not by American weapons launched by Ukrainians. At the same time, the journalist notes that these media outlets do not mention the Ukrainian civilians deliberately killed by Russians in peaceful Kharkiv.