Russia-Funded U.S. Conservative Influencers Indicted by DOJ for Interference in U.S. Politics

Key Takeaway: DOJ indicts US conservative influencers funded by Russia to spread disinformation ahead of 2024 election via social media

According to the indictment filed by U.S. prosecutors, two Russian nationals linked to a news organization under the control of Vladimir Putin's government directed millions of dollars to an American media company called Tenet Media. Tenet Media, in turn, paid right-wing influencers to create videos promoting narratives favorable to the Kremlin to reduce international support for Ukraine, promote pro-Russian policies, and influence voters in both U.S. and foreign elections, including the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election.

The indictment, released in the Southern District of New York, charged Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, both residents of Moscow, with conspiracy to launder money and conspiracy to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act. The indictment coincided with a broader set of accusations from the Justice Department, accusing the Russian government of interference in the 2024 U.S. elections.

The indictment specifies that the two defendants were employed by RT, a media organization previously known as Russia Today, which is funded and controlled by the Russian government. It describes a plot by the two RT employees, Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, to funnel nearly $10 million to the Tennessee-based company, Tenet Media, for producing pro-Russian content across platforms like YouTube, X, Instagram, and TikTok. The Treasury Department also sanctioned RT’s editor-in-chief, Margarita Simonyan, for her role in the disinformation campaign.

Tenet Media’s six main influencers—Tim Pool, Dave Rubin, Benny Johnson, Lauren Southern, Tayler Hansen, and Matt Christiansen—have over 7 million subscribers on YouTube and more than 7 million followers on X.

The indictment indicates these influencers as a part of the Russian effort to spread disinformation, amplify divisions, and diminish support for Ukraine within the US.

Elon Musk Amplification of Russian Disinformation Scheme

Elon Musk, with his massive following of 197 million on X (formerly Twitter), played a significant role in amplifying the voices of these Kremlin-aligned influencers. By engaging with and promoting their content, Musk helped elevate disinformation narratives to a much wider audience, furthering the reach of pro-Russian propaganda. His reduced moderation policies on X enabled these influencers, named in the indictment, to spread divisive messages and undermine support for Ukraine. This amplification by Musk gave their content unprecedented visibility, contributing to the broader disinformation effort orchestrated by the Russian government.

Elon Musk Amplify Russian Disinfo

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Scope of Disinformation Efforts

Tenet Media’s videos, often featuring high-profile guests like Lara Trump and Kari Lake, have amassed over 16 million views on YouTube. The Justice Department emphasized the significant role of social media in modern political discourse and the lack of transparency regarding funding sources.

U.S. officials have previously cautioned that Russia may use unsuspecting Americans to advance its influence operations in the 2024 election, but the indictment issued on Wednesday provides the most comprehensive account of these activities so far. Intelligence officials have said that Moscow favors Trump.

The indictment is part of the U.S. Government's broader effort to combat foreign interference, aiming to preserve election integrity amid rising concerns over disinformation campaigns.

The Allegations

Top findings:

The indictment claims that Tenet never informed its audience that it was "funded and directed" by RT, and neither the company nor its founders registered with the Justice Department as agents of a foreign entity.
According to the indictment, two RT employees and Tenet’s founders used two U.S. internet personalities — one with over 2.4 million YouTube subscribers and the other with over 1.3 million — by hiring them to create videos for Tenet while concealing RT's funding. One of the commentators appears to be Pool.
The founders claimed that Tenet was backed by a supposed private investor named "Eduard Grigoriann," who turned out to be a fictitious person with a fake profile. Prosecutors revealed that around February 2023, one of Tenet’s founders began reaching out to the commentators on behalf of "Grigoriann." "Commentator-1" demanded $5 million annually to create videos for the fabricated persona, while "Commentator-2" asked for $100,000 per weekly episode, according to the indictment. The commentators eventually signed contracts: Commentator-1 agreed to produce four weekly videos, hosted and live streamed by Tenet Media, for $400,000 per month plus a $100,000 signing bonus. Commentator-2 agreed to provide weekly videos at $100,000 each.
In one instance, the Justice Department alleges Afanasyeva asked a Tenet founder to blame Ukraine and the U.S. for a March terrorist attack at a Moscow music venue, suggesting the attackers were heading to Ukraine, which she argued seemed suspicious. While the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, a U.S. official confirmed at the time that the U.S. had intelligence supporting the Islamic State's claim.
Between October 2023 and August 2024, the Justice Department reported that RT transferred over $9.7 million to Tenet through shell companies, accounting for nearly 90% of Tenet's bank deposits. Most of this amount, about $8.7 million, went to the production companies of the contracted commentators, the indictment says.

After Tenet’s launch in fall 2023, Kalashnikov and Afanasyeva became involved in its daily operations. Kalashnikov, introduced as an external editor, monitored internal communications and edited content, without disclosing his employment with RT, the indictment says.

The indictment also states that Afanasyeva was frustrated by the commentators’ lack of promotion for Tenet’s content. She created fake personas to join the company’s Discord server and pushed the creators to share at least one video per day.

Prosecutors noted that the founders of Tenet "privately admitted" that their "investors" were actually "Russians." At one point, one founder even searched "time in Moscow" on Google while awaiting a reply to a message.

A Larger Effort to Counter Russian Interference

The DOJ's disclosure of the alleged Russian scheme was part of a broader set of measures announced by the Biden administration on Wednesday to counter a significant Russian government-backed effort to influence the 2024 U.S. presidential election. These actions include sanctions against 10 individuals and entities, as well as the seizure of 32 internet domains.

Under the direction of Russian President Vladimir Putin, three other Russian companies used fake profiles to spread disinformation on social media, according to U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. An FBI affidavit reveals that internal documents from one of these companies show the goal of this propaganda was to support Trump's candidacy or that of any Republican presidential nominee.

“At Putin’s direction, Russian companies SDA, Structura, and ANO Dialog used cybersquatting, fabricated influencers, and fake profiles to covertly promote AI-generated false narratives on social media. Those narratives targeted specific American demographics and regions in a calculated effort to subvert our election. Our republic depends on elections that are free from foreign interference, and we will not rest in our efforts to expose foreign malign influence operations and protect our democracy, without fear or favor,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said.

Combined with the indictment of RT employees, these actions expose ongoing efforts to sway American voters. Following last month's U.S. accusations that Iran attempted to hack both the Trump and Biden-Harris campaigns, Wednesday's actions underscore that U.S. officials continue to view Russia as a significant foreign influence threat in the upcoming November election, sources familiar with the matter told CNN prior to the announcements.

US Attorney General Merrick Garland said the effort was the most extensive attempt yet to combat Russian interference before the November elections.