Alexei Navalny, a Russian opposition leader and founder of the Anti-Corruption Foundation, called for sanctions against Alina Kabaeva – former athlete, current head of the National Media Group, and according to investigators, also Vladimir Putin’s family member. He also urged the international community to treat everyone complicit in Russian propaganda as war criminals. Navalny is currently serving a sentence in a Russian prison under a fabricated case that was initiated against him after a failed attempt at his assassination with the use of chemical weapons. The Insider quotes Navalny’s post in full:
“A look through the eyes of a Russian television viewer – which is exactly what I’ve been.
I learned about the bloodcurdling events in Bucha yesterday morning from a news item on Russia requesting a UN Security Council session on the massacre committed by Ukrainian Nazis. In the evening, a Channel One anchor explained everything: ‘NATO started preparing the provocation in Bucha a long time ago and on the highest level. Yet another proof is Biden calling Putin a ‘butcher’ shortly before. Just listen to how these two words are consonant: ‘butcher’ and ‘Bucha’. This is how he prepared the Western audience for this provocation at a subconscious level.’
I’m telling you, the flagrancy of lies on the federal channels is unimaginable. Unfortunately, so is their credibility for those deprived of access to alternative information sources.
My idea is that Putin's propaganda machine stopped being a means to an end a long time ago. They are real warmongers who have evolved into a political force in their own right. They demand a conclusive, victorious war. Even the prospect of a nuclear conflict doesn't scare them. They wipe the floor with their fellow Putin supporters in live broadcasts hearing even the subtlest expression of approval for peace talks.
[Russian] politics is a propagandist ouroboros, a snake biting its own tail. Spin doctors are creating a public opinion that doesn't just condone Putin’s war crimes; it demands them of him.
Warmongers must be treated as war criminals. Sanctions must be imposed on all those “Radios of the Thousand Hills” immediately; tribunals must follow.
I also want to remind you: there can be no doubt that the National Media Group, which owns a fair share of the factory of lies, belongs to Putin himself. Notably, even its formal head is Putin's long-time mistress Alina Kabaeva (for more details, see our investigation, “A Palace for Putin”).
We must take the most decisive steps to complicate the work of these Goebbels’ successors – from a comprehensive ban on broadcasting equipment supply and maintenance to identifying their assets in the West and blacklisting them for international travel.
Unspeakable atrocities in Bucha, Irpin, and other Ukrainian cities were committed not only by those who tied civilians’ hands behind their back; not only by those who shot them in the back of the head; but also by those who stood by their side, whispering: ‘Come on, pull that trigger! We will put an awesome spin on it in the evening news.’”